“It’s a private matter”

That’s what some supporters are saying about Paul Humpfer’s crime:  People are inserting themselves into Mr. Humpfer’s private life.

Mr. Humpfer’s criminal conviction is not private.  It is part of the public record.

Perhaps if Mr. Humpfer would have written sexy love notes to a staffer [Detroit mayor, Kwame Kilpatrick], or hired an “escort”[NY Governor, Eliot Spitzer], or bumped another man’s foot in the bathroom stall [US Senator, Larry Craig], instead of using a baseball bat to attack his wife, maybe then more people would be outraged.

In those cases other than Mr. Humpfer’s, there was either a resignation, or public outrage that called for resignation/removal.

But, there is a difference between those and Mr. Humpfer’s … Mr. Humpfer was convicted.  Two of the above haven’t been convicted of any charges against them.  And, one wasn’t even charged with anything.

It’s good to know that being convicted of a crime is a “private matter”.  It’s good to know that domestic abuse is a “private matter”.  An estimated 3 million women who are battered and abused will be glad to know that.  The families of the more than 1,000 women each year who are murdered by their husbands will be glad to know that their daughters or sisters, aunts or cousins, died because people knew domestic abuse was occurring and did nothing to prevent it.

That shooting last night at Fox View was likely “a private matter” too.  I hope they don’t arrest anyone.

Just let it go.