I've come to accept that the issues I care about will be misrepresented or ignored by the larger media outlets. And it's come to pass that I only really trust a few sources to give an honest assessment of what is going on, why, and the consequences.
Call me naive, but years ago The New York Times was one of them. I've since become more adept at spotting how an issue is being framed and turn a cold eye to the sources cited. But like it or not, and despite reports that print media is dying, the NYT still sets the standard for news you will read, hear and see throughout the day.
Despite this cynicism, an Op-Ed piece in the Sunday New York Times made me spill my latte.
The author, Michael Seringhaus, suggests that every person in the United States should be required to submit their DNA for a national law enforcement database. The benefit of such a program is that police would be able to solve more crimes (no statistical proof is provided) and by sampling everyone it would be fair, since the DNA samples now on file are disproportionately black and Hispanic individuals.
Call it the CSI effect, the entertainment driven illusion that every crime can be solved in the high tech forensic lab of your local police department.
It's an absurd idea. But one that might be lurking in the not so distant future. We need to keep our radar up on this and think about what access law enforcement has to our DNA and how such a database could easily be constructed.
And who is Michael Seringhaus, you ask? A prominent criminologist? An expert in data collection and application?
No, he's a student at Yale Law School.