Hits and misses

MISS To err is technology

A computer flub interrupted processing of driver's licenses, jobless benefits and welfare payments this week. Two dozen state agencies lost key computer programs when a memory card failed and the backup system fell on its backside. Disruptions were expected to linger into the weekend. Virginia renegotiated its agreement with Northrop Grumman this year, adding $236 million to the company's $2.3 billion contract in exchange for promises of better service and increased penalties when things go awry. How many computers have to fry before the penalty reaches $236 million?

MISS Mixed signals

Following a precedent set by predecessor Tim Kaine, Gov. Bob McDonnell opted not to spend any stimulus dollars for highway signs touting the federal aid. That didn't stop McDonnell from buying 17 signs - at $1,000 apiece - proclaiming "Virginia: Open for Business." The placards will be attached to existing welcome signs to save money. The cost is well below the six-figure sums spent by some states on stimulus promotion, but it's opened the GOP governor to criticism from constituents. Perhaps McDonnell should scrape together cash for one more sign commemorating Ralph Waldo Emerson's observation that "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds."

HIT Winning freedom

Say what you will about Jimmy Carter, but the former president and Nobel Peace Prize laureate deserves credit this week for winning the early release of an American serving an eight-year sentence in a North Korean prison camp.

Aijalon Mahli Gomes had been jailed since January after illegally crossing into the communist country. He had been working as an English teacher in South Korea. North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il agreed, at Carter's request, to grant amnesty to Gomes, and the pair arrived in Boston on Friday. The former president should focus next on bringing home the three American hikers imprisoned in Iran since 2009.

MISS On both sides

Virginia Beach officials may have had good intentions with their latest effort to make things right for the family of a man who was run over by a city garbage truck while sleeping on the beach this summer, but the move sure appeared insensitive. The city offered to establish a program to combat homelessness and name it after Michael Knockett but refused to give specifics. While such a program is needed, it's not difficult to see why relatives would object to the use of Knockett's name.

However, Knockett's family, who have indicated they plan to sue the city for a cool $25 million, held a fundraiser Aug. 14 for a transition shelter and community center in his memory. So it's not hard to see where the city got the idea for its program. It doesn't appear either side is taking the high road.