A little snark to start your day right

Is anyone else tired of reading/hearing/seeing stories about Carol Gotbaum?  I’m generally not a big fan of TSA, CBP or most law enforcement types, but I for one wish this story would just go away.  I feel bad that a man lost his wife, and that three children lost their mother.  I lost my mother when I was 18, and it was difficult enough facing that reality as a so-called adult.  If Carol Gotbaum weren’t an attractive, upper class white woman with a powerful stepmother-in-law, would this story still be news?  While I believe that any discourse on law enforcement methods that is conducted fairly is a good one, I don’t believe we should be lining up to thank the Gotbaum family for having the courage (or the means) to ask difficult questions.  I’m also completely over all the gnashing and wailing Noah Gotbaum is doing.  If your wife was depressed, potentially suicidal, an alcoholic and a drug abuser, why weren’t you with her on that flight?  Why weren’t you there to calm her down, take her aside, and reassure her that you would get her on the very next flight to her rehab center?  Why weren’t you there to ensure she boarded her connecting flight on time?

On a slightly more inspiring note, I found this story about the role religion has played in taming one of the country’s most notoriously violent prisons, the Louisiana State Penitentiary (aka Angola).  A life sentence in Louisiana, just like in the federal system, is one without the possibility of parole.  While I’m mindful of maintaining the separation of church and state (unlike our current administration), I believe it’s a good thing to emphasize the restorative rather than retributive nature of justice.