Five Dallas police officers killed, three Baton Rouge police officers killed, two bailiffs killed in a courthouse, a Milwaukee officer shot several times while sitting in a patrol car, numerous other officers wounded in these shootings; and countless other officers attacked and injured on a nightly basis in incidents not deemed “newsworthy.” And these are just the events of the past week.

Based on the number of officers killed and wounded in the past several months and the statements put forth by militant groups, it’s accurate to say it’s “open season” on law enforcement officers in many parts of our nation. The attacks on the police, the mass shootings of innocent people in schools and public places, attacks on our military personnel, and the nightly violence in many large cities are not isolated acts. It’s our new reality in the United States today.

The violence against police started out as a “media-driven” effort to portray law enforcement as a self-serving corrupt culture that adopted the practice of committing violent acts, particularly against people of color. This situation was exacerbated when vote-hungry politicians seeking election or to appease their constituents, made politically generated statements that fueled hatred and distrust of those sent to protect local communities. A typical strategy was to paint all law enforcement officers with a wide brush as being bad based on the isolated bad acts of a few. Worse yet, these same politicians and news media repeatedly issued proclamations of guilt against the police in “use-of-force” incidents well before the facts of the situation were known.

Rather than working with responsible members of community groups seeking to implement positive changes in police practices, many politicians were generally supportive of Black Lives Matter even though their protesters marched in the streets chanting “What do we want?” “Dead police!’ “When do we want it?” “Now!” The reality is that radical elements of these groups are getting their wish as police officers are being killed by demented individuals who have been emboldened by corrupt politicians and a national news media with a political agenda. If in doubt, look at the public celebrations and the hundreds of thousands of comments on social media supporting the killing of the police officers in Dallas.

When officers are killed, the media and politicians cover the story for a few days until another “newsworthy” event comes along. Worse yet, so-called “experts” go on television, prognosticating and bloviating about how the police themselves caused the attacks. Then the brave officers who sacrificed their lives are forgotten by most people in our society like so many other officers that were killed before them; leaving their families grieving for a lifetime.

There needs to be improvements in policing. No one in their right mind disputes that fact. However, what we allow or support in our society defines us as a nation. What will the scholars write about this time in our nation’s history? That we lost our way as political corruption and special interests took precedence over doing the right thing? That the majority of our citizens stood idly by, distracted by meaningless trivia, electronic devices, and social media while the murder of police officers was encouraged and celebrated? That widespread substance abuse numbed people from the reality of an increasing violent society while families fell apart in a narcissistic culture? That old and young alike became lazy and comfortable in a culture of ignorance? That we focused on “doing what feels good,” forgetting the sacrifices of those who built our nation and the ideals that came from those hard-fought battles?

I mourn for those police officers who were killed, and their families. We lost those brave few who were willing to “step into the arena” to keep the rest of us safe. I would hope that we would do justice to their sacrifices by standing up as a nation and saying “enough is enough.” As Albert Einstein once said, “The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil; but by those who watch them without doing anything.”

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Wade Engelson of Post Falls served in the United States Marine Corps before embarking on a 20-year career in law enforcement. During that time he held a number of challenging assignments with the Fresno Police Department. Wade retired as Deputy Chief of Police with the Vacaville Police Department. Wade has a bachelor’s degree in business and economics; a master’s degree in public administration; and a doctorate in educational leadership. He has taught at the college level and has written several articles published in professional and academic journals.