When mediation won't help

Divorce mediators try to help couples as they end their marriages more peacefully. Elder mediators try to help families who have critical decisions to make with their older loved ones. But no mediator could have helped the 22-year old Jared Lee Loughner who horrified most Americans and others when he launched his brutal attack on Gabrielle Giffords, her staff and other bystanders in Tucson last Friday.

"Extreme mental illness" is one condition mediators cannot ethically take on. Loughner's rage over American politics as reported in his blog and elsewhere and his paranoia are beyond the scope of a mediator's skills. How sad that no one in this young man's life could have intervened before it got to his breaking point and forever changed the lives of Representative Giffords, the many he wounded and those he killed.

As this story unfolds, we are learning of many heroes who stepped in to assist the wounded. These heroes inspire us to get involved, to do the right thing, to bring some semblance of peace at the deepest human level no matter what the potential cost to self.

As mediators in our practice, we know we cannot help everyone. But we are more determined to continue working toward peaceful resolutions in our conflict-laden world. And we continue to pray for healing, not only for the wounded in Tucson, but for the families of those who were killed.