Addressing the alarm over amber alerts

Ontario residents with cell phones were recently roused at 3 am by the pulsating sound of an Amber Alert, initiated by police in response to the abduction of a young child in Brantford, a small city east of Hamilton. It wasn’t the first time, and as with previous middle-of-the-night alerts, the alarm triggered an avalanche of complaints from irate citizens whose sleep was interrupted, which in turn provoked a barrage of counter-accusations of selfishness from both police and supporters of the system.

In truth, both sides are right, and both are wrong.

What conservatives can learn about polling from The West Wing

There’s a scene in the television series The West Wing when White House strategist Josh Lyman is discussing polling numbers with pollster Joey Lucas. Citing the lack of public support for a particular provision on gun control, Lyman recommends backing off the measure, declaring that “the numbers don’t lie.” But Lucas disagrees, pointing out the numbers “lie all the time.”