Accountability and responsibility

By Jeff Orvis

Christmas Day, 2014. A lot of words are associated with this time of year: Peace, Prosperity, Charity and probably several more. As I prepared to jot down a few thoughts this time, considering recent events, a couple of words came to mind: Accountability and Responsibility.

These two words are closely associated, if not always synonymous. We are taught we are to be held accountable for our actions. If we don't, there are others, usually those in authority wearing a badge and carrying a weapon, will be responsible for us. The young man who was shot by Ferguson, MO police allegedly did not take proper responsibility when he robbed a convenience store and, again allegedly, attack the officer. The young man who recently was shot by a policeman a few miles down the road from there again allegedly did not take proper responsibility when he pulled a gun on the officer.

Sometimes the accountability and responsibility is shared by both the public and the police, as what apparently happened on the streets of New York when a man allegedly resisted arrest and was subsequently killed in an illegal choke hold by a policeman while some of his fellow officers did little to stop the incident.

While the friends and relatives of those who lost their lives are still mourning their passing, don't you think the officers involved are also suffering to some extent? First there were the interviews by police internal affairs and the district attorneys and the mountains of reports to be filed. If you can safely assume that at least most of those officers entered that line of work to help people, what internal turmoil they must still be suffering, knowing that they took another life, regardless of the circumstances.

While on the subject of our local police, while we are enjoying our families and opening our presents today, there are thousands of uniformed officers who are working hard, keeping us safe. If I was a policeman, I would dread working these holidays. People gather inside a home, liquor is consumed, arguments might start as the day progresses and in extreme cases, violence erupts. Police are called to stop the disturbance and often become the enemy, as all sides turn on them.

Of course, then we have the subsequent incidents in Missouri, where some misguided outlaws decided to capitalize on a bad situation by shooting, rioting and looting, destroying their own neighborhood. And just recently, a mentally challenged individual executed two policemen in their squad car, in retaliation for the death of the suspect on the New York street and for the suspect in Missouri.

So the question is, when will we all stop and accept responsibility for actions that sometimes lead to tragedy like this? In the wake of the massacre at the elementary school a couple of years ago, some apparently well-meaning politicians suggested that maybe it was “time for a conversation” on how to combat gun violence. I doubt that was much comfort to the parents of those kids and teachers who were murdered. The “conversation” won't bring them back.

There's another area of accountability and responsibility that has been troubling me recently. We see the commercials for the Humane Society, reminding us we should contribute to help homeless animals. We see commercials for various international aid groups seeking contributions to help the less fortunate here and abroad. Then we are seeing more and more commercials for a few organizations who are supposedly helping “wounded warriors.” Send $19 a month to one group and you will receive a blanket. Meanwhile, your contribution is supposed to help these returning warriors recover from their physical and emotional wounds.

I am mature enough to believe that our armed forces perform noble duties and keep us safe. They don't debate whether what they are doing in far off lands will have a lasting impact on our world. But many of them who are deployed to war zones do see at least a short term impact on the local population and their reward is knowing that they made a difference.

Recently, CNN has done an investigation into what percentage of donations to returning wounded veterans organizations actually go toward the veteran and how much is absorbed in fund raising costs and administrative overhead. The report indicated that some of the groups are spending far less than 50 percent of what they receive to help the returning veterans.

Aside from that, is it really the place of ordinary Americans to donate to ensure that those wounded in action receive prompt care and rehabilitation? If you believe that those who fight for us are true heroes, why won't our government treat them as such? Why so much red tape and delay at VA hospitals? Why isn't the government spending the money on the soldiers instead of donating some big, heavy armored vehicle to a small town police department that can barely afford gas for its two or three patrol car fleet?

If you enlist in the armed forces and serve one or more tours of duty in a combat zone, and come home minus a leg, arm, eye or nightmares that make you wake up nights screaming, your government should show its appreciation with superior and immediate medical care and a pension befitting a returning hero. Leave the pleas for donations from the public for abandoned dogs and cats. Our troops deserve much better treatment than that.

We need to ask some tough questions of our members of Congress. Hold them accountable. Demand that they take responsibility. After all, that's what we are paying them for.