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Background
Channel 4: Family May Sue MBTA After Welfare Alert:
T police decide it's OK for a guy to hold a young girl's hand on a bus if they're related.
Yes, he should
They handled this as ham-fisted as every other thing they've tried to accomplish lately. It's time they started living in a post-post-9/11 reality. Sure, people should "see something, say something" but once they can't follow-up on it the next step is not to put out an APB to every corner of the world. You can't try to right a wrong on the say-so of 1 witness, as well-intentioned as they may (or may not) be.
Public Interest
This guy isn't getting back what they took from him through a lawsuit. Whether he deserves to get money, probably no more than any poor schmuck. Money might make him feel compensated for his humiliation, but it won't make it go away.
The question for me is the public interest. I might be the next guy whose picture ends up on the television for parenting while male. For that reason I say yes. Make them apologize, make them pay, and give them a reason not to do this again. And subpoena the dingbat who sicced the cops on this poor dad - give her a taste of her own medicine.
Good Point by WBZ
If the MBTA police were so worried about the girl, why did they wait two days to put the alert out? That doesn't seem to fit with their excuse that they were only doing what was in the best interest of the girl.
In two days ...
They could have checked with the usual drivers of that bus line. I have personally seen this pair together a dozen or more times, and I'd bet the drivers would know them (possibly by name, even) and know that Mr. Gouw's "suspicious behavior" has another name: active parenting.
If they were going to piss around for a couple of days, it wouldn't have taken much to go down to Sullivan and ask around. They might have found that their informant was really the same sort of busybody who was hassling the after school program my sons were in because she could see from her window that some of the kids didn't have coats on (on a 65F day ...) and she might have to call the authorities blah blah blah.
But if they ask around and
But if they ask around and find out that there's no need to make a fuss, they wouldn't get to feel so important! Some people really get off on raising alarms and causing a scene, whether it's accusing a stranger of being a kidnapper or calling the bomb squad because of some LEDs. And those people never apologize later.
Can the T Cops just apologize for once?
I'm getting sick of hearing the MBTA going on a wild goose chase, humiliating and/or inconviencing innocent people, and then refusing to apologize. I'd be willing to cut them more slack for being cautious if they were willing to take some responsibility when that approach negatively impacts innocent people. Its like that harpsichordist they made miss a plane to Buffalo. Fine, you're following procedure. But that doesn't mean you should be happy with the outcome. The whole "we did nothing wrong" attitude suggests to me that the MBTA police isn't interested in learning from these mistakes. Because even if it was an understandable mistake, it was still a mistake. But if the T doesn't even think it was a mistake, I'm a lot less understanding.
I second the motion
I'd be on board with this. Apologies can go a long way. It'd be a start at least. If they just start offering endless apologies that could become trouble.
So let's just start with a "We are very, very sorry. We did not handle this situation properly."
maybe we can organize an
maybe we can organize an "act shifty on the T day" as a protest? We all wear camo, speak in hushed tones, carry large duffels and take copious photos.
Don't forget
To spill some nitrogen fertilizer on your shoes first.