The dramatic release of Laura Ling and Euna Lee yesterday still gives me chills. It’s like that final moving scene of one of those suspense thrillers starring Richard Gere or Claire Danes!

But in all seriousness, I am so thrilled, happy and relieved for the young journalists and their families. Read this article from the New York Times for a thorough and incredibly interesting account of what happened behind the political scenes to secure the women’s release.

Of particular interest to me was the comment by a “former official” that Kim Jong-il was ultimately motivated to release Ms. Ling and Ms. Lee as a “reciprocal humanitarian gesture” to a note Mr. Clinton had sent as President when Mr. Kim’s father had passed away.

It never hurts to do the right thing and reach out on a very human level to another human being, no matter who he or she is or what he or she has done. You never know when that humanity will be returned.