Yes, terrorism happens, as it occurred in Boston. That's dramatic and frightening — as is a mass murder, such as Newtown's Sandy Hook elementary school.

Then we have the man opening fire on police in Ohio with an AK-47, caught on police dashcam. Again, the video adds to the horror and terror.

And then we have continuing story of the women escaping a decade of captivity.

News, it seems, is much more like a CBS crime drama, such as "Criminal Minds" or "Numb3rs." Throw in Charles Ramsey, the black man who helped save them and gave funny interviews, it is a bit of "The Mentalist" or other shows with grim horror mixed with refreshing laughs.

Is it that we want our news to be more like our entertainment, putting into a context we relate to? Or is it that the news is more horrible? I'm thinking the former, as there have always been horrible stories, such a serial killer out west in the 1950s or the Michigan school bombing in the 1920s. And those were sensationalized, though mostly in print.

The continuous airing of highlights, set to music, adds to the drama. Producers want an emotional impact, but is that at the expense of being informative and putting events into perspective.

A report out of Massachusetts says that police investigating a threat of violence at a school used a student-signed pledge to obtain handwriting samples in their efforts to locate and identify a suspect.
The Republican of Massachusetts says that the school and police are in the city of Northampton, where a threat was made on Dec. 1989 with a note left in a high school bathroom. That was five days after the Sandy Hook shooting, which left 20 children slaughtered.
Two days later, on Dec. 21, a pledge was offered to take student violence and threats seriously with officials from the school, prosecutor's office and police agreeing on the effort.
What do you think of this? The trick is legal, police and prosecutors say, and the police note they also want to help someone if they are troubled. The case could result in a criminal charge punishable by up to three years in stir.
The report from the Republican is here.
Tricks are commonly used by police during their investigations, though usually, it is perceived they may trick an individual who is a suspect. But tricking an entire student body? Beyond the area of cops dealing with juveniles, would this damage the credibility of school efforts to curb violence or ask students about safety or health issues? Does the threat of violence, and the disruption it causes allow police and schools to look for creative ways like this combat the issue?
In Oakland County, police have many times had to deal with school problems, often threats of violence, hit lists and, many times, damaging many buses to get a day off school. The detectives typically get their man — or boy or girl — due to the main way students give up themselves: telling a friend or simply everyone on social media or even videotaping themselves.
Again, what do you think?

So, you thought you'd get away from ugly political fights now that the election is over?

Ok, perhaps after jump over or avert (or postpone, typical for our DC leaders) the fiscal cliff, and then we can focus on work, family, sports, entertainment...a Super Bowl, the Academy Awards and awaiting spring?

Nope, it's going to get ugly with the upcoming war on guns arriving. Well, it's not going to be a war on guns, but to the defenders of the guns, it's war just thinking about any kinds of limits. (I wonder what Boehner would do if Obama offered to keep taxes on the rich lower if GOP would vote for a ban of the most deadly semi-automatic rifles.... that'd be an interesting test on the right's desire for guns and lower taxes... which is the  priority?)

The debate is already ugly, judging by the reaction to the mass shooting that killed 20 children in Connecticut just three days ago.

And wow, the news gets better:

Two police officers killed in Topeka.

A man in California arrested after firing off multiple rounds in a mall parking lot. He was releasing tension from the stuff that made his life unhappy, police said. Used to be, beer was enough for that.

Now I hear those 'people' from that church are to protest at the funerals in Connecticut.

Makes one want to turn off the news and lock the doors.

What a day.

It reminded me of the Virginia Tech shootings, when news lingers for hours that one or two were dead and then the update came... dozens killed.

Today, it was two or three dead for hours. Then headlines trickled out that a dozen or so had died, but minutes later, CBS News reported 27 had been killed.

One is enough, but something about such a large number... it was numbing.

Then came the flood of grief, the occasional look at gun issues and anger at individuals who do such things. Also, there was some talk about mental health and helping those with mental illness.

Because you have to be crazy to something like this right?

Or is it evil?

Whatever it is, many find their solace in prayers and sharing grief, nowadays online using social media. It has been, I hate to say, a relief to see at shared grief online, where before 9:30 a.m., the divide remained as strong as ever.

But besides sharing grief, what can we do to stop this? We cannot live this way as a society.