Think About War A Little More

We wanted to highlight a publication by Frederick S. Grossman, Jr. Information on the book, including purchasing information, can be found below.

ISBN13 Softcover 978-1-4535-6775-3
ISBN13 eBook     978-1-4535-6776-0
 
You can also order through Xlibris Website or by calling 888-795-4274 ext.7879. Also found online at Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble.

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We will go where you fear to go
We will see what you fear to see
We will do what you fear to do
All these things we will do for you

Anonymous, adapted by Mike Rapiejko, Tucson PD

The Sheepdog's Prayer

This prayer is dedicated to all the Sheepdogs who make our world a safer place to live.  To all of the law enforcement  / rescue / military personnel and armed citizens: THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE.

By Roger E. Temple - Revised 02/2011

The Knights of Olde were Men of Honor
Who used their Might For Right!
Today they’re known as Sheepdogs,
Those who carry on the fight.
 
I am a tired old Sheepdog,
The guardian of my flock.
I keep the predators at bay
And stand watch around the clock.
 
Please stop the Sheep from pulling my teeth.
I’ll need them for the fight,
When the hungry Wolves come calling
Some dark and deadly night.
 
I pray I'll never need my gun,
But someday if I do,
May my cause be just!
My draw be quick!
And my aim be ever true!
 
Heaven holds a special place
For those who do the deed,
Defenders of the innocent
In their hour of need.
 
May the Sheep someday be grateful.
There’s a debt they can not pay
To the Sheepdogs who lay it on the line
Each and every day.
 
I am proud to be a Sheepdog.
I've done my very best.
I'll stand my watch until my Maker
Calls me home to rest.
 
But when I meet St. Peter
There's just one request I’ll make,
“Please let me spend Eternity
Standing guard at Heaven's Gate”.
 
Lord, help us bring this ''Age of Sheep''
To a rapid end.
Then fill this land with Sheepdogs,
Men of Honor, once again.
 
This prayer is dedicated
To those who bravely face,        
The dangers all around us,
To make our world a safer place.
 
To the soldiers, cops and warriors-
Sheepdogs through and through.
Thank you for your service
And your sacrifices too.
Amen

Warrior Poetry from Lt. Col. Dave Grossman's book, On Killing

Pg 61, On Killing:
Fear and Courage Among Medical Personnel:
“They Take Not Their Courage from Anger.”

In a vision of the night I saw them,
     In the battles of the night.
'Mid the roar and the reeling shadows of blood
     They were moving like light . . .

With scrutiny calm, and with fingers
     Patient as swift
They bind up the hurts and the pain-writhen
     Bodies uplift . . .

But they take not their courage from anger
     That blinds the hot being;
They take not their pity from weakness;
     Tender, yet seeing . . .

They endure to have eyes of the watcher
     In hell and not swerve
For an hour from the faith that they follow,
     The light that they serve.

Man true to man, to his kindness
     That overflows all,
To his spirit erect in the thunder
     When all his forts fall, -

This light, in the tiger-mad welter,
     They serve and they save.
What song shall be worthy to sing them-
     Braver than the brave?
          -Laurence Binyon, World War I veteran
          “The Healers”


Pg 82, On Killing:
The Well of Fortitude

Stay with me, God. The night is dark.
     The night is cold: my little spark
of courage dies. The night is long;
     be with me, God, and make me strong.
          -Junius, Vietnam veteran
          Pg 93 On Killing


The Blind Men and the Elephant

The man who ranges in No Man's Land
Is dogged by shadows on either hand
     -James H. Knight-Adkin
     “No Man's Land”


Pg 141, On Killing:
The Demands of Authority: Milgram and the Military

Riflemen miss if orders sound unsure;
They only are secure who seem secure . . .
     -Kingsley Amis
     “The Masters”


Pg 229, On Killing:

This let us pray for, this implore: That all base dreams thrust out at door,
     We may in loftier aims excel
And, like men waking from a spell, Grow stronger, nobler, than before,
     When there is Peace.
          -Austin Dobson, World War I veteran “When There Is Peace”


Pg 264, On Killing
The Rationalization and Acceptance of Killing

But after the fires and the wrath, But after searching and pain,
His Mercy opens us a path To live with ourselves again.
     -Rudyard Kipling “The Choice”

If The Cause Be Just…

"If the cause be just…" 
They hear the words so clear… 
Warriors, each and every one… 
These words they hold so dear. 
 
The words define their purpose… 
And the honor in their hearts… 
Few can know the path they've walked… 
Few know where it starts. 
 
The call comes in a "disturbance…" 
They've yet to learn the rest… 
"Barricaded…  He has a gun…" 
Now they're called…  the "best." 
 
Their training has prepared them… 
But training is not enough… 
In their hearts they MUST believe… 
Lest the going be too rough. 
 
They walk where angels fear to tread… 
They take up arms and trust… 
That either way, they'll be home tonight… 
"If the cause be just." 
 
~Terri L. Brunner 
     March 30, 2003 
 
This poem is dedicated to the men and women who serve on law enforcement special tactics teams.  The bravery they show in responding to even their "routine" calls is unmatched and worthy of the gratitude of the people who live the freedoms that they protect.  Just as the soldiers of our armed services are today standing strong for freedom, both home and abroad, so do these men and women each and every day…  so often unnoticed.  May God protect them all in His grace and bring them home when their duty has ended