# 4 down - 20,000 responded. Funeral for fallen officers.



## sillybunny11486 (Oct 2, 2009)

wow. thats amazing


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## TaMMa89 (Apr 12, 2008)

Looks amazing.

Those people did very valuable job.


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## ClassicalRomantic (Jun 2, 2009)

I msut of missed what happened!?? but wow what a wonderful thing for them!


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

The 4 officers were in a coffee shop having a cup of coffee before going on shift. They were in uniform and had marked cars parked in the parking lot. A guy entered the shop and ended up shooting and killing them all. Investigators think it was an ambush and the guy had no intention of doing anything except killing the officers.


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## Fowl Play (Sep 22, 2009)

You know what, a couple weeks later 2 more officers went to a domestic call, both were shot, one received fatal wounds. His funeral is today. On Halloween, another was shot and killed while on patrol. The last few months have not been good ones for our law enforcement in Washington. Recently another officer fired his weapon and killed a suspect in another domestic case and the news had the gall to say "It is unclear why he felt threatened enough to fire his weapon." Gee, I don't know, 7 officers shot in the past couple of months and only one survived. Why would an officer feel at all threatened when a person inside the house had stab wounds? 

I have a lot of respect for our law enforcement.


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## ClassicalRomantic (Jun 2, 2009)

oh wow that is so sad! I dont understand people these days!


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## my2geldings (Feb 18, 2008)

Oh my God, heart breaking! How did I not hear about this  Heart breaking. Nice to see so many RCMP officers out there. Absolutely devastating.

Thanks for sharing these photos with us.


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## NorthernMama (Mar 12, 2008)

Not to disrespect the lives of the officers or their families and not to lessen the personal tragedy, but I don't understand why thousands and thousands and thousands of people travelled thousands of miles to be at a funeral that cost thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars for four, count 'em _four _people. 

Mind you I don't get the whole groupie thing for anybody famous either so maybe my mind set just isn't there, but can anyone tell me why people that have never met these men, their families or even heard of them until now would go to their funeral?


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## arabchica (Jul 5, 2009)

There is a brotherhood among law enforcement officers and firemen. I understand why they would drive so far to pay thier respect to thier fallen brothers. They all know that on any given day they could leave for work and not come home. God Bless them and prayers to thier familes.


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## paintsrule (Aug 20, 2009)

NorthernMama said:


> Not to disrespect the lives of the officers or their families and not to lessen the personal tragedy, but I don't understand why thousands and thousands and thousands of people travelled thousands of miles to be at a funeral that cost thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars for four, count 'em _four _people.
> 
> Mind you I don't get the whole groupie thing for anybody famous either so maybe my mind set just isn't there, but can anyone tell me why people that have never met these men, their families or even heard of them until now would go to their funeral?


 The way i see it, the mourners came because the ONLY reason those men died is because they willingly chose to dedicate there lives for us citizens. Since it was clear their murderer only had the intention of killing the police officers because they are police officers, the other police officers came to thank them and their memory for helping america and be willing to face death every day, just to protect people. The dead men deserve massive amounts of credit for it, and deserve to have millions paid for their funeral for what they did/do. they werent celebritys, I dont care about celebritys, they do nothing but entertain us and we could live without their jobs but we could not live without police officers. They deserve thousands upon thousands of mourners when they pass. They arent celebritys and they arent citizens, they're friends, completly dedicated to the countrys protection and are only dead where they sit because of that.

I think its a wonderful thing what the police officers did.


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## NorthernMama (Mar 12, 2008)

But what does it DO? Why? Does it make the attendees feel better about themselves? Does it make the family members feel better? 

I have attended funerals for family. I go to support the family, help them through the first shock and then follow up with them over the ensuring weeks or months depending on how close I am to them. I have never attended a funeral for someone I haven't met, or for anyone that I only know in passing.

Am I callous?


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## mls (Nov 28, 2006)

NorthernMama said:


> But what does it DO? Why? Does it make the attendees feel better about themselves? Does it make the family members feel better?
> 
> I have attended funerals for family. I go to support the family, help them through the first shock and then follow up with them over the ensuring weeks or months depending on how close I am to them. I have never attended a funeral for someone I haven't met, or for anyone that I only know in passing.
> 
> Am I callous?


To show respect for a very vitial part of our way of life. Those individuals vowed to protect and to serve. They were killed in the line of duty. Doing nothing heroic - just being who they chose to be.

They died serving their country - on the homefront vs in a war over seas.


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## NorthernMama (Mar 12, 2008)

Well, OK. It's just too far out of my mindset I guess. I'm a social outcast.


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## Allison Finch (Oct 21, 2009)

Wow, you folks are awesome. Let me explain why I think that.

For many years I was a full time professional horse trainer/competitor. At one point, I realized I wasn't getting any younger and was not preparing for my future retirement. I decided I needed to get a career with BENEFITS! I needed something to appeal to my need for adrenaline (like jumping big or hairy jumps).

I chose law enforcement.
I am now a patrol Sgt and firearms instructor. I still teach and train on my days off.

I have to constantly work around people who hate and disrespect us at every opportunity. I have to deal with the media that LOVES seeing all too human officers make mistakes, for which they try to crucify them. I have been shot once, and who knows what tomorrow will bring.

I deal with the possibility, every time I put on my badge (AND bullet proof vest) that I might not live to come home at the end of my shift.

I deal with the possibility that one of my officers will be a casualty, someday.

Northernmama, Just like soldiers, we put our lives in our fellow officers hands every day. We understand all of the above difficulties I mentioned, applies to every one of us.

In the likely event that we need to pay respect to a fallen officer (which I have), we do it for FREE!! It does not cost anyone "thousands and thousands and thousands" of dollars. No doubt you will never get it, I'm afraid.

To all of you others....you are what makes us get out there, every day, and do what we do. To you, I say my heartfelt thanks.

To Northernmama, I will lay my life on the line for you, too. Even though you "don't get it".

I love you all for this thread.

Sgt Allison Finch
Chapel Hill P.D.










Sometimes I trade my patrol car for a bike. I actually get paid to have fun.


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## paintsrule (Aug 20, 2009)

Allison Finch-You have my dream job. When I grow up (only mid teens now) my absolute dream is to be a mounted patrol officer in New York, I think it would be amazing. I dont really know how to get started with it or the colleges to attend or anything, but I absolutly cant wait to lay my life on the line if I get the chance, like you said it looks fun and very worthwhile. What a great job!


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## my2geldings (Feb 18, 2008)

NorthernMama said:


> Not to disrespect the lives of the officers or their families and not to lessen the personal tragedy, but I don't understand why thousands and thousands and thousands of people travelled thousands of miles to be at a funeral that cost thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars for four, count 'em _four _people.
> 
> Mind you I don't get the whole groupie thing for anybody famous either so maybe my mind set just isn't there, but can anyone tell me why people that have never met these men, their families or even heard of them until now would go to their funeral?


You don't have an understanding of the job itself.

When you work in that field, whether it be police, fire, ems-you put your life on the line(more so law enforcement than the other 2). You will spend most of your serious calls at work responding with someone you may or may not even know, but they are your co-worker, you know that regardless of the situation you have each other's back. These men and women, WILL die trying to protect you.

When one of us die in the line of duty even despite the fact you have never met or even known these poor souls, they are part of your family. You know they would have been there for you. It's an extremely respectful act, and would have been my honor and privilege to have been there.


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

Part of it is the fact that because we are called to risk ourselves every day for people that we don't know, sometimes working with people we don't know, we kinda start to think about everyone else in the uniform as family (like Kelly said); someone who can be trusted and who you can turn to when you need help. I am not a cop persay but my Dad is. I am an officer in a prison but IMHO, we are all just shades of the same color.

I can say that the words that I dread hearing above all others are "10-78, Officer Assault". It gives the feeling of your stomach dropping; kinda like if you get a call that someone in your family has been in an accident but the caller doesn't know how badly they are hurt. Even if it is someone that I don't personally like, they are still family and I would do whatever possible to help them.

They volunteer to risk themselves every day to protect us regular people, they are there to help us when we need them. For a person like that f***ing cluck to target them just because he was a pussy with a grudge just breaks my heart. They take the job knowing every day that they might not come home because they are trying to make the world a little better place for all of us.

Sorry for my little rant.


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## Allison Finch (Oct 21, 2009)

It is also aggravating that they weren't given the opportunity to try to fight their way out of it. He just went right up and executed them before they could even react. Such a helpless way to go, IMO.


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## roro (Aug 14, 2009)

I actually live a few minutes from Seattle and everybody is feeling wary. My Barn Manager's husband is a police officer and she is distraught for a good reason. From what I know there have been 2 attacks by the same attacker. The original attacker (Maurice Clemmons) was shot and killed on his 2nd attack after he shot a cop. The first attack happened 6 days after he got out on bail from raping a child. When interviewed in the past year, Clemmons believed he was Jesus Christ and that the world was on the verge of the Apocalypse.


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## NorthernMama (Mar 12, 2008)

Thanks to everyone that is trying to teach me.

So, first off, I must say it still costs thousands and thousands of dollars. SOMEONE is paying for this -- be it a family, insurance company, government, business. In the end it's coming out of the citizen's pockets. Not to say that's a bad thing in itself, just to point out it IS being paid for and it is definitely NOT free.

Now, I think I'm getting a bit more of it. You all are focusing on the job that the people have chosen to do. There are many jobs that put the employees life on the line and certainly without those people the life of individuals would be very different, no doubt. So, while I am focusing on the individual, you are looking at a grander scheme of things. I think I have at least some inkling of _passing on a message_ by their attendance. They are not there for the individuals that have died or for their families, but to tell all members of all organizations that put their lives on the line that they appreciate and recognize their efforts and contributions.

I have never been of that mindset even on a small scale. For example when my first son was born a relative I may have met once (I don't remember meeting her) showed up at the hospital to offer congratulations and I kicked her out. I always think that personal events, good or bad, belong to me and mine, not strangers and their presence makes me uncomfortable.

So, while I still am not a person that will attend events such as this, I can try to look beyond the individual(s) involved to understand a bit better.

I feel a little bit enlightened. Thanks!


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## Becca93 (Jan 22, 2009)

^ You have to look at the bigger picture in life. It is those individuals that make the big picture. You cannot choose to look at one and not the other.

By free (and feel free to correct me if I'm wrong) I think it was meant that the people who attended were not paid to be there. 

The 20, 000 who attended WERE there for the 4 officers who had died, and they WERE there for the families and friends who had lost loved ones. But there were also their to show their respect, appreciation, and to thank those who risk themselves for the sake of others.

I'm trying really hard not to be slightly offended by your posts because I know you don't mean them like that.


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## NorthernMama (Mar 12, 2008)

Becca93;519725I'm trying really hard not to be slightly offended by your posts because I know you don't mean them like that.[/quote said:


> Well, I'm glad you understand I am not trying to offend. As a matter of fact, I worked very hard at trying NOT to offend. I'm sorry that it somehow did. Maybe some topics are just more susceptible to reactions.
> 
> Believe it or not, I do appreciate being told that offense could easily be taken from it. I'll add it to my social skills list of things to watch for.
> 
> Thank you.


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