Beyond Hope? Michael S. East

The timing of this entry is somewhat ironic. I wrote The Fall not long after Saginaw voters approved the first 5-year public safety millage back in 2006. I’ve always felt that police work is a job that revolves around extreme highs and extreme lows. In fact, I think this emotional pendulum is what attracts many cops to this line of work, or at the very least, it is what forms them into the people/police officers that they eventually become.

The Fall, in my mind, really put an exclamation point on the highs and lows of law enforcement. One day I found myself back in the saddle, riding the emotional high of the passing of the public safety millage, which meant, for me, job security, and an overall sense of well-being, knowing that the Saginaw Police Department would be able to function at decent staffing levels for another five years (NOTE: voters in 2010 approved another 5-years renewal of this millage, as well as a slight increase to keep up with inflationary type costs). However, as author George Cantor said of Detroit sports fans within the pages of The Tigers of ‘68 ” . . . behind every strip of cheery wallpaper there is an awfully big glob of paste.”

This day described in The Fall is one of the many “big globs of paste” which have punctuated my career as a cop.

The teen who is the subject of this chapter was like many teens I deal with - young, black, angry and in the process of ruining his life while not caring one bit that he is doing so. Sometimes I think that many of the thousands of troubled teens in Saginaw have been shown no other path in life other than the path of self-destruction, so while they are tearing their lives apart they really do not realize it. When you know nothing of success, failure is a predetermined and natural course in life. How can you show somebody right from wrong if the only thing they’ve known in life is wrong?

Anyway, during my interaction with this teen, I really did consciously think to myself “I’m going to try one more time - I can reach this kid.” Sometimes my mental dialogue as a cop (and I assume the same holds true for other cops) really is that simplistic. And for a moment when I was trying to reach this kid, time really did screech to a near standstill as I battled for his attention, his understanding and, in turn, his very future. Only when his mother informed me that he had been to the police department earlier in the day because of a previous shooting, did I realize the futility - again - of my efforts. I can only assume now that this kid is either dead or locked up. After 17 years, I might follow-up with the roughly 3% of the kids that I actually reach during the course of my job. Sadly, I just really don’t even want to know anymore about the 97% I fail to help.

Next up is “First on Scene.” I will try to update more frequently here (once a month is my goal), but I have been busy working on a new book and it has taken up a considerable amount of my spare time. That book, by the way, is the “hockey” side of “hockeycop,” and is a historical book about the old International Hockey League of the 1960s, 70s and 80s. If you are a hockey fan, that yet-to-be-named book should be available in about September of 2011. Based on the interviews I’ve already conducted with former minor league players, coaches and media people, this book should really be something.

Thanks for stopping by.

In an effort to make this site just a tad more interesting and interactive I have added a new spot on my “Links” page, titled “Cop in the Hood Blog” (actually my website guy, Russ Uphold, did the work because I’m, well, just not all that smart with computers).

The site is maintained by Professor/Author/Former Baltimore City cop Peter Moskos. If you read Beyond Hope? you will recognize Peter as one of two authors (Lt. Randy Sutton is the other) to endorse my book. These guys are both excellent police writers, but Peter Moskos has taken his writing and promotion one step further with this blog. Moskos updates this site nearly daily and ferrets out pertinent law enforcement-related stories, human interest stories and stories about society in general as it relates to the life of a cop. In an effort to stir thought and sometimes debate, Peter climbs up on his soap box from time to time and gives some strong opinions about the stories to which he provides links. However, he doesn’t take sides simply to take sides. Peter is generally well-informed and open-minded on topics he chooses, and seems always to be respectful of the points of view offered by others, as long as there is a reasonable amount of sanity anchoring said viewpoints.

What Peter has done with his Cop in the Hood Blog is something I wish I could do on this site. Quite honestly, however, I am: A.) Too lazy to seek out stories, link them and comment on them B.) Too busy to take the time to do this even if I had the energy, and C.) I’m still a cop . . . I think Peter would know what I mean by this. When I work the streets 40 plus hours a week, responding to shootings, people overdosing on heroin in parking lots, fights with weapons and general public idiocy, I just don’t have the patience or the drive to come home and sift through and comment on these stories as they unfold in other communities. Peter Moskos became a Baltimore cop for about a year so he could write his book, Cop in the Hood from an educated point of view. Now, however, he is a Professor of criminology, which means his job is to stay well informed on the stories to which he provides links, and encourage discussion on these stories. So, rather than provide my own daily blog and running commentary about good guys, bad guys, crime and law enforcement, I’m just going to link up to Peter’s blog so any visitors here can be exposed to it also. I hope Peter will give me a mulligan on this one and take it as a compliment to his hard work and organizational skills. By the way, on the right side of his blog page, in the section titled “Labels,” there are two stories Peter has published about Beyond Hope? of which I am very proud. Check them out if you like - they’re listed, appropriately enough, under the heading Beyond Hope?

Just a reminder, I am still scheduled to do a book signing at Dawn of a New Day coffee shop (200 block of S. Washington Avenue across from The Saginaw News) on Friday, September 18th from 11:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. I’m also working on getting Beyond Hope? placed in airport terminal gift shops in Michigan, so travelers can take a piece of Saginaw with them on their flights. How’s that for an odd marketing effort?

While trolling YouTube the other day I came across a couple videos - one music-related and one not - that depict two different people’s fairly accurate (in my opinion) perspectives of Saginaw. I hope to have the links to those videos on this website soon. One is an approximate 3-minute video montage of Saginaw as seen through the eyes of the camera person. The other is a rap-style video of sorts that gives a raw look at life in “the streets” of Saginaw. The music video, I have to say, is pretty impressive. While I don’t find the lyrics appealing (it’s a cop thing), I find the music and the actual video to be pretty dead-on in terms of the message this guy is trying to get across. They are fairly depressing and graphic (and please keep in mind these are NOT my videos).

Anyway, for the sake of balance, I thought I would point out a few of the things I LIKE about Saginaw in this space to keep things even, so to speak.

Over the weekend, my wife and I were out and noticed a large crowd at the Davenport Inn (I believe it is actually flying under the Best Western moniker now). We heard the music coming from their outdoor patio and decided to give it a look. If you haven’t sat outside at the Davenport Inn in the early evening in the summertime, it’s a nice atmosphere. Despite the large crowd, the waitresses were pleasant and prompt and kept everybody happy. The atmosphere was made even better by a band - Maybe August - that is one of the best live bands I’ve seen in a while (not that I get out much). We intended to stay for a song or two, but stayed through the final set . . . and beyond. Maybe August sounded to me a bit like Bare Naked Ladies and they were every bit as fun as that group, interacting often with the crowd and keeping everybody upbeat. The drummer’s main interaction with patrons was to beg free rounds of shots for the band, a request that was answered often by those in attendance (I am told the band spent the night at the hotel, which was probably a good idea). Maybe August covered a few songs, including some surprises (”99 Red Balloons”) and pulled them off with ease. But, they played a lot of their own original stuff, which I have been listening to since the weekend courtesy of the CD-and-Maybe-August-T-Shirt-for-$20-Deal the band was offering that night. You can check these guys out at www.maybeaugust.com. We are going to try to catch up with them one more time before summer ends.

Speaking of good things about Saginaw, I stopped by the Montague Inn last week on minor police-related business and was reminded of a great night last winter. One of the gifts I got my wife for Christmas was “A Saginaw Night” (no, seriously). I decided that we were not taking full advantage of some of the good things in our community and that we should. So we took a night to ourselves and checked into the Montague Inn across from Hoyt Park. I had never been there and, after taking a tour, decided this place was too good to pass up. I booked the nicest suite available (it was a steal @ $165 per night). The Inn itself is clean, friendly and offers a wide variety of rooms for various prices (check them out a www.montagueinn.com). They also have full-service dining (I believe only on weekends), they have a full-service bar and a great patio, which looked like a good place to camp out and talk in the summer. A tour of the Inn is like a walk back in time (I know it’s cliche’ but it really is) and we loved every minute of being there. After check-in, we looked around a bit, and then headed to Jake’s, which is located at Court and Hamilton Streets in Saginaw’s Old Town district. The food and atmosphere there were incredible as well. After Jake’s we walked next door to JB Meinberg’s and enjoyed a drink by the fireplace. We followed-up with a stop at Retro Rocks to meet friends for a while, listen to music, and people watch before returning to the Montague to relax by the fireplace in our room before turning in. All-in-all a great “Saginaw night” that I would recommend to anybody.

My family and I have spent a lot of time enjoying ourselves in the city at places like The Saginaw Children’s Zoo, Pit and Balcony Theatre, Friday NIght Live and the Dow Event Center (we’re a hockey family). I thought it important to bring this up so people don’t think I have a deep-rooted hatred for Saginaw. I do not . . . I would just like to see more of the good stuff and less of the bad stuff as Saginaw moves forward. If anybody has good stories about times spent in the city, please post a comment and share them.

Thanks for checking in. I’m not quite sure where we’re heading with this blog - or this website, for that matter. I’m a pencil-and-paper guy struggling to find my way in webland so we’ll see how it all plays out.

Much like my two books, and any other meaningful writing I’ve undertaken over the years, I view this website as an opportunity to provide and exchange information and, hey, if we are entertained along the way, that’s pretty cool too.

If you stopped by to check out my views on hot cop topics, local politics or religion, I’m not much for stepping into those muddy puddles. I’m more into the emotions of being a cop and the insight and descriptiveness involved in being a writer.  A great website, however, for checking out views on the latest law enforcement stories is www.copinthehood.com . It is maintained by Professor Peter Moskos, who was kind enough to critique and endorse my latest book, Beyond Hope? Mr. Moskos is not only a professor, he is a former cop with the Baltimore Police Department and he is the author of Cop in the Hood. At one time (because of his place in the academic world) I would have dismissed Mr. Moskos’s book as something not worth reading; a liberal professor’s view of the lying and brutal cops who prowl big city streets and prey upon poor urbanites. However, Moskos wrote his book the right way - he became a cop in one of the grittiest citys in the country, wore the uniform, strapped on the sidearm, shared beers with disgruntled co-workers and got down in the trenches and lived the life (albiet for what could considered a brieft period of about 13 months). But his mixture of academic insight and real-world experience make for a great read, both in his book and on his blog. Check him out.

As long as I’m talking about police writers, I cannot help but mention Lt. Randy Sutton of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. Randy also critiqued and, subsequently, provided and endorsement for Beyond Hope? I must admit much of my drive for writing my latest book came after reading A Cop’s Life (www.amazon.com), which was Randy’s first book. The emotion and detail he packed into A Cop’s Life stirred me to the point that I decided to format Beyond Hope? in a similar manner, gutting my feelings and spilling them onto the pavement for all to see, like so much emotional roadkill lying on the side of life’s verbal highway (too descriptive?). Sutton has a way with intertwining personal loss, emotional challenges and unwavering professional insights to create a near virtual experience for his reader’s . . . at least that’s the effect his writing had on me. Sutton also put together two fund-raising books - True Blue and True Blue II (also available through Amazon), which are compilations of stories from police officers around the United States (I have a chapter published in True Blue II titled “Walking Among the Dead”). These books are used to raise money, respectively, for the families of officers who perished during 9-11 and also for a police officers’ museum being planned at the NLEOM. Both are great causes and they demonstrate Sutton’s strong committment to his profession.

The name of this website - hockeycop.com - is also a little ironic as it is a combination of two things - but not the only two things - which bring me both enjoyment and frustration in life. The irony is, I don’t consider myself to be anything more than average at either, and being called an average hockey player is even a stretch for me (just ask my teammates). However, both law enforcement and hockey provide the adreneline, and that sense of commeraderie and loyalty that seem to drive me more and more as I get older.

Again, this website is a work in progress as I am still tinkering with the direction it will take.  Shortly, I will include some photos, some of which relate to my books and police work, and some of which are just fun. I will also add some links to websites and causes I think are worthwhile. I’ll post here as often as the mood strikes and will try to make each post at least somewhat meaningful.

If you’re interested in my latest book, Beyond Hope? , you can check out a review by Justin Engle of The Saginaw News, who met me for an interview last night after he finished reading the book. It may appear as soon as a week from tomorrow (I think that’s the 25th). I’ll post when it comes out . . . unless, of course, he tanks the book in his review 

Thanks for stopping by.