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Arizona Shootings: ‘It Was a Colossal Failure of Journalism’

By on 1.9.11 @ 10:24AM

That quote, from a commenter at my personal blog, described the effort of several news organizations to fabricate a connection between Jared Loughner’s murderous rampage and the Tea Party and/or Sarah Palin.

Less than four hours transpired between the time the shootings occurred in the parking lot of a Tucson grocery store and the time the Associated Press identified 22-year-old Loughner as the suspect. The first AP bulletin to identify him misspelled his name “Laughner,” and another couple of hours passed while reporters, bloggers and amateur newshounds corrected the spelling and began to assemble enough background on Loughner to get some idea of what inspired this crime.

Jared Loughner is crazy.

That simple four-word sentence adequately summarizes Loughner’s apparent motives. However, in the five or six hours between the shooting — in which Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) was among a dozen people wounded, and six people including a federal judge were killed — some reporters apparently felt obligated to fill the information void with reporting that fed into a frenzy of political speculation.

Yes, it is a fact that Giffords was one of the Democrats on a “target” list of incumbents whom Sarah Palin opposed in the recent mid-term election. Yes, it is a fact that the election between Giffords and Republican Jesse Kelly was hotly contested, with Giffords winning by fewer than 4,000 votes. Yes, it is a fact that Kelly was supported by the Tea Party movement. Yes, it is a fact that immigration is a major political issue in Arizona.

All of those facts that were fed into online reports and TV news coverage were indisputably true. And all of those facts, it seems, were irrelevant to Loughner’s bloody crime.

There is no evidence that Loughner was a Sarah Palin fan. There is no evidence that he was associated with the Tea Party or that he was concerned with immigration. Instead, there is a steadily growing heap of evidence that Jared Loughner was suffering from a mental illness, quite possibly paranoid schizophrenia.

One of Loughner’s classmates in high school and community college, Caitie Parker, voided much of the baseless media speculation with a few Twitter messages Saturday afternoon. Parker, herself a liberal, said Loughner was “a really good friend,” whom she described as having been “left wing,” ”a political radical” and “quite liberal” when she knew him, although she lost touch with him after 2007 when he “became very reclusive.” Loughner was a “loner” and a “pot head,” Parker said in a Twitter colloquy with Anthony De Rosa of Reuters.

There was clear evidence that Loughner’s mental condition was deteriorating. “He disrupted class frequently with nonsensical outbursts,” said one student who had attended a pre-algebra class at Pima Community College with Loughner. In mid-December, Loughner wrote on his MySpace page, “I don’t feel good: I’m ready to kill a police officer!”

In his recent online activity — including a series of YouTube video texts transcribed by conservative blogger Warner Todd Huston — Loughner unloaded paranoid gibberish about brainwashing and “mind control.” Loughner listed Mein Kampf and the Communist Manifesto among his favorite books. At one point in his ravings, apparently in reference to the “In God We Trust” motto on U.S. currency, he exclaimed: “No! I won’t trust in God!”

None of this lines up with the early reporting on the Tucson shooting which heavily implied that Gabrielle Giffords and 17 others were shot because of political activity of Palin and the Tea Party. And yet none of the news organizations that fed that frenzy of speculation has apologized for their irresponsible reporting.

topics:
Crime

View all comments (186) |

Rudy Marx| 1.9.11 @ 10:59AM

this might be fine except you offer no single example of the media attempting to smear the tea party or sarah palin.

they referred to the facts, but i didn't see any effort to smear the right except in internet chatrooms and in comment fields.

sustain your point that the coverage "heavily implied that Gabrielle Giffords and 18 others were shot because of political activity of Palin and the Tea Party". offer a single example.

PK| 1.9.11 @ 11:12AM

Read the Huffinton Post. It's everywhere. There was one story initially titled "Return of the Violent Right" or something to that effect saying this is a result of tea party rhetoric. Paul Krugman also said that. I've seen people on TV saying that. On Huffington Post there's a headline saying something to the effect of "Tea Party a threat to our system of government" (referring to the shooting).

Nick| 1.9.11 @ 11:28AM

Mr. Marx,

You don't see it, because you live in Fantasyland.

crusain| 1.9.11 @ 11:31AM

Wake up Rudy and take off the blinders. CNN, CBS,MSNBC -all broadcast propaganda pieces correlating teaparty/Palin with the killings by this mad atheist.

Even Howard Kurtz has lambasted the lack of journalistic integrity.

JmsA| 1.9.11 @ 11:45AM

Take your lefty blindfold off, Rudy; it's all around you, such as CNN, where all of the commentary about the shooting is prefaced with mention of Sarah Palin or Tea Party. Are you truly that dense, or just plain stupid?

MarkR| 1.9.11 @ 12:04PM

Read Howard Kurtz latest column on balming Palin and the tea party. He condemns it and gives examples. Please educate yourself before commenting.

JmsA| 1.9.11 @ 1:26PM

Okay, MarkR, since you asked, here's a sampling of the continuing commentary or propaganda from CNN, as reported by Hot Air Blog:

"After reporting that Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik had condemned what Dupnik called “the vitriol that comes out of certain mouths about tearing down the government,” CNN’s Wolf Blitzer turned to congressional reporter Jessica Yellin for analysis. The sheriff “singled out some of the political rhetoric, as you point out, in creating the environment that allowed this kind of instance to happen,” Yellin told Blitzer. “Even though, as you point out, this suspect is not cooperating with investigators, so we don’t know the motive. President Obama also delivered that message, saying it’s partly the political rhetoric that led to this. So that’s why we want to bring up one of the themes that’s burning up the social media right now. On Twitter and Facebook, there is a lot of talk, in particular, about Sarah Palin. As you might recall, back in March of last year, when the health care vote was coming to the floor of the House and this was all heating up, Palin tweeted out a message on Twitter saying ‘common sense conservatives, don’t retreat — instead reload.’ And she referred folks to her Facebook page. On that Facebook page was a list of Democratic members she was putting in crosshairs, and Gabrielle Giffords was one of those in the crosshairs.”

And let's not forget about Keith Olbermann at MSPMS, calling for palling to be kicked out of politics because of her supposed complicity in the shooting, or the kook who runs at Daily Kos, who also put a bullseye on Congresswoman Giffords, while proclaiming she was dead to him.

Too bad for you that the shooter, appears nowhere close to being a Tea Party member, while his rantings and so far revealed proclivities show him to be more of a pot smoking, American flag burning, atheist, anarchist piece of crap, or simply, another leftist shithead, wannabe radical.

MarkR| 1.9.11 @ 4:00PM

JmsA: "Too bad for you that the shooter, appears nowhere close to being a Tea Party member, while his rantings and so far revealed proclivities show him to be more of a pot smoking, American flag burning, atheist, anarchist piece of crap, or simply, another leftist shithead, wannabe radical."---Excuse me- you are confused- I was defending Sarah Palin via Howard Kurtz! --I am NOT commenting on CNN! For God's sake get a friggin clue- when a lefty like Kurtz defends Palin- whats the problem? I AM A TEA PARTY MEMBER!!!

MarkR| 1.9.11 @ 4:05PM

JmsA: I was responding to Rudy and stating that EVEN Howard Kurtz defends Palin and the Tea Party- I reiterate educate yourself as well- read the Kurtz article and see that he is defending us! I sometimes go a long time commenting on these sites for a reason- namely emotion laden comments with NO thinking and investigating before commenting- left or right!

JmsA| 1.9.11 @ 8:29PM

I read the Kurtz article. So what? So he's trying to walk back what the network has been doing ever since the shooting. I don't need to be defended by Howard Kurtz. The whole Sarah Palin is at nonsense is a non sequitur. The mere fact that Howard Kurtz is "defending" Sarah Palin doesn't change the fact that they, CNN, as well as many others, have been propagandizing against her. Don't worry, Howard Kurtz will come around and blame her, too.

JmsA| 1.9.11 @ 8:41PM

Oops!: Meant to write: The whole Sarah Palin nonsense is a non sequitur.

JmsA| 1.9.11 @ 1:26PM

Okay, MarkR, since you asked, here's a sampling of the continuing commentary or propaganda from CNN, as reported by Hot Air Blog:

"After reporting that Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik had condemned what Dupnik called “the vitriol that comes out of certain mouths about tearing down the government,” CNN’s Wolf Blitzer turned to congressional reporter Jessica Yellin for analysis. The sheriff “singled out some of the political rhetoric, as you point out, in creating the environment that allowed this kind of instance to happen,” Yellin told Blitzer. “Even though, as you point out, this suspect is not cooperating with investigators, so we don’t know the motive. President Obama also delivered that message, saying it’s partly the political rhetoric that led to this. So that’s why we want to bring up one of the themes that’s burning up the social media right now. On Twitter and Facebook, there is a lot of talk, in particular, about Sarah Palin. As you might recall, back in March of last year, when the health care vote was coming to the floor of the House and this was all heating up, Palin tweeted out a message on Twitter saying ‘common sense conservatives, don’t retreat — instead reload.’ And she referred folks to her Facebook page. On that Facebook page was a list of Democratic members she was putting in crosshairs, and Gabrielle Giffords was one of those in the crosshairs.”

And let's not forget about Keith Olbermann at MSPMS, calling for palling to be kicked out of politics because of her supposed complicity in the shooting, or the kook who runs at Daily Kos, who also put a bullseye on Congresswoman Giffords, while proclaiming she was dead to him.

Too bad for you that the shooter, appears nowhere close to being a Tea Party member, while his rantings and so far revealed proclivities show him to be more of a pot smoking, American flag burning, atheist, anarchist piece of crap, or simply, another leftist shithead, wannabe radical.

stmichrick| 1.9.11 @ 1:14PM

Want another example? Bob Schiefer this morning instantly brought up Sarah Palin's politically targeting of Giffords' seat.

Trying to tie the Tea Party or Palin to this makes as much sense as connecting Lee Harvey Oswald to the Democratic Party simply because he was a leftist.

Nonsense; right?

Mickey Rodentia| 1.9.11 @ 7:28PM

Perhaps the you should look at the The Guardian in the UK, The Huffington Post, NPR and the Daily Koz. All are putting this obviously ill kid in the Tea Party camp. Even Sheriff Dupnik of Pima county has made thinly veiled connections between the shooter and the Tea Party, Conservative Radio and cable news outlets. Mind you even before there were even preliminary "facts" as you call them from law enforcement.

I personally am glad the shooter was white. Now the White House and Napolitano can bring to bear the full force of the federal gov't. If he'd been a person of a warmer complexion Obama and DHS would still be bumping into themselves figuring out what NOT to do.

Bill M| 1.9.11 @ 7:59PM

CNN, AP, ABC, CBS ALL talked about Sarah Palin in connection with the shooting. Your deliberate obtuseness not withstanding, it was obvious they were trying guilt by association.

Constitutional Patriot| 1.9.11 @ 11:55PM

Carl Marx your cycle and hammer is showing and the Red Star.
The propagada of hate inciting to riot was thrust out in haste in hopes of creating a wedge will not happen. Lies are soon vanished when truth appears on the scene. We have the truth and the majority of Americans do also.

John Corn| 1.10.11 @ 1:01AM

Last I checked, Paul Krugman is one of the NYTimes loyal liberals, blaming the Tea Party. how about the Minority whip of the Dem Black Caucus, appearing on Fox News Sunday, this morning? on and on.

Alan Brooks| 1.10.11 @ 10:04AM

Yes, it is a fact that the election between Giffords and "Republican Jesse Kelly was hotly contested, with Giffords winning by fewer than 4,000 votes. Yes, it is a fact that Kelly was supported by the Tea Party movement. Yes, it is a fact that immigration is a major political issue in Arizona."

But you don't give diddly about Giffords, you have only expressed condolence for the conservative judge.
However why SHOULD you care about Giffords? She is practically road kill to you- one less Dem to deal with later on. Her career is finished, as you know, she is too badly injured. A bullet in the brain means no more campaigning.

Alan Brooks| 1.10.11 @ 11:57AM

Notice how chipper they are today, Rudy- Gabrielle Giffords isn't GOP. They try to hide it but they can't-- their relief is palpable.

Patriot| 1.11.11 @ 10:51PM

You're projecting again, Alan. You're an evil little man.

bostinks2| 1.9.11 @ 10:59AM

i would like to comarre this shooting to the leftist/liberal professor killing shooting faculty last year over being denied tenior. What became of that episode? sure went silent quickly, didn't it?

PK| 1.9.11 @ 11:13AM

Yep, and don't forget the crazed environmentalist that took over the Discovery Channel. At first they were blaming that on right wing extremists too.

Bill| 1.9.11 @ 11:02AM

You totally miss the point. Of course the shooter was deranged, that's obvious. The point is that angry, vitriolic and violent rhetoric have created at atmosphere that has the potential to steer deranged killers in the direction of our elected representatives and other government officals.

When other Americans you disagree with are described as "enemies," accused of "treason," and characterized as part of "a cancer that must be eradiacted," it's not hard to understand how a deranged killer's mind could fixate on someone who was politically targeted and literally targeted on a website having to do with political viewpoints.

Herb49| 1.9.11 @ 11:15AM

Limbaugh, Beck, and Hannity vent their outrage on the air for 55 hours every week with a combined daily audience somewhere north of 30-million. And that's not counting another 60+ hours per week from lesser knowns like Ingraham, Levin, Boortz, Savage, etc.. So unless there are a hell of a lot fewer loosely wound nutjobs out there waiting to be triggered by Limbaugh, et al, I have to wonder why we're not all getting used to days like this by now.

jim p| 1.9.11 @ 1:35PM

Truly do you even know if the deranged guy ever listened to any of these commentators...Really such an obscene stretch, You should be ashamed of yourself as well as the sheriff, Krugman and Blitzer for oppotunistic smearing...

PK| 1.9.11 @ 11:16AM

Politics has always been filled with vitriol and always will be. Is Keith Olbermann vitriolic? Was the left vitriolic against Bush? Of course!

Are you saying environmentalist vitriol is responsible for the crazy person that took over the Discovery Channel too?

Dean from Ohio| 1.9.11 @ 6:02PM

Influence, yes. Partial responsiblity, perhaps. Full responsibility--no. But since you brought it up, there is plenty of enviro vitriol. For instance, the snuff film about kids being blown to bits, which Jonah Goldberg comments on here: http://www.nationalreview.com/.....-goldberg.

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 11:20AM

Bill,
So should President Obama apologize for his violent rhetoric by saying we should punish our enemies and bring a gun to the knife fight? That sounds more dangerous and violent than anything Sarah Palin has said so how about some intellectual honesty? You can't have it both ways unless you want to be the partisan hypocrite that you sound like.

It is you who misses the point, the media once again showed their leftist bias by jumping to their wanted conclusions before the facts were known. Now that facts are coming out, it is clear he was not associated with the Tea Party at all and is just a lunatic like the Virginia Tech shooter. It didn't matter that she was a Democrat or Republican, just a way for his deranged mind to rage against society. The question we should be asking ourselves is how our society can better deal with lunatics like this and lock them up before they kill people. He should have been in a padded cell before this happened just like the Virginia Tech shooter.

Nick| 1.9.11 @ 11:46AM

Bill,

So, the angry, vitriolic rhetoric of the left is responsible for the lefty kook who flew a plain into the I.R.S. building in Austin, Texas?

Or, the lefty racist black guy who killed three white people in Pittsburg almost 11 years ago?

Or, the lefty female professor who killed three in Huntsville, when she didn't get tenure?

Or, the guy in Florida who recently shot at the city council, because his union wife got fired?

Just like is was the right-wing's fault when President Kennedy was assassinated by the lefty commie Lee Oswald, right?

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 12:02PM

Nick,
Looks like we are getting the liberal drive-bys who just want to post their diatribes but don't want to debate because they have nothing to back their claims with. No doubt this Bill guy had no problem with the hate directed at Palin when she was Governor of Alaska or worried anyone would ever act on it. And they of course they ignore Obama's violent rhetoric against Republicans because its ok to hate them. Liberals showing their true colors once again as the diabolical hypocrites they are.

Bill| 1.9.11 @ 12:46PM

OK -- here's a reply to all of you. First, it's obvious that I am trespassing in your right-leaning echo chamber, and that I must be a "liberal-lefty" who's opinion is not worth considering. Your first reaction is to label me rather than respond directly to the serious point raised by my comment.

What I said rings true -- vitriolic rhetoric tinged with violence can trigger tragic behavior by deranged people. I don't endorse that kind of rhetoric whether from the right or left, and neither should you. Do you agree, or do you think vitriolic political rhetoric tinged with violence is a good thing for this nation and its people?

Bill

Nick| 1.9.11 @ 12:51PM

Bill,

First, I reject your premise. The rhetoric is no more "vitriolic" and "violent" than it has been in the past.

Second, people are responsible for their own actions, period.

This is something that bleeding heart liberals can't seem to comprehend.

unreceievdogma| 1.9.11 @ 2:01PM

Nick, sounds like you've read too much Hobbes and Locke.

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 2:06PM

Sounds like you have read too much Marx and Lenin.

unreceivedogma| 1.9.11 @ 2:45PM

I've read all four (actually substitute Engels for Lenin, though I have read some of him too), and can quote from them at will, yes thank you.

The WSJ, which I also read daily, 10 years ago in a three part series of articles wrote that Marx is one of the three intellectuals with the biggest influence on the 20th Century (Einstein and Freud being the other two), and that much of the conceptual framework for understanding capitalism, and the terms used to describe it, is not only still used by the paper, but that it would be difficult to even think about capitalism without Marx's pioneering work.

I would look for the link for you, but it wouldn't do you any good if you don't have a subscription.

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 3:03PM

Well I do have a subscription to the WSJ. No one denies Marx's influence, it is just the fact that his influence is for evil. Try reading The Black Book of Communism written by recovering commies who recognized the evils of their beliefs. 100 million dead thanks to the inspiration of Karl Marx which was implemented by Lenin and his followers. You are probably a lost cause though but you never know, maybe you will wake up to it someday.

unreceivedogma| 1.10.11 @ 10:59AM

"No one denies Marx's influence"
Wow. You are admitting to some complexity there.

"it is just the fact that his influence is for evil"
Oops! Reverting to form.

Margie| 1.9.11 @ 2:48PM

LOL. Perfect retort.

Margie| 1.9.11 @ 2:49PM

That was to Todd S.

unreceivedogma| 1.10.11 @ 11:04AM

you guys probably have not actually read Das Capital, or Keynes, or even Adam Smith and Freidman for that matter

Nick| 1.10.11 @ 9:43AM

Unreceivdogma,

Is that supposed to be some sort of insult?

unreceivedogma| 1.10.11 @ 11:01AM

Well, as the saying goes, if you have to ask...

Nick| 1.10.11 @ 11:32AM

Unreceivedogma,

Point taken.
I assumed you were attacking Hobbes and Locke from a left-wing point of view, not from the right.

My political views, if you're interested, are defined by my beliefs as a Roman Catholic.

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 1:02PM

So what about what President Obama said Bill? Condemn that first and maybe I will take you seriously for not being a partisan hypocrite. I responded to your point by asking you a question about what Obama has said which has exceeded any of Palin's rhetoric.

As far as your rings true statement, give me any evidence that it has anything to do with this case? Liberals want people to believe that this guy was set off by a map with political targets on it to defeat in elections and it is a totally bogus lie.

David| 1.9.11 @ 8:37PM

Have we also forgotten POTUS' words to the Latino community about punishing their enemies!?

Jim p| 1.9.11 @ 1:44PM

Bill,

I label you not. However you make such fantastic leaps of unfounded assumptions that the mind boggles. So tell me, did this guy spend hours soaking up Right wing dogma...yes that is correct YOU DO NOT KNOW THAT, DO YOU? Have you read his posts? They are so much gibberish. Nothing in his posts bears any resemblance to anything. Further his friends say he was a liberal. Frankly I doubt that, too. He is sick. I hurt for the victims of this shooting and I am very conservative. Do not paint me with this because I and my compatriots hate it as much or more than you do!!!

Bill| 1.9.11 @ 4:11PM

Jim,

The challenge we are all failing to meet is the challenge to hear and listen to each other. I absolutely accept your statement that you hurt for the victims of the shooting. I also repect your right to be very conservative even as I hope you would repect my right to hold other views.

I certainly don't think that anyone on the conservative side of the nation's politics intended or wanted this terrible thing to happen. Yet it is not unreasonable to think that the angry rhetoric in Arizona surrounding the debate over issues like health care and immigration somehow led a deranged killer to target Congresswoman Gifford. It certainly doesn't seem like a pure coincidence, though no one can be certain, at least for now.

Bill

David| 1.9.11 @ 5:34PM

Bill,

The partisan, vitriolic, and violent speech is probably equal on both the left and the right sides. But, looking at the violence has been mostly on the left. See Nick's post above. Add to his post, Michael Enright, the guy who knifed the cabbie in New York for being Muslim, was a leftie. Jared Loughner, yesterday's shooter, has been described as a leftie. The only violence I know of a tea party rally was the beating of Kenneth Gladney by union thugs for selling American flags. and don't forget James Lee the leftie who took over the Discovery Channel building last September.

It seems only those on the left lack the self control to live in a society with varying ideas.

David.

Steve| 1.9.11 @ 6:36PM

Hey Bill, perhaps in your description of what you said is influencing all this (angry vitriolic violent rhetoric) if you had included any of the language used this past year by Obama, or ANY of the other outrageous names/comments being used by the left . . . we MAY have recognized you were making a valid argument. This centrist person (me) interpreted your original comment as poking the conservatives because you were very selective in your words/examples. The same ones being used to try to paint conservatives at fault for the "violent" environment by all the liberal folks. The same folks who tried so hard not to acknowledge that the Ft Hood shooter was Muslim. This Jared guy was a nut. But, when you peel back the nut part, you find a left leaning person.

lizbuddie | 1.10.11 @ 12:14AM

Bill,

A bar can trigger an alcoholic. So should we get rid of them?

A sexy outfit on a woman can trigger a rapist. So does that make an attack the woman's fault?

A banana could trigger a deranged person. Anything can trigger a deranged person. Something (completely innocent) Rep Giffords said/did in '07 apparently first 'triggered' this particular deranged person. But that, in no way, makes this incident hurt fault. Or do you disagree?

Please read up on mental illness and resist the urge to unnecessarily silence the rest of us.

Mark Mac| 1.14.11 @ 12:48AM

You raise a good point Bill. But is it your wish that everything we write and say be conditioned by the fact that it could possibly trigger* a reaction from schizophrenics? Having known two schizophrenics personally I can tell you there is absolutely no way anybody can predict what might trigger them to act outrageously. *Can I use your inclusion of a vitriolic reference to guns as an excuse in the event I commit a felony?

unreceivedogma| 1.9.11 @ 2:29PM

c'mon, everyone knows who killed Kennedy. It's right there in the Oliver Stone movie.

Baldurdash| 1.9.11 @ 7:20PM

James Wenneker von Brunn, the Holocaust Musem Shooter voted for McCain Palin.

Scott Philip Roeder, who killed George Tiller, as an anti-abortion and anti-government activist.

John Patrick Bedell was also an anti-government activist, strict constitutionist and espoused libertarian beliefs.

My point is that violent types of crazy seems to inhabit both sides of the fence.

Mickey Rodentia| 1.9.11 @ 8:57PM

John Patrick Bedell was a registered democrat

Scott Philip Roeder was diagnosed as schizophrenic and bipolar

James Wenneker von Brunn was disavowed even by white supremacists. Even the Neo-Nazis didn't want him.

MarkR| 1.9.11 @ 12:14PM

"The point is that angry, vitriolic and violent rhetoric have created at atmosphere that has the potential to steer deranged killers in the direction of our elected representatives and other government officals"----And when ever has the atmosphere been any different? The left wants to control the environment like a parent does for his/her child-of course this enables control of people. Part of being grown up and having freedom of thought and voice is the ability to parse out that stuff. There are two answers to this dilemma #1) Censor voices and content #2) Live with it and realize there are nut jobs who could take action and be prepared for that potentiality. If you do #1 you have your answer and you have a police state. If you do #2 you have what every adult deals with daily in life- a certain level of risk mixed in with a high probabilty of safety. This is what life is about and NEVER will not be about as long as freedom is present. In other words utopia aint a comin and of course that inflames far leftists like nothing else as it destroys their pre-suppositions and their agenda.

stmichrick| 1.9.11 @ 1:17PM

Bill; news flash;
Nothing new about angry rhetoric in American history.
Even before Rush Limbaugh.

Do you think Jared was also gunning for the Republican - appointed Judge Rolle?

Jon| 1.9.11 @ 2:25PM

Based on what this guy believes from reports in the media, he probably listened to Sargeant Shultz, olberdork and madcow.. I guess they are then responsible?

Anthony | 1.9.11 @ 7:09PM

You mean like the left did towards Bush for 8 years and during the Vietnam war, spitting on our soldiers when they came home? Ya point well taken!

1389AD | 1.10.11 @ 12:25AM

As R.S. McCain and others have pointed out, "crazy" is not an ideology.

That having been said, there is one ideology that goes with craziness the way peanut butter goes with jelly, and that is anti-Semitism. If somebody says that Mein Kampf is one of his favorite books, the dude has a problem.

Neither the Tea Party movement, nor Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, or other more-or-less conservative spokespeople have done anything to encourage anti-Semitism.

If you want to identify the real sources of anti-Semitic propaganda, the place to look is the progressive/pro-Muslim convergence that currently is running the mainstream media, most of academia, and, of course, the Obama Administration.

Herb49| 1.9.11 @ 11:03AM

When decent, sober-minded, upstanding Democrats use militant terminology like Targeted Republican, BEHIND ENEMY LINES, and bullseye as part of their party's campaign Targeting Strategy, next thing you know they'll be running their campaigns from The War Room.

http://www.verumserum.com/?p=13647

http://rogerebert.suntimes.com.....10303/1023

Amor de Cosmos| 1.9.11 @ 11:05AM

Ah, but see, there's the Progressive narrative that Conservative Americans are only one step away at all times from acting violently. It comforts them in their delusions of enlightenment and rationality that only Rethuglicans resort to acting out violently. Therefore, the reporting fits into "things that must be true if I am not to be thought a fool" school of Progressive journalism.

So here is the narrative:
Of course he was a Tea Party supporter in a highly charged xenophobic hate-filled political atmosphere. He used a firearm. He acted violently. Conservatives are stupid and violent and this is the expected outcome of their rhetoric. If they had any reasoning skills they would be able to understand how smart I am and how smart all my friends are and do as we say. Alas, there is no justice in the world.

unreceivedogma| 1.9.11 @ 2:10PM

Seems even local law enforcement in Arizona also feels that this act is the inevitable consequence of heated vitriolic political rhetoric coming mostly from the right.

Have you guys seen the scientific study that came out of England a week or so back that demonstrated that conservatives have larger amygdalas (the primitive part of the brain that controls the fear/attack response) than the general population?

Oh, yes, the study was done in England, and for those of you who know where the Pacific Ocean is, you probably also know that England is in Europe, and Europe is...the "S" word.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sci.....gdala.html

Nick| 1.10.11 @ 9:40AM

Have you seen the well respected University of Granada study that demonstrated that all bleeding heart liberals have had lobotomies?

unreceivedogma| 1.10.11 @ 11:07AM

lol, nice try. send me the link...

Nick| 1.10.11 @ 11:57AM

Just a joke. Lighten up.

unreceivedogma| 1.10.11 @ 11:08AM

Btw, folks like you always assume I am a liberal, which I am not.

Patriot| 1.11.11 @ 10:57PM

Violent actions come from the Left--you need more impulse control.

Herb49| 1.9.11 @ 11:05AM

Kos puts 'bulls eye' on Blue Dog Gffords.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/.....511/541568

Herb49| 1.9.11 @ 11:06AM

Who's next on left's 'target list'?

http://www.dailykos.com/story/.....arget-list

kingsmill| 1.9.11 @ 11:15AM

A violent atheist goes on a killing spree and it is twisted by the rage filled Left into an example of Palin/Tea party inspired murder. Leftism is a mental disorder: Confirmed!

bruce b| 1.9.11 @ 11:16AM

The guy read Marx and Hitler; both virulent anti-Semites. This sounds more like a racial attack than anything.

unreceivedogma| 1.9.11 @ 1:42PM

Marx was Jewish, dude.

Support your local library. Go read a book.

Lou| 1.9.11 @ 5:10PM

He was born into a Jewish Lutheran family but adopted atheism.

Support your local library.

unreceivedogma| 1.10.11 @ 11:09AM

we know that. now disprove my point please, if you can.

Patriot| 1.11.11 @ 10:58PM

Marx was a self-hating Jew. Deal with it.

Dean from Ohio| 1.9.11 @ 8:13PM

You should shake out the dogma from your own mental kennel before commenting in ignorance again:

From http://www.zionism-israel.com/.....itism.htm:

"Marx, inspired by Moses Hess, documented the supposed obnoxious characteristics of Jews, with great flair in 'A World Without Jews' and in his review of Bauer's On the Jewish Question, (Deutsch-Französische Jahrbücher; Marx, February, 1844 ) Marx wrote:

'The bill of exchange is the real god of the Jew. His god is only an illusory bill of exchange.

'The Jew is perpetually created by civil society from its own entrails.

'The chimerical nationality of the Jew is the nationality of of the merchant, of the man of money in general.

'Contempt for theory, art, history, and for man as an end in himself, which is contained in an abstract form in the Jewish religion

'We recognize in Judaism, therefore, a general anti-social element of the present time, an element which through historical development -- to which in this harmful respect the Jews have zealously contributed .'"

Sounds more like covetousness of money by Marx.

And why should it surprise you that a Jew turn against Jews? As Hannah Arendt documents in her book, The Banality of Evil, many Jewish leaders actually participated in delivering over Jews to the gas chambers under Hitler.

I see the same thing in liberals. They give lip service to liberality but are the most intolerant people I know. They give money--other people's money, that is--but very little to none of their own.

How much of your own money did you give to charity in 2010?

unreceivedogma| 1.10.11 @ 11:15AM

You should try reading the whole page instead of selectively quoting. You will find that that zionist publication is more complex than I usually give them credit for, and by implication...

Nick| 1.10.11 @ 11:55AM

Unreceivedogma,

How can you claim Dean is "selectively quoting."

Marx was a self-hating Jew, both the religion and the people as a whole, the merchants and bankers.

This is a historical fact.

Mike W| 1.9.11 @ 2:19PM

Weren't all of the victims white? Including Giffords. Where is the racist angle?

unreceivedogma| 1.9.11 @ 2:49PM

Giffords is Jewish. bruce thinks because the guy read Marx he was an anti-semite, but as I alluded earlier, bruce is a little misguided.

Dean from Ohio| 1.9.11 @ 8:14PM

See my post above.

JP| 1.9.11 @ 11:27AM

The Left today is taking on fascist elements with every passing year. Thier "fury" over the act of a lone mad man reinforces Rahm Emmanual's dictim, "Never let a crisis go to waste".

The Left today is a mixture of Nietzschian Nihilism and Will to Power - nothing more.

Margie| 1.9.11 @ 2:51PM

Well said Mr. JP, well said.

Oldefarte| 1.9.11 @ 11:34AM

Make no mistake, the left has been/is gearing up to use this tradegy to its advantage. As the one who is now running for Chicago's mayor has publically stated, they all believe in not letting any disaster go to political waste. As the now heads of the Homeland Security Department issued its governmental report previously indicating that the terrorist problem is based upon the tea partying conservative members of our society, they will somehow use their governmental power and influence to slants this tradegy to their political advantage. This sad, sad occurance is cause for all of us to bow out collective heads in prayer for the victims [and their families]; and pray for their survival, healing and solitude. When same has ended, it will be seen that the factual source of this demented individual perpatrator will no doubt be rooted inside the LIBERAL, not the conservative, sections of this nation!!!!!!!!!!!

axbucxdu| 1.9.11 @ 11:48AM

The "Left" has never been anything more than the "Will To Power". They never tire of the fight for it.

bluecollarbytes| 1.9.11 @ 11:49AM

Yes the reporting has been almost repulsive (including many initial reports claiming Gifford had died) .

Palin needs to reject any suggestion that she apologize, regardless of the pressures partisan politicos and their Siamese media put on her, or that will be the end of her.

Funny how previous shootings have been connected to Islamic or radical-left individuals, yet those same partisans went out of their way to avoid comment on That much less analyze it.

Is Jared Loughner crazy? I doubt it. It's likely he just entertained his darkest fantasies, willingly.

Nick| 1.9.11 @ 12:02PM

You lefty kooks are proving that you are just as deranged as this nut Loughner is.

You have to have your tinfoil hats wound pretty tight to try and blame this on the right/Tea Party. It takes a special kind of stupid to connect dots that aren't there.

Congratulations, nut roots.
Uh-oh! Here come the black helicopters! Run!

martin j smith| 1.9.11 @ 12:07PM

The Socialists, Marxists, communists ( all the same to me ) were the ones who spread very vitriolic hatred 0of GWB to the point of talking about his assassination including a movie. They are the ones who libel the Tea Party as Racists ( accusations without foundation, as Nazis same thing and Obama in his class warfare rhetoric is no angel either )So, when there is an opportunity to use tragic events for political purposes, they are Johnny on the Spot -or in this case Obama on the spot. Take the NYT: Krugman do you believe fopr one New York Nano Second that the NYT is not coordinating with the White House. I for one believe its of all together now. So, when I hear these Un Americans spit forth their garbage especially NOW when the NATION is trying to sort out what happened and why. What great contribution to this do we get from the media ? We get this garbage. There is a race not only for the headlines but for the political payoff particularly from the LEFT. Viewers of TV news I think are getting it. But is pisses me the heck off to see these anti-social,Un American creeps poisoning our nation with the vile libel and filth they do. This is great mistake of lots of the media.

martin j smith| 1.9.11 @ 12:07PM

The Socialists, Marxists, communists ( all the same to me ) were the ones who spread very vitriolic hatred 0of GWB to the point of talking about his assassination including a movie. They are the ones who libel the Tea Party as Racists ( accusations without foundation, as Nazis same thing and Obama in his class warfare rhetoric is no angel either )So, when there is an opportunity to use tragic events for political purposes, they are Johnny on the Spot -or in this case Obama on the spot. Take the NYT: Krugman do you believe fopr one New York Nano Second that the NYT is not coordinating with the White House. I for one believe its of all together now. So, when I hear these Un Americans spit forth their garbage especially NOW when the NATION is trying to sort out what happened and why. What great contribution to this do we get from the media ? We get this garbage. There is a race not only for the headlines but for the political payoff particularly from the LEFT. Viewers of TV news I think are getting it. But is pisses me the heck off to see these anti-social,Un American creeps poisoning our nation with the vile libel and filth they do. This is great mistake of lots of the media.

Kingofthenet| 1.9.11 @ 12:11PM

We are coming for your guns soon, don't resist.

Nick| 1.9.11 @ 12:16PM

Please do.
I'll leave the door unlocked.

Skippy| 1.9.11 @ 2:59PM

Come on in and set a spell!
Remember there a lot more of us than there are of you.
See you soon sweeetie!

Margie| 1.9.11 @ 3:25PM

Skippy peanut butter.
Derived from nuts.
Might want to reconsider that moniker of yours.

Margie| 1.9.11 @ 2:54PM

And the light on.

Anonyma| 1.9.11 @ 12:15PM

We need to concentrate on why these "deteriorating" mentally people are allowed to remain free among us until they decide to murder people. I personally know of two cases where the mentally ill apparently had more rights than those whom they murdered. In the 1980s the medical system and politicians decided it would be better (and cheaper) to "mainstream" the mentally ill until they were a danger to themselves or others. This resulted in a vast increase in homelessness, which, ironically, mental asylums for long-term residency were created to end, and in dangerous mentally ill being allowed to torment the healthy until the day the ill person brings a gun along and kills someone.

Let's not let arguing about the shooter's motivations AGAIN distract from this truth: we are not treating the dangerous, mentally ill effectively nor are we protecting the innocent from the danger that they pose.

Mark| 1.9.11 @ 12:23PM

Just flipping through these comments is enough to see what's REALLY wrong with political rhetoric ON BOTH SIDES OF THE AISLE ... Bill is absolutely right when he says, "The point is that angry, vitriolic and violent rhetoric have created [an] atmosphere that has the potential to steer deranged killers in the direction of our elected representatives and other government officals." ... Meanwhile, all you liberal and conservative sheep can focus on is whose rhetoric is worse, when, in fact, both sides have passed well beyond the boundaries of decorum, decency and respect ... BOTH sides should be ashamed of what they have done to this nation ... Today, I am ashamed to be an American.

Nick| 1.9.11 @ 12:25PM

I'm ashamed that you're an American too, Mark.

Patriot| 1.12.11 @ 3:03AM

LOL!

tonypal| 1.9.11 @ 1:46PM

Ah yes, the voice of the moderate. Always reasonable, always careful to avoid giving offense so as to place oneself above all the "radicals" on the left and right.

Now look here pal. There is simply no comparison between the left and the right as far as hate-filled rhetoric is concerned. During the Bush presidency, movies were made and books were written about presidential assassination, several of which featured the assassination of Pres. Bush. Please use your moderate brain to point out the equivalent on the right. I know you're genetically predisposed towards taking the cowards way out and stating that both sides do it, but I respectfully request that you show me anything from the right that compares with what the left puts forth daily.

Don't bother telling me about right wing talk radio, because I listen to Limbaugh and the other guys and I've never heard any close to a call for violence from them. If you've got an example other than a simple policy disagreement, give me a specific example. On the other hand, Randi Rhodes of the now defunct Air America twice called for the assassination of Pres. Bush. In fact, she was the subject of a secret service investigation the second time around. As for Sarah Palin, the woman is attacked 24/7 for simply stating her point of view. The whole issue of her putting bullseyes on members of Congress? Only a low grade moron would construe that as an incitement to violence.

So stop with this sissy nonsense about both sides being equally guilty. For once in your life, be a man and take a stand.

unreceivedogma| 1.9.11 @ 1:47PM

Both sides are not the same. I don't see any elected officials on the left saying that they will assert their second amendment rights if they lose an election.

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 1:59PM

You lefties will keep running with that sound bite won't you? First off, it was taken out of context and it was poorly worded and she said so later. Also she was not an elected official dummy. Now if you had ever watch any Glenn Beck (of course not because you already know what you think from what the media tells you), he has a great deal of audio and video from the left advocating violent means and institigating for a revolution. They had their little commie march in DC not too long ago. Yes, both sides are not the same because the left is 10 times worse if not more.

Margie| 1.9.11 @ 2:57PM

Elected officials on the Left don't have to assert their second amendment rights.. they do it at the ballot box by stealing election, busing sheep to motor-voter gatherings, and somehow causing the dead to rise and vote Democrat.
Who needs a gun to do that?

tonypal| 1.9.11 @ 9:21PM

Try addressing my post.

Nick| 1.10.11 @ 3:04PM

Unreceivedogma,

No, they just compare members of the military and F.B.I. to the Gestapo, KGB, and Pol Pot's thugs, al a Turbin' Durbin.

Try going over to Michelle Maulkin's website and see the long litany of lefty kooks calling for violence.

Thomas A. Quinas| 1.9.11 @ 12:24PM

Writes Bill:
When other Americans you disagree with are described as "enemies," accused of "treason," and characterized as part of "a cancer that must be eradiacted," it's not hard to understand how a deranged killer's mind could fixate on someone who was politically targeted and literally targeted on a website having to do with political viewpoints.

So, we will no longer hear "homophobic racist haters" or that sort any longer. According to your theory, the Left should actually be blamed for this killing, since by calling their opponents such vile names--racist hating homphobe blah, blah, blah--it makes righties feel misunderstood and marginalized. And some, sadly, crack. So, the Left should cease and desist.

Also, the Left should be careful, you could get a Tea Party backlash (see Islamophobia rhetoric).

You people are shameless opportunists. Sick, sick, sick.

Annabelle Lee| 1.9.11 @ 12:36PM

Doesn't anyone EVER look at the fact that kids like this are often drug users? Has the FBI done a tox screen on this man- urinalysis, blood test, hair test? I'd bet he's a stoner/loner whose primary contact with other human beings is through online video games and blogs. A misfit. There are a lot of these young people floating around whose "reality" is often World of Warcraft. It will be interesting to see.

FACTS| 1.9.11 @ 1:06PM

If it is simple enough to describe this killer with, Jared Loughner is crazy.

Then it is equally easy to say, Nidal Malik Hasan is crazy.

But you wont. Mmmmmmmmmm Double Standards.

George S| 1.9.11 @ 1:22PM

I will say it: they are both mentally disturbed. But whether a person is motivated by talking dogs, communiques from Mars, or religious zealotry is as irrelevant as being influenced by political rhetoric. They are not the driving factors behind irrational behavior, instead it is what they THINK those external factors are telling him to do. Those who think that their religion requires them to kill innocents as a duty to salvation, are by definition, anti-social and we must be protected against their actions. Same thing if someone thinks the Bill of Rights gives them the license to shoot 'revenuers' who trespass uninvited.

As of now, we don't know anything about the motives behind the AZ shootings. But we do know about the motives of the Ft Hood shootings but choose to ignore it, which is why Hasan's motivations were buried while Loughner's are made up of whole cloth. It serves a purpose.

FACTS| 1.9.11 @ 1:35PM

Both were (or at leastIi expect in Jared's case) lone crazed killers. Both had mental issues and used radical religous/politcal views to justify their actions. The people that feed folks this radicalism, both muslim and domestic political groups (right and left) should be held accountable for the hate they spew.

Nick| 1.9.11 @ 1:43PM

You have no idea why this nut committed this tragedy, No-Facts.

George S| 1.9.11 @ 1:51PM

You're contradicting yourself... if mental issues justify irrational actions, then religious and political groups cannot be the driving influence. For example, if an Imam knows a congregant is crazy and implores him to act, then the Imam is guilty of criminality. If the law can prove that the Imam reasonably knew that the person was crazy and presented a danger, then the Imam can be charged with depraved indifference. So, who in the Tea Party knew that "Jared" was crazy and liable to shoot a member of Congress? Even if you can establish a tenuous tie, then why did he shoot others? Was his programming off?

Margie| 1.9.11 @ 3:03PM

That sounds like Reparations for slavery mentality.
Hold all current living whites accountable for the sins of the past.
Now you are going to hold phony Religious groups and right and left political groups responsible for the actions of one man?
No, he should get the death penalty. And maybe God will grant Him repentant heart before he breathes his last, that's not my call though. His will be done.

Jake| 1.9.11 @ 1:18PM

Palin brought this on herself , only it effects all of us on the right, now.
The right and the Tea Party should be on the sidelines, as aghast as the rest of America by this senseless tragedy.
Only now, we're on the defensive and tainted-solely because of Palin's map.
If Keith Olbermann produced a map on his show like Palin's and then one
of his " targets " was shot ,
would we all be outraged at his actions.
We would be demanding that MSNBC fire him.
Palin rolled out the red carpet for the media to tie her ( and us ) to this heinous act.
Palin's map cannot be defended and should have been condemned by the Tea Party and all Republicans .
No one can possibly know if Palin's map did or did not affect
the shooter , but, just the fact that it existed and worried Congresswoman Giffords
should make everyone on the right cringe.
Instead of defending the indefensible, Republicans, the RNC and the Tea Party should stop enabling Palin .
How could Palin have thought that putting targets on named Democrats would be a positive for the conservative movement ?
We all use heated and military rhetoric during a campaign , but, her gun sight map crossed the line.
She's a 47 yr old woman with the emotional maturity of a 12 year old.
If a child made a map like this in school , he would be immediately expelled and put into counseling.
Because the left did it to us is a pathetic attempt to excuse Palin .
Two wrongs don't make a right and what Palin did was just as offensive
as the left's targets.
Palin's too cute by half behavior has come back to bite us all on the right and it won't be the last time.

tonypal| 1.9.11 @ 1:48PM

As I stated previously, only a low grade moron would construe the map with the bullseyes as a call to violence. How silly.

unreceivedogma| 1.9.11 @ 1:58PM

Tonypal,
Regarding your name-calling, try reading 1.9.11 @ 1:53PM below. Then if you still don't get it, try looking in the mirror.

Margie| 1.9.11 @ 3:07PM

Moron: –noun (Dictionary.ref).
1. A person who is notably stupid or lacking in good judgment.
2. Psychology . a person of borderline intelligence in a former classification of mental retardation, having an intelligence quotient of 50 to 69.

Low-grade (Dictionary.ref).

–adjective
of an inferior quality, worth, value, etc.: The mine yields low-grade silver ore.

tonypal| 1.9.11 @ 9:28PM

I read and was unimpressed. You must get that a lot.. As for the name calling, I know you're not offended so don't play games. Like any good liberal, I'm quite certain you're well versed when it comes to name calling.

unreceivedogma| 1.10.11 @ 11:18AM

Like any good conservative, you presume, incorrectly, that I am a liberal.

Patriot| 1.12.11 @ 3:06AM

You're a Leftist, we know.

Mike W| 1.9.11 @ 2:25PM

You have brought out the only good thing that this tragedy might bring about - the end of the Palin threat to the Republican party. She was threatening to destroy the party with a run for the nomination because there is no way she can win the general election.

Margie| 1.9.11 @ 3:12PM

I do believe that you would fit the definition of the word I posted, just above.

uber_infidel| 1.9.11 @ 3:23PM

congratulations jake .... you are the official poster troll for ignorance and irrelevance today !

Thomas A. Quinas| 1.9.11 @ 3:53PM

Jake:

If, let's say, Palin is killed or shot at, can we pin the blame on you, since you essentially called her a murderer?

This cuts both ways.

richard mcenroe | 1.9.11 @ 1:19PM

So does this mean the President CAN'T threaten bankers with pitchfork-bearing mobs? Or send SEIU rentamobs to their houses?

unreceivedogma| 1.9.11 @ 1:52PM

"There is no Evidence" this. "There is no Evidence" that.

No doubt the writers and readers of these pages love to dump on the tort profession. Funny how you sound like a lawyer when you find yourselves in a fix like this one.

Margie| 1.9.11 @ 3:10PM

Honest lawyers use reason and logic.
Leftist lawyers use deceit and obfuscation to willfully misdirect.

Depends which type of lawyer you'd be referring to.

unreceivedogma| 1.9.11 @ 1:53PM

Free speech is not an absolute right. It comes with responsibilities. As most people know or should know, the 1st Amendment does not give you a right to shout "fire" in a theatre. Similarly, those commanding respect and influence in the theatre of public opinion - knowing the extent to which their voices are amplified by the media - cannot not know that their voices will be picked up by "the crazies" in the audience. They have to be prepared to face the consequences of shouting "resort to the 2nd Amendment" in the theatre. That's how it works, and to think otherwise in this day and age is not simply reckless, it is willful, calculated mendacity masquerading as naivete.

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 2:12PM

So will you condemn Obama for his violent rhetoric? Bringing a gun to a knife fight and punishing your enemies among others. Is that helpful to having a reasonable political discourse? How about Keith Olbermann? Or that fat slob Ed Shultz? Or are there audiences so small and being liberal they can say whatever hate filled rants they please?

George S| 1.9.11 @ 2:29PM

Can you shout "fire" if theater is on fire? Blaming freedom of speech for the actions of the insane is... insane.

Thomas A. Quinas| 1.9.11 @ 3:56PM

Hmmm! So, when the Rutgers gay killed himself and it was blamed on those that judge homosexual acts as immoral that was a bridge too far? Essentially, those that believe that homosexual conduct is immoral are responsible for suicides. In that case, if any of those folks is harmed by some gay nut, that rhetoric is responsible?

martin j smith| 1.9.11 @ 1:54PM

this is the context: the nation is going thru a period of grief and these anti-social Un American s dare to impune their opponents airing their disagreements and normal discourse in political campaigns as the "cause" of this outrageous " shooting.? Get out of here. Many who post who are clearly on the Left have short --or perhaps no memories of their own kind and their really bad behavior. I think that talking of assasinationGWB was over the top don't you ? I think that Obama telling his followers to confront those who disagree with him is over the top, don't you ? and I think that using SEIU thugs to surround the homes of CEOS is over the top and I think that calling Tea Party people racists when that is an outright lie is over the top, don't yoo? And, I also think that in the midst of grief and anxiety as well as anger and all kinds of other emotions calling people who disagree with you the "cause" of this incident is WAY OVER THE TOP, don't you ? Those who do not agree, someday your attitudes will come back to haunt you politically at least. The reason is because I believe those people who voted in the 2010 November elections will be even more charged up and motivated in 2012. I know I am.

Bill| 1.9.11 @ 2:11PM

Guys,

I take it ALL back. I was s-o-o-o-o wrong. I now concede that it is absolutely impossible that a poisonous political atmosphere full of violence-tinged vitrol could have had anything to do with the decision of a deranged man to deliberately target and shoot a Democratic Congresswoman.

My apologies. I was totally wrong and you are all brilliant people. You should all run for office. Rock on!

Bill

Mike W| 1.9.11 @ 2:22PM

You can believe all of the irrational nonsense that you want to believe. You can spout it out all over the air waves just as long as you and your left wing fascist buddies don't try to pass new laws to "fix" your perceived problem.

Bill| 1.9.11 @ 4:02PM

Yes Mike, I admit it. I'm a left-wing fascist. That probably explains why I volunteered for military service and served for five years in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War.

It's sad thing. You are so quick to slap a label on someone you disagree with. You don't have the slightest idea about my character, my service to my country, or even my politics other than my expressed view that the heightened level of political vitriol in the this country is harmful to us as a nation.

Bill

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 4:35PM

So should Obama be condemned for his violent rhetoric as well Bill? Is it proper for the POTUS to say to bring a gun to a knife fight or to punish your enemies (Republicans)? If you do not condemn him for these statements, you are a hypocrite to condemn Palin. It is called a two way street. Get off your high horse

George S| 1.9.11 @ 2:59PM

What is or isn't possible is just not known yet, except to arrogant know-it-alls. Have you ever considered that possibility that the judge was the target? It is more plausible to me that a deranged person perhaps goes after a judge who has already logged over 200 death threat phone calls from his presiding over a law suit by illegal immigrants against an American citizen. But again, we just don't know... yet the culprit is freedom of speech in the political arena?

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 2:16PM

Don't want to answer the question about Obama Bill?
Everyone here can see you for what you are, a liberal hypocrite. He also shot and killed a Republican Bush appointed judge so what was his political motivation for that?

Rex Politix| 1.9.11 @ 2:34PM

I have worked in some network newsrooms in my career...and very typically, the weekend news editors and staff are the "B" team. That's why they work on weekends. If you track back many of the worst journalistic blunders of recent times, you'll notice many of them happened on weekends...when the nation's newsrooms are staffed by a combination of newbie up-and-comers and burned-out has beens.

martin j smith| 1.9.11 @ 3:06PM

Bill go back to the huffington post or the daily kos. you will be much more at home there.

Bill| 1.9.11 @ 4:42PM

Martin,

Yes, I would be more at home at Huffington Post, though I'm not all that impressed with it. I also never look at Daily Kos, think Keith Olberman is just another blowhard and spend little time focused on left-wing media in general.

But the point is, I think, that if we all go to our respective "echo chambers" to hear only what we want to hear, we also lose to opportunity for honest dialogue about how to rescue our country, which I think is on a long downhill slide.

You might agree with that last statement, but you'd probably have a whole different set of reasons for reaching that conclusion. The best outcome would be for Americans on the left and right to find common ground, however hard that might be.

The real enemies of this country are overseas, and they can only be delighted at the sights and sounds of Americans at each other's throats over our political differences.

Bill

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 5:16PM

We get enough people like you here that there is no need to go to The Huffington Post to hear idiotic rants against conservatives. Let me say that you are far from the worst we get here but you are still evasive when it comes to the issue at hand. First thing is there is absolutely no proof that anything Palin said had any impact on this lunatic no matter how much sense it makes to you. In fact what has come out so far seems to indicate he is far more influenced by leftist thought. So until you have some real evidence that says otherwise, you are just plain wrong. Second, the hate from the left exceeds what you see from the right as you will see if you compare this site with something like the Daily Kos. How much violent rhetoric and threats have been made against Palin, Beck etc? I have mentioned Obama's violent rhetoric but you don't seem to want to address that issue, why is that?

Lou| 1.9.11 @ 5:23PM

Good points. This nation is divided.

Divided, we will fall.

And I'm as conservative as they come.

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 5:39PM

How are we to be united with those who seek to fundamentally transform America and its Constitution? Sure it would be great if we could all be united and respect each other but how do you compromise with poison? We just have to get the majority on our side so we can get the progressives out of power and restore some sanity to our government. What Bill says may sound good but will not work in reality unless you think guys like Lindsay Graham, Michael Bloomberg, Charlie Crist etc are the answer. I think not.

Intelligent Design| 1.9.11 @ 3:30PM

Journalists are about ten rungs lower on the ladder of ethics than prostitutes. What a dismal "profession" (journalism). To think that people actually go to Journalism School and pay tuition!

ALL OF THIS IS SPECULATIVE| 1.9.11 @ 4:45PM

What's ridiculous is that this blog (as well as stuff posted in the huffington post) IS ALL SPECULATIVE. What's even more ridiculous is that this bloggers opinion is being treated AS NEWS on FOX NEWS' Website, the web page that led me to this blog. Draw your own opinions, fine but don't treat this (or other speculative blogs) as news/fact. IT'S UP TO THE COURT TO DECIDE IF HE'S INSANE. PERIOD.

Comm Breakdown| 1.9.11 @ 5:30PM

Would it, could it, be possible that people writing comments here and elsewhere re-read what they've written before posting? It would be so refreshing to understand clearly what is being expressed if pivotal verbs and nouns were spelled correctly.
Personal blog opinions are interesting, but they are not professional journalism, nor are these opinions worth anythings unless there is direct linking in context to the source of how and why the opinions were formed. Why quote another blog when you should do the work yourself and cite the source. Repeating someone's opinion might be interesting, but it's not reporting.

Patriot| 1.12.11 @ 3:09AM

Nazi blogger strikes again! Buzz off.

Stan REdmond| 1.9.11 @ 4:59PM

Pray for peace and the recovery of the families murdered and hurt by this maniac.

On to the politics of the situation the left is disgusting. Read any blog or comments section anywhere. An army of leftists is capitalizing as much as possible to limit both 2nd and 1st amendment rights. Dozens of the posts here are DIRECT CUT AND PASTED on dozens of the blogs I've seen. Disgusting and sick. The right IS on the defensive today because we have to be. The

mustangrdy| 1.9.11 @ 5:16PM

Here is my thought. They just said there was a letter dated August 30th, 2007 from Gabriel Giffords to Jared Loughner thanking him for coming to a Congress on a Corner event. They keep saying it, but it appears to be going over everyones head... The letter was addressed to JARED LOUGHNERY...his name was misspelled! With all of his ranting about litteracy, I would say in his mentally unstable mind this is his motive for targeting her. She was illiterate because he could not spell his name... This kid was sick, sick in the head and in need of help. This was not political, it was just stupid!

Liberal Reader| 1.9.11 @ 6:11PM

Is your HEAD made out of granite?

Liberal Reader| 1.9.11 @ 6:17PM

It seems like many people came to the conclusion that the shooter must have harbored some recognizable political viewpoint that motivated him to commit this crime.

That assumption was of course foolish, and he of course was just a deranged man with second amendment rights.

However, I think the fact that people so quickly thought of Tea Party politics should TELL us something.

Why was that false surmise so easy?

Well ... Because tea partiers very often use violent rhetoric.

I'm not even saying that's always a bad thing. Firing up the troops, as it were, before an election is as American as apple pie.

It seems to me Clinton actually had it right when he was reflecting on Oklahoma City: there should be no room in our society for any person or group of people to be gagged or censored. But citizens who want to participate in our democracy should understand that their words have weight. The Constitution gives power to the people, and if you're going to wield that power you should be mindful and responsible of it.

Of course the Tea Party isn't to blame for this shooting. But maybe we could live without threats of "second amendment remedies" and so on. Would the Republican victories of this last November have been any smaller without such violent (and really stupid) rhetoric? I doubt it. And conservative leaders would have less to sweat about this weekend had they not engaged in so much of it.

Patriot| 1.12.11 @ 3:11AM

How can you defend Obama's violent rhetoric? Hypocrite.

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 6:57PM

It tells us that the left and their acolytes throughout the media will tell any lie or distortion to stop The Tea Party and smear conservatives. Obama is free to say things like bring your gun to a knife fight, punish your enemies and confront your opponents (standard community organizer violent rhetoric) and of course the media gives him a pass. But Palin's organization puts targets on a map of congressman to defeat politically and they hyperventilate on how that is inciting crazy people to murder. All part of the big lie being advanced by the likes of Paul Krugman and all the other liars on the left.

Liberal Reader| 1.9.11 @ 7:15PM

I'm sorry Todd but there just isn't much evidence of the volume of inflammatory rhetoric on the left that exists on the right. Of course you can find a few fragments of evidence that people on the left have used inappropriate or inflammatory rhetoric -- but there's just no equivalence.

Obama should not have used the word "enemy" when referring to Republicans; he's said a few other things that seemed weirdly out of tune from his usual temperate bearing. I don't think it matches Cheney's "a vote for a Democrat is a vote for Al Quaeda," but there's no real arguing taste.

What I think is abundantly clear is that when liberals think about violent repraisals against conservatives they fantasize about throwing lemonade and cookies at them and then contemplate years of psychotherapy to work out the guilt they feel over not using their words when expressing anger.

I'm afraid conservatives are going to be stuck in the public's imagination with their "second amendment remedies" talk -- and this is unfortunate. True American conservatism is not tribalism and it is not shrill, stupid entertainment -- and it is not very much in evidence anywhere in America these days, least of all in the Fox Newsopia that harbors the Tea Party factions and their rash, loud-mouthed cheerleaders.

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 7:55PM

It doesn't exist to you because you see nothing wrong with the likes of Keith Olbermann and Ed Shultz among many others. To any reasonable person, what you say is laughable. This is a classic from you liberal reader, I might have to save this one to remember how deluded liberals are. Just remember you liberals got your ass kicked in November and as much as you would like to believe your smears against conservatives like is happening with this shooting is going to help you in the next election, most Americans are wising up to your act. That is why that liberal rag Newsweek sold for $1 and the NYT's is becoming increasingly more irrelevant and people that want serious news go to the WSJ.

Liberal Reader| 1.9.11 @ 11:12PM

I do not watch cable news. I think you'd have to have a pretty incurious mind to watch MSNBC or Fox on anything like a regular basis -- unless it's for pure anthropological research.

For broadcast news I listen to NPR or watch Lehrer on PBS. Then I read newspapers and news magazines. Then I visit a few websites, some liberal and some conservative.

You need a balanced diet my friend.

MacDonald's will just make you a fat-ass.

Todd S| 1.9.11 @ 11:39PM

Of course you are an NPR and PBS guy, like most know-it-all liberals who think they are so much better informed than anyone else. The same NPR that had to fire Juan Williams and insinuate was crazy because he mentioned that he feels uncomfortable around Wahhabi Muslims? SCrew that National Progressive Radio bullshit stealing our money for their propaganda. Are you really that uninformed by the craziness of the left you find on MSNBC and The Daily Kos or is it just convenient for you to ignore it and pretend that all liberals are just so peaceful and sophisticated? Sounds like you hang out with a bunch of effeminate latte drinking wusses, I got you pegged alright liberal reader.

solidground| 1.9.11 @ 8:21PM

"What I think is abundantly clear is that when liberals think about violent repraisals against conservatives they fantasize about throwing lemonade and cookies at them and then contemplate years of psychotherapy to work out the guilt they feel over not using their words when expressing anger."

Wow! We have grounds for agreement: Liberals indeed are wimps. And your wimpish, snarky commentary, comprised of half-truths and distortion and reeking of self-hatred, typifies the rotting core of a thoroughly bankrupt political philosophy.

You have my sympathy for your liberal illness. That's more than I ought to grant, but most conservatives, I among them, are far more generous in all ways than progressives in general.

Dean from Ohio| 1.9.11 @ 8:31PM

Why are we talking about rhetorical violence when there's plenty of actual violence to compare between Left and Right?

African Americans vote Democratic 90%+ of the time. As documented by the report Race and Crime in the United States, rates of blacks committing murder have been 7 times greater than those of whites since 1975 (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C.....ted_States for an abstract). Being white is no better or worse than being black, but why do Democrats who happen to black people actually commit violence and far higher rates than others? Let's dig beneath the rhetoric and red-herring arguments about rhetoric to see if we can be part of the solution and not part of the problem.

Furthermore, Democrats have been the champions of abortion for more than 30 years. Fifty million (yes, 50,000,000) pre-born babies have been slaughtered under this Democratic regime. Doubtless Republicans have participated, but Democratic Party rhetoric and Democratic Party action have kept the trains going east, as it were. Furthermore, Planned Parenthood and its Democratic allies have consciously placed abortion clinic in minority, especially black, neighborhoods.

The Left in general, and the Democratic Party in particular, should repent of its wretched history of murder that is the real reason why violence is increasing in our society.

Dean from Ohio| 1.9.11 @ 9:10PM

More easily obtainable examples of actual Leftist violence fromhttp://www.newsrealblog.com/2011/01/09/joan-walsh-helps-craft-obscene-defense-for-arizona-shooter-blame-palin-and-the-tea-party/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+nrb-feature+(NewsReal+Blog+»+Feature) :

Blaming the Tea Party is not only outrageous and wrong, but Walsh ignores actual facts when she asks, “Can’t we agree to stop urging supporters to ‘reload’ or pursue ‘Second Amendment remedies’?” Tea Party rallies have never incited violence, nor have any tea partiers committed murder, burned banks, blown up cars and cities, burned down car dealerships or new housing developments in the name of the environment, nor do tea partiers hurl bottle rockets at onlookers and beat up pedestrians while marching. That is what the Left does, not conservatives standing together for just government reform.

See the link above for links to all these examples.

Methinks LR has a short memory.

Dean from Ohio| 1.9.11 @ 9:16PM

Let's try the link again:

http://www.newsrealblog.com/20.....b-feature+(NewsReal+Blog+»+Feature)

ironboltbruce | 1.9.11 @ 7:30PM

There are only two classes of politicians in the United States of America: (1) Those who are corrupt puppets of the Kleptocracy, and (2) those who will become corrupt puppets of the Kleptocracy. And being the spouse of an astronaut--now that we all know our intention was never to advance mankind so much as to control it--is a subject of question and debate, but a debate for another day (as if "our" debates ever really mattered). That said, and with all due respect to the loved ones of the fallen in this situation, please tell me just what makes the life of one corrupt(ible) American politician worth more Sheeple and media attention than the [thousands|millions] of truly innocent people (including old women and young children) who have been maimed and killed by "our" American military/mercenary and "intelligence" forces for profit--and sometimes, just for fun--since [9/11|1946)]?

solidground| 1.9.11 @ 8:03PM

Were Giffords not a politician, six slaughtered by a wild-eyed gunman who apparently left reality behind several years ago would have disappeared off the mainstream media map within six hours: one headline, one story and poof. Instead, we'll all have to listen to the left wing/progressive/Democratic Party mouthpieces vent over this incident for the next six or eight weeks, and more than likely carry it forward into the 2012 election. If Jesse Kelly, Giffords' opponent who lost to her by a mere 4,000 votes, had instead won the election, it would be Kelly that the lunatic child with a gun would have been stalking and likely shot. What would the lemmings on the left have had to say about that? Idiots like Stenny Hoyer and Barrack Obama, Sheriff Dimwit in Tucson, Olbermann and his posse of MSNBC dunces, and the entire lineup of shills for the Democratic Party will waste no time, effort, and certainly not conscience scapegoating any event that poses the opportunity for inciting their brainless, witless, intellectually challenged followers and fanatics.

Dean from Ohio| 1.9.11 @ 8:43PM

LR, I produce my share of typos too, but with your use of the word "repraisals" above, you might have something.

Your context: "What I think is abundantly clear is that when liberals think about violent repraisals against conservatives they fantasize about throwing lemonade and cookies at them and then contemplate years of psychotherapy to work out the guilt they feel over not using their words when expressing anger."

First of all, it's not clear at all. See my comment above about your violent shipmates. But reappraisal + reprisal = repraisal might be a coinable term, like refudiate. The only problem is that I don't see your side doing reappraisalsa of anything, except how to gain more power over the lives of others. Perhaps it's like coitus interruptus (your side is always bringing up sex, after all). When some inconvenient fact clangs against the hull of your world view, you reflexively start to reevaluate whether or not you're in a seaworthy vessel. Then you recover your bearings and begin thinking of reprisals instead, kind of like pirates I suppose. But yielding repraisals.

Your turn.

Liberal Reader| 1.9.11 @ 11:04PM

Thanks for pointing out my typo. I did indeed insert an "a" where it did not belong in the word "reprisal." For "reprisal" I wrote "repraisal." Again, many thanks.

axbucxdu| 1.9.11 @ 8:48PM

Why do they hate their opposition? Enemy? Really, now...

http://www.ndol.org/upload_graphics/BP_0405_heartland1.gif

tonypal| 1.9.11 @ 9:42PM

To unreceivedogma, Liberal Reader and all other liberals who want to blame Sarah Palin in some way for this shooting:

Back when they found the Unabomber's shack, among the items of note was Al Gore's book Earth in the Balance. The book was filled with notes and bulging with tabbed inserts. It seemed that Theodore Kaczynski was quite taken with Al Gore, his book and his views on the environment. We also know that Kaczynski's targets were primarily government officials, such as judges.

As we all know, Kaczynski was himself a radical environmentalist. He was also insane, much like the Arizona shooter. Now if we take the "logic" of liberals and apply it to the Unabomber situation, then one is required to conclude that Al Gore bears responsibility to a certain degree for Kaczynski's actions. Personally, I think that's a stretch, but if I allow myself to "think" like a liberal for a moment, it becomes very clear to me that Gore has to take responsibility for Kaczynski's crimes.

Since my mind doesn't function like the mind of a liberal, I simply accepted the fact that Kaczynski was a twisted soul who acted of his own volition. So did the Arizona shooter. But if we really want to get into this blame game, why don't you guys just listen to what those who knew the Arizona shooter best had to say. Seems he was quite the liberal, wasn't he?

axbucxdu| 1.9.11 @ 10:03PM

Applying reductio ad absurdum to the left's arguments can be a disorienting and often times a nauseating experience, but it never fails to demonstrate the nonsense contained in their ideas.

Liberal Reader| 1.9.11 @ 11:07PM

When did I blame Sarah Palin for this shooting?

People have TOLD you that leftists are blaming Sarah Palin. That doesn't make it true, my friend.

Ask yourself why they are telling you something that just is not true.

The Unabomber was a terrorist and a criminal. I'm glad they caught him. I'm glad he was prosecuted. I'm glad he's in prison. I don't give a damn what his politics were. I will say he'd be a great example for you to raise if any liberal ever claims that no "leftist" has ever committed a violent act, but I can't understand why you'd bother to argue with anyone so foolish.

tonypal| 1.10.11 @ 9:04AM

Of course Palin is being blamed, but I also hold her up as representative of all conservatives who are being blamed. So when you say I must ask why I'm being told something that's not true, here's my response:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01.....ef=opinion

http://realclearpolitics.com/v.....mment.html

There you go my friend. I have plenty more for you if you want. They only allow you to post 2 links per post, so look to my next post for a few more. You'll also notice that aside from Megyn Kelly's interview, it's all non-Fox News stuff, straight from the source. Still think I'm either making it up or being lied to, or whatever your point was?

tonypal| 1.10.11 @ 9:06AM

http://www.realclearpolitics.c.....8523.html#

Again, I'll post more if you still need some convincing.

Nick| 1.10.11 @ 9:33AM

"The Unabomber was a terrorist and a criminal. I'm glad they caught him."

You're one of the few liberals that is glad, Marxist Reader, algore sure wasn't.

Gerald H. Treffinger| 1.10.11 @ 2:25AM

Let's see ; Last year , I believe , someone making a speech about people on the Right . I paraphrase but I bet I'm close ......Well , HEY , if you're in a fight and they bring a knife .....you gotta bring a gun . Barak Obama ( aka " THE ONE ")

LarryM| 1.10.11 @ 4:09AM

No one has commented on Christina Taylor Green, the 9 year old girl who went there to get "a real life civic lesson."
I wonder if her parents would welcome some of these posters to provide lessons for her. They would learn from them the proper names to call anyone who disagreed with their politics.
She could have learned that ,"The Left in general, and the Democratic Party in particular, should repent of its wretched history of murder that is the real reason why violence is increasing in our society." And that Democrats have "incited violence....committed murder, burned banks, blown up cars and cities, burned down car dealerships or new housing developments in the name of the environment."
Had she lived I believe that her parents would have told her that this kind of untrue, hateful, hyped up rhetoric, is anti-American. Our country's Constitution was framed and ratified by men who listened to each other and understood the word compromise- a word that has become anathema to so many self-labeled Patriots

Nick| 1.10.11 @ 9:30AM

"Blah-blah-blah-blah-blah."
- LarryM

RalphfromAZ| 1.10.11 @ 4:48PM

"Blah-blah-blah-blah-blah."
That pretty well sums up Nick's intellect.

Margie| 1.11.11 @ 1:12PM

If you really think that then you haven't read his posts. Not only is he sharp as a razor in his intellect but has a great sense of humor to boot.

Liberals on the other hand have zero sense of humor, and if they do have any it's because they're secretly longing to be conservative. :^)

Ralph & Deb Miller| 1.10.11 @ 5:36AM

Here we go again. After 9/11 we got the Patriot Act. Now this sad shooting in Arizonia. What will the politicians do now to attack our liberties because of one nut with a gun? God bless all of them. Our prayers are with their families and them.

McCafe| 1.10.11 @ 8:06AM

When all else fails, blame Sarah Palin.

Dean from Ohio| 1.10.11 @ 10:30AM

@ Liberal Reader - "I'm sorry Todd but there just isn't much evidence of the volume of inflammatory rhetoric on the left that exists on the right. "

Here's maybe a couple hundred such pieces of evidence: http://michellemalkin.com/2011.....2000-2010/

To the Left: Know Thyself

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