Down These Mean Streets A Man Must Go Who Is Not Himself Mean

Common Sense Commentary: No "Peace Keeper", law officer or soldier is perfect ... without fault, or even close to it... as is true of you and me. But that is far better to say of them than, as some seem to believe, that no Peace Keeper is worthy of his badge or uniform. It is those who hate all Peace Keepers who are the real threat to a peaceful society and unworthy of being called Americans.

I have known hundreds of law officers and military men; a few not worthy of the holy calling (Rom.13:1-6),  their badge or uniform . Those few will not last in the spotlight of public scrutiny.  But 95% of the others are worthy of their enormous responsibilities and do their jobs well and according to the book. I cannot even say as much about preachers, priests, rabies or politicians.

In every vocation and organization there is a percentage of rotten apples ... including churches ... but you don't judge all of Texas by the Lee Harvey Oswalds or Lyndon Johnsons. So let us all judge ourselves, try to reach those lost souls and neutralize the hypocrites. But do not tolerate blanket criticism of peace keepers who are just ordinary people ... except for the uniform and their willingness to put their lives on the line for low pay, and lots of criticism and accusations from the most unworthy and imperfect of our citizens. RB

Raymond Chandler said it this way concerning peacekeepers and the best of ordinary men ...

“Down these mean streets a man must go who is 

not himself mean, who is neither tarnished nor 

afraid. He is the hero; ...

he is everything. He must be a complete man and a common man and yet 

an unusual man. He must be, to use a rather weathered phrase, a man of 

honor—by instinct, by inevitability, without thought of it, and certainly 

without saying it. He must be the best man in his world and a good 

enough man for any world. “He will take no man’s money dishonestly 

and no man’s insolence without a due and dispassionate revenge. He is a 

lonely man and his pride is that you will treat him as a proud man or be 

very sorry you ever saw him.“The story is this man’s adventure in search 

of a hidden truth, and it would be no adventure if it did not happen to a 

man fit for adventure. If there were enough like him, the world would be 

a very safe place to live in, without becoming too dull to be worth living 

in.”