I know that I have been accused of being a naysayer here for featuring so many grim heart-wrenching photographs of terrible events.  And certainly the news has no shortage of both natural and man-inflicted suffering.  So I am hoping that my recent posting of cute cuddly animals buys me some latitude, because this week I came across this riveting and very moving photograph by Bernandino Hernandez  of the AP showing a little boy sleeping and hugging his dog in a Acapulco shelter on September 17, during the recent hurricanes that have devastated Mexico.  This is really one of those cases where the picture is worth a thousand words and tells the entire story.

Unfortunately, a lot of bad things happen in the world.  So there really is a need for press photographers to document them.  Natural disasters like hurricanes need pictures to spawn public response.  Man-made suffering needs press photographers to document  and create collective outrage.

We have previously spoken about one of the most egregious of these outrages modern day slavery, particularly sex trafficking.  So I’d like to end on a small positive note, emphasis on the word small – a baby step in the right direction. The highest-ranking judge in New York state, Jonathan Lippman, announced on initiative Wednesday, September 25, that the state will begin treating most alleged prostitutes as victims rather than criminals, and seek to steer them toward medical treatment, job training and other social services to break the cycle of sex trafficking.  New York is establishing special courts to handle the cases and expects most of them to be set up by the end of next month.