When all is lost

Just when job losses, company closures and other economic stresses get you down, here's a less-than-upbeat story about the link between economic woes and family murder/suicides.

Two recent cases in Ohio and California brought the issue to the forefront. And while not as dramatic as financial managers jumping from ledges during the depression, it's disturbing because this can happen anywhere.

While the cynic in me says people who do this cleanse the population of weak-minded souls who cannot cope with life, I'm worried about the next step.

What happens when a person decides to take out his/her economic woes not just on family, but on current/former co-workers, neighbors, or other innocent bystanders? If people were worried about one Unabomber, what about potentially 8 percent - roughly the current unemployment rate - of many people teetering on a fragile edge of control in their lives.