In the first politically motivated shooting since Reagan was shot in 1986, yesterday, January 8th, a democratic congresswoman names Gabrielle Giffords was shot not in the head, mind you, but through the head by 22 year old white boy named Jared Lee Loughner. Jared stopped to reload and was tackled by a pair of bystanders.
A judge was one of the six people killed, John McCarthy Roll, out of twenty people shot.
I've read that Giffords was a rare democrat in Arizona, a lady who actually worked to strengthen laws that could give guys on the grounds patrolling the border legal teeth. She didn't sell scare tactics that gave the folks of Arizona the sense that their state was under attack from illegal immigrants, like some other politicians in the state. Those other politicians have convinced many Arizonan voters that contrary to the facts that Arizona is in danger, in danger from home invasions and "beheadings in the desert". These are ridiculous statements that Republicans use to whip up the stupids into a jingoist frenzy. Maybe this kid Loughner is one of those stupids. Maybe not. When someone like Sarah Palin puts out her "targeted list", and Giffords' district was targeted, under the auspices of bringing out the righty vote, and the targeted area is a picture of the district under cross-hairs, it seems like an irresponible move. Giffords herself has said, "they've got to realize that there are consequences to that action."
A lack of credibility and accountability exists on the right. If you get the bigots and the closed minded energized with rhetoric that's demonstrably false, you're not allowed to act surprised when those people act in the extreme. Of course you're allowed to mourn the victims of those atrocities, but you lose credibility through acting surprised.
Here we had a congresswoman who didn't use false scenarios and lies to do her work, work that strengthened laws for police officers and immigration patrols. Here we have a woman gunned down in broad daylight in the late morning of a Saturday.
Understandably this has been on the news almost non stop this weekend.... I was interested to see that no one was releasing the young mans name till quite late in the day... I'm wondering if that was so he wouldn't get any coverage on the prime time news.. he does not deserve any minutes of fame...Listening to the questions asked at the press conference..."How come she didn't have any security?? like it was the fault of the Police that she was shot.. no one could accept that she felt safe in her neighborhood talking to her people that is who she IS.. these were her people, the ones she represented... We as Americans don't want our elected officials so cocooned behind walls of protection that we can't get to them... that will stop good people from running and keep those fully funded by folks not from the neighborhoods to run so the funded folks get their votes needed.... I hope Gabby can recover and take over her seat... if she needs to quit we will get a Republican in her seat and more fear mongering will occur....
ReplyDeleteSorry for the ramble...
I want to add that I was very happy to see that the person who did this horrible thing was a white boy... going against the fear of the person of color... we have to watch out for white boys they are where the trouble lies... we have Mark David Chapman, John Hinckley, Tim McVeigh and while not a white boy a white woman Sara Jane Moore...
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