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Letter: Police are the professionals

By Joel Littauer, Vancouver
Published: January 12, 2018, 6:00am

Nearly daily in The Columbian there’s a story about a murder, robbery, arson, etc. I imagine that the criminals assume they’ll get away with it.

When I lived in New York I had a dog that became ill, and a veterinarian came to my apartment and treated my pet. We talked about my dog’s loyalty to me and he bet me that he could leave and the dog would follow, leaving with him. I made the bet. The veterinarian then walked to the door with my pet following him. I called the dog back, but he ignored me. The vet went out and closed the door with my dog in tow. Flabbergasted, I opened the door and let them in. The veterinarian then gave me a piece of advice: Never try to beat a man at his own game.

That’s good advice for these criminals, most of whom are amateurs. When they commit their crime they pit themselves against professionals: the police. Investigating crimes is their business. They do it every day and nothing lawbreakers do surprises them. Yet those lawbreakers invariably delude themselves that they’ll get away with it. To them I say, take the advice of my former veterinarian: Never try to beat a man at his own game.

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