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So they caught him. I, too, was glued to the TV Friday night and cheered out loud and even clapped when CNN said they got him, then ran down the hall to tell my husband, who was annoyed Bill O’Reilly wasn’t on. But then my joy turned to sadness and even sorrow, when photos showed the suspected bomber climbing out of the boat, all bloodied and diminished, defeated, despairing.  It’s all over, for him. I read everything I could get my hands on, how he idolized his older brother and “followed him like a puppy,” as one paper reported it; was happy-go-lucky and a partier, as high school friends described him.  But what I really wanted to know was why someone, anyone, would do something like this. I guess it’s as useless – and pointless – as wondering why Adam Lanza shot up an elementary school.  As an old reporter friend at this very paper told me years ago, “You’re not a murderer, so you don’t think like one.” What was more disturbing, though, was that a terrorist

I don't know which was worse.  The Boston Marathon.  The defeated gun bill.  The explosion in Texas.  It was a terrible week. When I first wrote this, no suspect had been shot and killed, before killing another innocent person, the MIT guard.  But now I have this to add, and am waiting for the final installment.  I pray no one else except the killer is killed. CNN reports that the dead "suspect" (are we even calling them that anymore?) was probably outfitted with explosives because he was badly burned when brought to the hospital, but the doctor they talked to at Beth Israel, where he was brought, was pretty closed-mouthed about his injuries and whether he arrived with spent explosives on his body. And now the world is waiting for the second "suspect" to be caught.  For a newshound like me, the coverage is exhilarating, if it weren't so sad. I have to admit I feel depressed, though.  I know life will go on.  But it reminds me how close we all are, t

I used to think that background checks -- while important -- were a weak deterrent to gun sales and a sad culmination of all the anguished lobbying in Washington after Newtown. But reading in The New York Times today, I was shocked to see how much gun violence they could possibly prevent.  I realize "possibly" is the operative word here. But The Times gave as an example a felon (who would not legally be able to purchase a gun through legitimate means) who advertised for one on armslist.com, and each day, his request grew more and more desperate.  Looking like a crime in need of a weapon. This felon was convicted of  burglary and domestic violence. And now, to hear that Republicans, once again, are caving in to the gun lobby, or at least, saying they will probably not vote for this most miniscule (in the end) legislation, I feel despair and rage. While you can't really connect the Boston Marathon bombings and disasters like Newtown, you can see the connection betwe

So now what?  Fuming last night, my husband said, "Everyone's so worried about gun control.  Then you have this.  What's the point of worrying about guns when a lunatic can do this." I've been thinking about it.  And, to me, it all comes back to the availability of materials that can kill. It's true, we're never going to be able to legislate mental illness, or those who want to kill.  And they will always be around. I suppose guns rights activists, dare I say it, are right.  If someone wants to massacre, they'll find a way to do it. But do we have to make it so easy for them?  This morning it was reported that even the slim background check legislation is in danger of failing, as more Republicans are now saying they will oppose it.  So really, how far have we come? I was naive thinking Newtown would change minds.  It's scary to me how very little the brutal killing of 20 innocent children has changed minds.  I truly believed, again naively, t