Hope for the Human Race?

There can be days when being in the news business wears a person down.

I was on air Monday-Friday during the middle of the day in Toronto during the Paul Bernardo trial. There was no escaping the horrible details, since I had to say them out loud four times an hour for the six weeks of that trial. It was tough every day, although not as tough for me as it was on our reporters who were in the court room. One of our two reporters took a stress leave immediately after the trial and as far as I know, never did go back to work.

These days, it's the disgusting details of the Jeffery Baldwin case that make me cry when I get home.

But every once in a while, there comes a day when there are good-news stories to energize and lift my spirits.

Today, I have at least three reasons for hope for the human race:

The Pope has said what many people have been thinking for a long time, suggesting Christians spend a lot less time dwelling on abortion and contraception and homosexuality, and a lot more time living the central tenants of Christianity; you know, the love and mercy stuff that guy, Jesus, was talking about.

In Boston, a homeless man found a backpack full of 42-thousand dollars in cash and traveller's cheques. After no doubt asking who the hell uses traveller's cheques any more, the guy found a cop and handed the bag over.

Cops in Boston told the story of the homeless guy and the money, and a total stranger in Virginia started a crowdsourcing fundraiser for the homeless guy on gofundme.com. As of this morning, it has more than a hundred thousand dollars donated to it.

The homeless guy's name is Glen James. The guy who started the fund is Ethan Whittington. I want to remember their names, not the names of the monsters in the news.