Ruby's Wednesday

This is a story about a mom named Ruby who made the front page today here in Milwaukee. On Wednesday, Ruby was sent to jail for six months because she has tuberculosis...and won't take her medicine.

Now, before you get on your high horse and say how that's infringing on Ruby's rights, let me tell you a bit more about Ruby. Ruby is only 38 years old - in my book, that's young. Besides having TB, Ruby has 16 children, including a 5-week old who, no surprise, has TB too. Eleven of Ruby's children are in foster care and the rest are adults.

Ruby is also addicted to crack and alcohol and has had recurring bouts of mental illness. Her sister has volunteered to have Ruby stay with her during treatment for her various illnesses, but the problem is, Ruby keeps running away and forgetting to take her medicine.

Consequently, the judge in this case did the most compassionate thing possible and sentenced Ruby to six months in jail. I know what you're thinking: "How can jail be compassionate?" Usually, it's not, but in Ruby's case, it actually makes sense. Ruby isn't taking care of her children, she's certainly not taking care of herself and she's endangering others in the process. Although TB is no longer highly contagious, it still poses a health threat to those who have been around Ruby for prolonged periods. Something had to be done and it was.

What struck me most about this story wasn't the fact that Ruby was playing Russian Roulette with her own life and so many others. What really struck me was that the judge expressed dismay at having to go to such lengths to save Ruby. And then the judge did something you don't often hear about. After the hearing, the judge approached Ruby, hugged her and said: "I just want you to take your medicine."

I think that's what we call tough love.