I've known bottles of wine and brandy make the trip long haul in a suitacse. However, the reason I keep my lappie with me is that it's more expensive and time consuming to replace it and restore backed up data.
If a suitcase does not arrive anything in it can be bought with a credit card and claimed on insurance. If the bottle of brandy breaks - it's only clothes. My laptop is far more precious than clothes!
I recall on one short haul trip finding my window seat directly over the loading conveyor belt. So I could watch the baggage handlers take the bags off the trucks and out them on the belt. Correction THROW them on the belt. DUMP them on the belt. Why they mistreat your luggage where they can be seen - I do not know. But they get away with it.