By John Theobald and Dr. David Leffler
Whatever one’s view of law enforcement and military
personnel, certainly we can agree that these are highly
stressful times for these professions. Therefore it is
important to know that a powerful
scientifically-validated, cost-effective stress
reduction tool is available to police and military,
known in military circles as Invincible Defense
Technology (IDT). IDT is an innovative application of
Transcendental Meditation (TM) that has proven itself
effective to reduce stress and high tensions, for
individuals as well as for society. See: “Results
of the National Demonstration Project to Reduce Violent
Crime and Improve Governmental Effectiveness in
Washington, D.C.” Social
Indicators Research, 47, 153-201.
The calming IDT influence has been documented in over
300 peer-reviewed research studies. It is effective in a
wide variety of high-stress circumstances.
IDT
is included in the training program of Brazil's
Elite Police force and
has been field-tested
by militaries worldwide.
Its calming societal influence has been validated by 23
peer-reviewed studies carried
out in the Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia, and
Latin America. Independent scientists and scholars
endorse it, based on its continuous record of
effectiveness where traditional police and military
tactics have failed. The
IDT approach has been used during wartime,
resulting in reduction of fighting, reduced war deaths
and casualties, and improved progress toward resolving
the conflict through peaceful means. Its
coherence-creating effect has been documented on a
global scale in a study published in the Journal
of Offender Rehabilitation.
When large assemblies of IDT experts gathered during the
years 1983-1985, terrorism-related casualties decreased
72%, international conflict decreased 32%, and overall
violence was reduced in nations without government
intrusion.
An article published in the FBI
Law Enforcement Bulletin (pp.
26–32, May 2009) entitled Brain
Functioning as the Ground for Spiritual Experiences and
Ethical Behavior discusses
the potential benefits of TM and concludes that the
practice of TM technique leads to increased frontal
brain integration, faster habituation to stressful
stimuli, and higher moral reasoning. TM practice
enlivens frontal brainwave coherence. This builds global
brain circuits that place individual experiences in a
larger framework. As such, TM provides an inner armor to
protect police officers from the noxious effects of
stress and negative experiences.
In a study conducted by Ecuadorian army psychologists,
over 96% of the military police officer cadets found the
TM technique to be a highly practical activity. 92%
found their performance in activity had improved and
they were better able to deal with stress; 96% declared
their relationships with others had
improved; and 95% said their practice of the TM
technique was completely satisfying. Significant
improvements in health and discipline were experienced
by the officers and cadets practicing the TM program in
the State of Bahia, Brazil. Most importantly these
improvements resulted in improved community relations as
measured by a dramatic increase (1,206%) in the number
of positive reports received by the Police Department
from the citizens of Salvador.
In the early 1970’s, six thousand active New York City
Police, many working in high-crime areas, actively
practiced the TM technique. One of the most common
reports was an improvement in their marksmanship.
Feedback from meditation students has been received for
many years, both in college programs and, in some cases,
years later, by individual police officers who said they
were "still TM-ing."
Some of the overwhelmingly positive results include
feeling more aware, particularly in life-threatening
situations. This is especially important in that law
enforcement officers often find themselves in a position
of having to resort to using deadly force in an effort
to protect and save lives. Those who regularly practice
TM have the ability to find other ways of defusing these
same situations.
IDT has the advantage of being a portable strategy.
After learning the technique, all one needs is a
comfortable place to sit with eyes closed. No additional
resources are needed. The self-reliance of this approach
appeals to the police "protector" and military "warrior
mindset." IDT offers an approach that not only helps
save precious minds and lives, but also saves money in
the process during these difficult and uncertain times.
We urge our leaders to implement IDT and its advanced
practices as an integral part of police and military
training.
The Lahore Times recently
published an article which included two online videos
from DLFTV documenting IDT applications in Ukraine and
the USA. See,
http://www.lhrtimes.com/2016/05/09/transcendental-meditation-norwich-university for
more information about these IDT developments.
About the Authors:
John
Theobald received
his B.S. in Behavioral Science/Criminal Justice (cum
laude) at the New
York Institute of Technology,
and an M.S. in Counseling and Psychological Testing with
a minor in research design from Nova
University. His program
provided an extensive background in counseling
psychology and testing, with an emphasis on
psychological testing, and on the physiological and
quantitative aspects of rehabilitation. John was an
honor graduate of the New
York City Police Academy.
(At that time college credits were granted for
graduating from the academy.) He served in the New
York City Police Department (NYPD)
where he received special Anti-Terrorist Training and
worked a variety of assignments, including uniform
patrol, undercover and plain clothes, drug and
anti-crime task force, and administrative duties. While
serving as an administrative assistant to the commanding
officer of the Queens Task Force, NYPD, John received
additional training in forensic science and
investigative techniques, and later became, and still
is, a Licensed Private Investigator. He also served as a
Probation Officer in Hawaii. John developed the College
Accelerated Program for Police, a college degree program
designed for full-time police officers in the New York
area. He served as coordinator for this program and
assumed the directorship of the Student Service
Department, when the enrollment reached 12,000 students.
His paper, "Three Alternative Systems of Criminal
Defense: A Comparative Analysis," was published in Perspectives
in Criminology.
Dr.
David Leffler received
his Ph.D. in Consciousness-Based Military Defense from The
Union Institute & University. His pioneering 1997 doctoral
dissertation study investigated the stress-reducing
field effects of the collective practice of the
Transcendental Meditation and advanced TM-Sidhi programs
by Invincible Defense Technology (IDT) experts on
employees of a nearby police department who were not
practicing the technologies and were blind to the
purpose of the study. Dr. Leffler presented research at
a conference for military and law enforcement in
Washington, D.C., titled "The
Fifth Annual Countering IEDs: Assessing the IED Threat
and its Evolution on the Battlefield and in the Homeland,"
about how IDT might be used to prevent terrorism. Dr.
Leffler is currently the Executive Director at the Center
for Advanced Military Science (CAMS). He served as
an Associate of the Proteus
Management Group at the Center for Strategic
Leadership, US Army War College. In this consultant
capacity, Dr. Leffler published on the topic of IDT ("An
Overlooked, Proven Solution to Terrorism") that
appears in "55 Trends Now Shaping the Future of
Terrorism". Dr. Leffler has published in over 1,100
locations worldwide about the military applications
of the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programs.
His IDT paper titled "A New
Role for the Military: Preventing Enemies from Arising -
Reviving an Ancient Approach to Peace" was published
in the Journal of Management & Social
Science. |