People are very quick to judge situations and conflicts in life. I see on the news that many are very quick to come to a final judgment without all the facts in a case. When I was in law enforcement as a sheriff’s deputy detective and later as a police investigator I saw the worst side of the human drama. It’s been my experience that many people let their emotions fly off the handle before their brain kicks into gear. It’s called wrath (anger), one of the seven deadly sins. So don’t be so quick to vilify our protectors. You have to look at each situation with the facts before making a decision.

In the law, the “totality of the circumstances” test refers to a method of analysis where decisions are based on all available information. Under the totality of the circumstances test, courts focus on “all the circumstances of a particular case, rather than any one factor.”

In the United States, totality tests are used as a method of analysis in several different areas of the law. For example, in US law a determination about reasonable suspicion or probable cause is based on a consideration of the totality of the circumstances in any event. We called it the 5 Ws: Who, What, When, Where and Why something happened.

We are fighting many battles for the soul of the country right now. COVID-19 isn’t the only virus we are having to fight. With all the activities we are witnessing, so-called protests (riots, pillaging and looting), most folks are beginning to see the breakdown of America to the anarchist and socialist movement spreading across our beloved country – just like a virus. This is a much bigger situation that most can imagine – don’t forget that countries like China, North Korea, Iran and Russia are banded together at the edge of the our green pastures like hungry salivating wolves just waiting for the sheep to panic so they can attack and eat us.

So when you are watching the news, don’t be so quick to judge before you have all the facts. Most of the news is biased and designed to cause fear. And fear, is the killer of the human spirit.

Like my daddy Al, who was a wise old bird, a WWII vet, a good man, and a great American told me many times, “don’t believe anything you hear and only half of what you see,” is the only way to the truth.

Keep the Faith!