Really?!

I whole-heartedly recommended "Harry's Law" last week.  I still recommend it, but my recommendation this week  is closer to half-hearted.  The episode this week was great- humorous, serious, sweet, genuine, and mostly compelling, until her dang closing argument at the end of the hour.  I'm not sure I can watch every week if there are always going to be liberal-agenda laced closing arguments from her character.

Harry's trial this week featured an 80-something-year old woman who held up a liquor store with a loaded gun to steal money because she was starving.  Her son, who lived many states away, had lost his job and been unable to send her money, and her Social Security just wasn't enough or something like that.  Okay.  So, she's in court because she held up a shop with a loaded weapon. In Harriet's closing argument she built up the sad story of the woman's situation- okay, fine, so far so good, but then she had to throw in that' the jury can't do anything worse to her than what the government has already done to her.' (I'm paraphrasing.) I did a mental double-take.  Whaaa?  The government?  Wait, wait, wait, I thought.  What about welfare?  Food stamps?  Food banks?  Medicare?  The government actually DOES have programs in place to assist the elderly (and others) who don't have enough money for food or medical care (before the Obama administration's healthcare bill, there were already multiple programs provided by the government, both local and federal, but that's beside the point)... the point is that I think the writers of this show are pouring in all their personal, emotional agenda items into this character's monologues, and that's great, fine, dandy, but I don't want to hear it.  Personal politics?  I feel like the character should have been taken care of by her SON!  He should have said, "Mom, come out here.  Live with me, we'll figure things out.  Oh, and you can bring your gun."

NOTHING in life is as cut-and-dry as the story lines on TV, including people in the sort of situation like this old lady found herself.  Um, another point, where did she get the big gun?  And money for ammo?  It would make it so much more real to have Harry talking to the lady about what she's going to do if she's not convicted-- how is she going to eat now?  Can I help you get signed up for Medicare?  Can I direct you to services like food stamps?  HELLO!?   None of that happened.

I'm not a big fan of everything government-related;  I find politics frustrating and annoying, and I would not even begin to imply that they are doing things well or right or what's best for the country all the time, and I don't mind TV characters impugning what's wrong, but to make blanket, general statements about the Bush administration or the Republicans is just useless and (to use the popular term) polarizing.  Which makes me want to turn off the show.

I will give "Harry's Law" another chance, next week.  But if the trend continues I will perhaps begin watching all but the last 6 or 7 minutes... or just turn the volume down when she does her closing... we'll see...