The Philosophy of Sheep, Wolves and Sheepdogs

There was an old Army Colonel during the Vietnam era that first coined the phrase “Sheep, Wolves and Sheepdogs” I have researched the term and believe the most exhaustive explanation of the term was written by Lieutenant Colonel (Ret) Dave Grossman. In the blog post below i am quoting one or two phrases he used in a book he wrote in 1995.

The term is used to describe people as having one of three types of personality. Sheep, Wolves and Sheepdogs. Sheep are basically passive, kind and gentle people and would only hurt another person by accident. Wolves are violent people with no moral compass and no empathy for others. They simply live to feed on sheep without mercy. They care nothing for the people they hurt and have no regret, no remorse and no compassion. Then there is the Sheepdog, the most favorite of all. They live to protect the flock and confront the wolves. They are very social and loving animals until something or someone threatens their herd and then they become as vicious as any wolf and are amazing fighters and will die protecting the sheep. There are stories of sheepdogs fighting an entire pact of wolves to protect innocent sheep.

The Sheepdogs are the heroes. The ones that put their lives on the line to protect the innocent. Examples of sheepdogs today would be our military service men and women, law enforcement officers, firemen etc. They choose to go into harm’s way so that others will be saved. This personality trait is very rare and very uncommon but when you see it in the person’s eyes, there is no mistaking it.

The funny thing is that sheep don’t like sheepdogs and they don’t associate with them, ignore them and I imagine in sheep talk, probably call them names, until,,,,, the wolves come. When this happens, the sheep try their best to hide behind the sheepdog for safety. I won’t get political with this blog but reading and listening to liberal politicians’ and news media, they like the sheep, don’t want to admit that they need sheepdogs in case the wolves come. I have often imagined if the chairman of one of the liberal newspapers or news media found themselves in harm’s way, then they want the very law enforcement officers they have spoken and written bad things about to come and rescue them by any means necessary.

See, some people want to deny that there are evil people in the world and want to live in their little bubble and talk bad about our service members and law enforcement officers right up until the day and moment they need them. Then they call them heroes

Last year I was in a Starbucks in line behind a police detective. I was standing in line off to the detective’s side yet still in his peripheral vision. I love to watch people and watch their eyes and how aware they are of their surroundings. Let me tell you, this detective knew precisely where I was standing at all times and I also watched his eyes take in the threat level of everyone in the coffee shop. For him, this was a casual stop for coffee, but he was fully aware of everything and everyone around him. His eyes had that look that is undeniable. He was a sheepdog standing at the ready.

So, in summary, no one reading this blog is a wolf, but everyone knows they exist in our society. Be respectful of the sheepdogs (the ones willing to fight for us) that keep us safe and let not a very few small-minded journalists who write editorials for news outlets lead you to believe that America has lost its way. It has not. We simply live in the best country on the face of the globe. KT

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