General Forums >> General Law Enforcement >> Humor in LEOs.
Humor in LEOs.
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Posted 2 months ago I have heard a lot of talk lately, mostly from non-leo's, about how leo's seem mean. We are sarcastic at inapropriate times, and we laugh at other peoples tragity and pain. I would like to clear this up If I can. I know my brothers and sisters already know this. And so do many of the non-leos who are part of our family here. So this is not for them. It is for those who just don't know or understand. COPS USE HUMOR AS A WAY OF COPING WITH ALL THE TRAGITY AND PAIN THEY SEE AND EXPERIENCE ON A DAILY BASIS. We do not mean to be mean or rude or inapropriate. It is our way of distancing the pain from our selves. Turning it to humor lets us keep it from becoming rage, or fear, or alcoholism, or a host of other things. I hope this will clear things up some. I reject your reality and submit my own. |
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| Posted 2 months ago Well said there bmorgan. We, as Law Enforcement Officers, tend to often see the seedier and brutal side of llife that most in the community are never exposed to. We soon learn to use humor and sarcasm as a sort of psychological self-defense mechanism to take the harsh edge off many of the awful things that we see. We are as sarcastic and bombastic with each other as we are with many of the non-LEOs here on PL. The major difference is that we do not take the sarcasm or jokes to heart as a personal attack, we roll with it and come back with more of the same. We may not always be "Politically Correct" enough, or the "Kinder, Gentler Officer Friendly" that you might like to chat with, but rest assured.........each of us would be there in an instant when duty calls and we do not differentiate between LEO and non-LEO when things get serious on the street and our services are needed. Take our sarcasm and joking here with a grain of salt, and please.......lighten up a bit and get a sense of humor......it makes life so much more enjoyable for you, and for those around you.
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| Posted 2 months ago bmorgan says ...
Yep... Reminds me of an aircraft crash I responded to back when I was a Police Officer. I was off-duty at the time and there had been a small private aircraft that had disappeared from radar several miles from the airport where I worked. I was called in and instructed to attempt to locate the possible wreckage. About 10 or so miles from the airport I arrived on scene where the aircraft had indeed went down, local VFD personnel were already there. Now of course you know that there has to be a least one person, the pilot, on board but it was unclear at the time if or how many others may be too. There were no sounds or signs of life in or around the wreckage. As we approached the scene we noticed strands of what appeared to be human flesh and remains hanging from the trees above our heads. Once pieces of the wreckage were being moved there were the tops of 2 heads spotted. The remains of the 2 individuals were picked up piece by piece by piece. One of those VFD personnel commented, "Well at least the critters will eat well tonight.". Yes that might come across as being harsh, cruel, and uncaring by someone who might not have been on scene and witnessed this horrific site but I have to admit I did chuckle at the time it was said and done. Later that night though, as I sat in my apartment all alone, I broke down in tears as a result of what I had been through that day. The thought that these 2 men, a husband, brother, Father, Uncle, friend to someone never made it home and about the family members who would never see their loved ones again. I thought about what might have been the last thought(s) that went through these men's minds might have been... Sometime after that event I went to a Political Rally and there they had a Pig Roast and when they begin tearing the meat off the bones and serving it up I quickly turned and walked away as I was seeing the remains of those 2 men being recovered. To this day, when I hear of a small plane crash with fatalities I see the accident I was at just as clear and vivid as if it just happened. So yes, an LEO's humor may be quite different than a non-LEO. "Relax, the handcuffs are tight because they're new. They'll stretch out after you wear them awhile." |
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| Posted 2 months ago That's why civi's are no longer allowed in our roll calls |
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| Posted 2 months ago The "gallows humor" as we say around here is hard, harsh and should be done behind closed doors NOT at the scene. I have had to play go between at a scene where some Non-emergency folks had heard comments, it aint fun trying to explain this to the non intiatated. Trace1, I feel your pain. I some times can't eat steak, pork or other meat off a grill since a house fire where I helped pull a 4 mo old baby and mother that died inside. The odors still come without warning and can last for seconds or hours. |
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| Posted 2 months ago For me it's some one talking with a mouth full of spit or some other liquid. My first taste of death was when I was 18. A 16yr old kid from my school was in a crash. I was tasked by an emt to use the suction ball to suck the blood out of his mouth. There was so much of it I couldn't keep up. The whole time he was begging me not to let him die, and choking on the blood. He died in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. Every time I see some redneck with a mouth full of spit I get a little lump in my throat. I reject your reality and submit my own. |
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| Posted 2 months ago When I worked hospital security, I saw my fair share of horrendous death and gore. Horrible. I first learned to deal with it from the county coroner. One of my jobs was to basically be her "b*tch" and do whatever she asked around the morgue. Drowning vics were the worst (omg, the smell), and we had a few cases where some bodies were recovered (at different times) from mobile homes and apartments after sitting for a couple of weeks in the dead of summer. The worst though was a fire victim. I'll never forget that smell and that sight is burned in my mind forever. So, this Coroner would call for me to meet her in the morgue for my b*tchly duties of helping her move bodies and helping her set up for autopsies, and I would routinely find her in the morgue eating lunch. She be just sitting there next to a body munching on Cheetos and eating sandwhiches and shit. I remember the first time I found her eating like that was when we had a moderately gruesome accident victim brought in. I walked into the morgue and there she was holding a ham sandwhich and slurping a mountain dew. I looked at her, looked at the victim, and almost tossed cookies right there. She laughed at me and kept eating, but she joked about my weak stomach (and boy did she make sure it got strong FAST) and started cracking jokes to put me at ease. I learned my 'gallows humor' from a coroner and found out that it fits right in with 'cop humor'. One thing for sure though, I can't smell hand sanitizer (the whole morgue smelled that way all the time) without seeing these damn images in my head. And I'll NEVER touch a Cheeto again, EVER! And I totally know what you mean about that burning meat smell. Sometimes I just can't handle it and have to walk away before I retch. Thats just life now. Will that sort of thing ever go away, or does it have to be replaced by worse things that I'll encounter in the future? And I can't imagine being the cops that had to find these things before they ever reached me. I feel for you guys, seriously.
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| Posted 2 months ago SEO says ...
Not only was I an LEO, but at the same time a certified Basic EMT too... During my EMT training, I had to pull rotations in both Hospital's ERs and on a couple of Ambulance calls as well! "Relax, the handcuffs are tight because they're new. They'll stretch out after you wear them awhile." |
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| Posted 2 months ago trace1 says ...
I'm on a Jaws of Life Crew. I know what it's like brother. I reject your reality and submit my own. |
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| Posted 2 months ago I seem to remember being told the explanation of being if we don't laugh about it, we'll cry....
I'm not "really" a troll....I just love changing my avatar... because...
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| Posted 2 months ago I think some of these people need to just 1) Quit whining 2) Act like adults 3) Quit asking stupid questions cause your gonna get a stupid answer 4) Learn how to take a joke 5) If you dont like it then go back to myspace and tell everyone how you rescued a group of orphans from Israeli rebels while you solved the world hunger problem with a bad heart bum leg and a money hungry woman on your back. JMO and keep them coming guys cause it keeps me laughing. Take it easy and be safe Broken By Faith Renewed By Sacrifice |
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| Posted 2 months ago Learn to laugh at shit that just ain't funny. Best advice I ever got from an old salty cop. I reject your reality and submit my own. |
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| Posted 2 months ago bmorgan says ...
.Same advice my dad gave me Broken By Faith Renewed By Sacrifice |
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| Posted 2 months ago bmorgan says ...
We always joked, that with us being Cops and EMTs, we could shoot you first and then save your life. (At the time all Officers with Dothan Airport Police were required to be Basic EMTs.) "Relax, the handcuffs are tight because they're new. They'll stretch out after you wear them awhile." |
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| Posted 2 months ago Offroader21 says ...
He wasn't a cop in Sheridan Wy in the early 90's was he? I reject your reality and submit my own. |
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| Posted 2 months ago bmorgan says ...
No my dad always wanted to go to the AF but screwed up his knees to badly playing HS football. He always taught me respect and how to grasp reallity even in the toughest of times. Broken By Faith Renewed By Sacrifice |
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| Posted 2 months ago Offroader21 says ...
Sounds like a good man. I reject your reality and submit my own. |
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| Posted 2 months ago Some great LEO humor books....by Wally Davis a former SoCal LEO The laugh factor: Stress management for law enforcement Crime Crushers ( and a couple of sequels) The Corvette Cartoon Book...... And by Don Parker, retired FL LEO....
Find 'em & I assure you will ROTLYAO.....
I'm not "really" a troll....I just love changing my avatar... because...
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| Posted 2 months ago bmorgan says ...
He is and i thank him cause he is one of my motivations to wanting to get on the PD. Broken By Faith Renewed By Sacrifice |
and his other "You're Under Arrest, I'm not kidding"