Man Shot by Air Marshall

This is a sad story for all involved. I wouldn't wish it on the man, wife, or the air marshall.

But there's nothing you can do. We have air marshalls on planes for bomb situations. Regardless of the reason why, if someone says they have a bomb, you must take them seriously. How horrible would you feel if you shot the suspect's leg, or fired a warning shot, just to be sure, and then he/she detonated a real bomb and killed numerous people? An air marshall just can't take those chances.

If anything it reinforces the unseen verity of air marshalls protecting us on highly trafficked flights. It also shows the very real problems associated with mental disorders. An old girlfriend of mine was bipolar went through a period of experimentation with different medications. It was hard. She was a bright, loving, beautiful girl, but she would be happy and jittery for 36 hours and then depressed for the next 36 sometimes. When she was up, she was the most amazing woman I ever met--able to accomplish anything--a true mover and shaker. But when she was down, I really had to work with her to get her out of bed in the morning.

And so all this combined in a truly tragic situation. So many "if's." If only they had brought his medication...if only he had followed orders...who knows.