Education is the cornerstone of democracy
The events of January 6 represent an inflection point for our democracy and, in truth, for our concept of civil society. Much has already been written about the political and cultural tides that swept our nation toward these events and a real understanding of their significance will not be possible for some time, in part because the reactions and responses to these events are still unfolding as I write.
John J. Petillo
Even in the early days of the aftermath of such an upheaval, educators bear a significant duty to offer perspective and to model civil discourse as society and especially our students endeavor to make sense of these events and to understand how to meet the challenges they present. Liberal arts education in general, and the Catholic intellectual tradition in particular, provide a lodestar for this task in their emphasis on the search for truth and on the dignity of every human being.
MARION, Va. â On a Friday morning in late November, Sgt. Josh Taylor and other Marion Police officers and Smyth County deputies responded to a report of a suicidal woman holding a knife to her chest.
Officers tried unsuccessfully to deescalate the situation and negotiate with the woman to drop her weapon, but the woman became violent, and the officers had to use a stun gun to subdue and disarm her, according to police accounts.
The woman was detained on an emergency custody order, also known as an ECO, and taken to the Smyth County Community Hospital, where she was evaluated by a crisis worker and determined to need treatment in a psychiatric facility. A magistrate issued a temporary detention order, or TDO, and then the only thing left was to locate an open bed in a psychiatric facility. And wait.
Jasmine Franks | Community Newspapers of Southwest Virginia
On a Friday morning in late November, Sgt. Josh Taylor and other Marion Police officers and Smyth County deputies responded to a report of a suicidal woman holding a knife to her chest.
Officers tried unsuccessfully to de-escalate the situation and negotiate with the woman to drop her weapon, but the woman became violent and the officers had to use a stun gun to subdue and disarm her, according to police accounts.
The woman was detained on an emergency custody order, also known as an ECO, and taken to the Smyth County Community Hospital, where she was evaluated by a crisis worker and determined to need treatment in a psychiatric facility. A magistrate issued a temporary detention order, or TDO, and then the only thing left was to locate an open bed in a psychiatric facility. And wait.