Odds and ends, 11/7/08

I have never liked going through security at a courthouse. I have to wait in line and let someone see the contents of my pockets. Simply by going through security, I am made to feel as though the judges consider me a threat to public safety. I can't remember the last time I know of someone who committed a crime using a gun or a knife in a courthouse in the Tri-State.

Now there is someone who feels the same. Richard Neely, a former member of the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, wrote an article in West Virginia Lawyer, the magazine of the West Virginia Bar, pointing out the absurdity of all this courthouse security.

If I could find the article on line, I would link to it. Here are some excerpts:

Once statistics are taken into account, it becomes obvious that elaborate courthouse security is simply a grandiose example of what Shakespeare called "the insolence of office." ...

... the true message is simply one of utter contempt for citizens. At heart, then, I have a nagging feeling that the strongest motivation for court security is its ability to erect a sign that says: "Look at me! I'm important enough that someone wants me dead!" ...

Hear, hear.

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Regarding retirement planning:

It's clear that unless you work for government, you're on your own. If not now, then in a few years. Even the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., the government agency that is supposed to insure private pension plans, is underfunded.

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I'm out of here for a week. I'll check in on comments and post them. Other than that, unless something really strikes me the rest of today, I'll see you on Nov. 17.