Not About the Election

A prosecutor in Texas apparently shot himself to death Sunday after getting caught in one of those "To Catch a Predator" stings done by Dateline.

I don't have an opinion on that particular case, but it does give me an opportunity to ask this question:  Am I the only one who's weirded out by those Dateline reports? 

I don't know, I guess there's just something creepy about journalists teaming up with police to entrap suspects, catch them on tape, then have the tactical team jump out and smack them around a little—while the rest of us cheer from our living rooms. 

I suppose it's hard to get too worked up about a process that in the end has nabbed some people who appear to be genuine predators—though I do seem to recall a couple of segments where the police were posing as a post-pubescent victim, as old 15 or 16.  Which is still creepy, but pretty clearly isn't pedophelia.

I think I'd rather have my favorite intrepid investigative journalists doing some good ol' fashioned exposing of public corruption and such than teaming up with the government for nationally-broadcast bread-and-circus stings that actually create crimes.

But maybe that's just the knee-jerk libertarian in me.