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one last quote:
"I got astonished, shocked and awfully sad when I read about Mrs Gotbaum's death.
In France, in Italy and I think all over Europe if a woman is "yelling and screaming and running around" we call for an ambulance, a doctor, maybe even a psychologist. Here, the Police arrest and handcuff people other than irate moms, criminals for example.
Then I remembered what happened to the little girl handcuffed and brought to the police station some time ago somewhere in the States because she refused to obey her teacher and began punching her and jumping around the classroom, and again I thought that if something of this kind had occurred in Europe we would have offered the girl sweets and chocolate instead, to calm her down.
The crucial point that marks the difference between such contrasting approaches in coping with disorderly conduct is that, while it's very easy to arrest, handcuff and put somebody in jail since no personal involvement is needed, it's a little bit harder and requires compassion and sensitivity to treat her/him as a human being deserving of attention and care, particularly if the person in question is suffering, having emotional reactions, or is scared.
It seems that in the States the easy way is the preferred one. Yet Mrs Gotbaum would still be alive if her case had been addressed in the soft European style. Her story is testament to the fact that blindly following established policy may result in sorrow and death. Mrs Gotbaums case should be a lesson for all who believe that handcuffs and cells can solve any problem"
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