A Few Thoughts for Officer Lang..
This morning, a 32 year old mom of 4 went to work. She likely thought it would be a day like any other. Do your job, come home, enjoy life.
She won't be coming home today.
Some jackass shot her several times, and now those girls don't have a mother. She wasn't one of those fool officers who gets shot doing some questionable mess. She wasn't abusing her badge. She was just doing what she gets paid to do. The word on the street is that the killer was 15 years old. Thus far, no confirmation of this has been given.
When something like this happens, everyone has a moment of shock. We call people we love just to check on them. We update our Facebook statuses with a comment about what happened. The profile pics change and the thoughts get a little more profound. The debates begin...do we tighten up gun laws..do we need to change the guard..who is to blame..where can I move?
I could use this space to express my thoughts on guns, but it isn't appropriate to debate that right now. If we changed each and every nuance of the gun laws in our city right now, would Officer Lang's girls have an awesome Christmas? Would Officer Vrooman be at The Med or would he be at home? We know the answer to that already.
I know Officer Lang is not the only officer to die in the line of duty. Her death is not more tragic than the others. When an officer dies, it is a sad reminder that they are dying from doing what they love to do. I'd like to operate under the assumption that they love their jobs because there isn't enough money in Memphis for me to put my life on the line everyday and not love what I do. She, like the other fallen officers, was doing what she had to do to protect us.
We all have our stories of how we hate/dislike MPD for one reason or another. Just yesterday, I was on the phone with a friend straight signifying because there were 8 police cars blocking traffic and two more randomly stopping people. At that time, I wasn't thinking "they may be getting one more fool off of the streets". When I see the officer who blocks a lane to stop you on the expressway, I don't say anything nice about her at all. Honestly, I still might throw her a little shade...but I'll still give her props because fools are so stupid these days that she may be at risk of death from a simple traffic stop.
In the next few days, people will keep debating. There'll be some fuss about guns. I'll see someone get into a hardcore pro-Second Amendment battle..and then an anti-Second Amendment battle. Officer Lang's friends and family will prepare to bury her...at only 32 years old. Someone will talk about how glad they are that they moved out of Memphis. Another cat will say they can't wait to leave. Officer Lang's kids will open gifts without her. Gun enthusiasts will post on websites about how they're salty with Mayor Wharton. Officer Lang's family will continue to grieve. The news will begin to unravel details about the shooting in Connecticut. Officer Lang's kids will have to learn how to live without mom. Memphians will rethink their zip codes...
...but Officer Lang will still be gone..
R.I.P. Officer Lang...and I will keep your loved ones in my thoughts and prayers.
She won't be coming home today.
Some jackass shot her several times, and now those girls don't have a mother. She wasn't one of those fool officers who gets shot doing some questionable mess. She wasn't abusing her badge. She was just doing what she gets paid to do. The word on the street is that the killer was 15 years old. Thus far, no confirmation of this has been given.
When something like this happens, everyone has a moment of shock. We call people we love just to check on them. We update our Facebook statuses with a comment about what happened. The profile pics change and the thoughts get a little more profound. The debates begin...do we tighten up gun laws..do we need to change the guard..who is to blame..where can I move?
I could use this space to express my thoughts on guns, but it isn't appropriate to debate that right now. If we changed each and every nuance of the gun laws in our city right now, would Officer Lang's girls have an awesome Christmas? Would Officer Vrooman be at The Med or would he be at home? We know the answer to that already.
I know Officer Lang is not the only officer to die in the line of duty. Her death is not more tragic than the others. When an officer dies, it is a sad reminder that they are dying from doing what they love to do. I'd like to operate under the assumption that they love their jobs because there isn't enough money in Memphis for me to put my life on the line everyday and not love what I do. She, like the other fallen officers, was doing what she had to do to protect us.
We all have our stories of how we hate/dislike MPD for one reason or another. Just yesterday, I was on the phone with a friend straight signifying because there were 8 police cars blocking traffic and two more randomly stopping people. At that time, I wasn't thinking "they may be getting one more fool off of the streets". When I see the officer who blocks a lane to stop you on the expressway, I don't say anything nice about her at all. Honestly, I still might throw her a little shade...but I'll still give her props because fools are so stupid these days that she may be at risk of death from a simple traffic stop.
In the next few days, people will keep debating. There'll be some fuss about guns. I'll see someone get into a hardcore pro-Second Amendment battle..and then an anti-Second Amendment battle. Officer Lang's friends and family will prepare to bury her...at only 32 years old. Someone will talk about how glad they are that they moved out of Memphis. Another cat will say they can't wait to leave. Officer Lang's kids will open gifts without her. Gun enthusiasts will post on websites about how they're salty with Mayor Wharton. Officer Lang's family will continue to grieve. The news will begin to unravel details about the shooting in Connecticut. Officer Lang's kids will have to learn how to live without mom. Memphians will rethink their zip codes...
...but Officer Lang will still be gone..
R.I.P. Officer Lang...and I will keep your loved ones in my thoughts and prayers.
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