CBS Poll: Nearly Six In Ten Say Heated Rhetoric Unrelated To AZ Shooting

Palin accuses critics of 'blood libel'
WASHINGTON - Prominent U.S. Republican Sarah Palin Wednesday accused critics of “blood Libel” by blaming her Rhetoric for contributing to the shooting rampage in Tucson that killed six and wounded 14, including Democratic Representative Gabrielle Giffords. “Acts of monstrous criminality stand on their own. They begin and end with the criminals who commit them,” the conservative Tea Party favorite and former Alaska Governor said in her first major response to critics. R...

Sarah Palin unapologetic after criticism related to Arizona shootings
In a forceful and unapologetic statement released early Wednesday, Sarah Palin dismissed critics who had suggested that the former Alaska Governor's Firearms-infused Rhetoric contributed to the shootings in Tucson that killed six and wounded 14, including U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, contending they "incite the hatred and violence they purport to condemn." "Like many, I've spent the past few days reflecting on what happened and praying for guidance," Palin said. "After this shocking tragedy, I...

How Obama Can Talk About Tolerance without Trivializing a Tragedy
President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama are joined by government employees on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Monday, Jan. 10, 2011, to observe a moment of silence for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., and the other Victims of an Assassination attempt against her. (Credit: AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) This post originally appeared on Slate. For the second time in his tenure, President Obama will eulogize the Victims of a shooting. In November 2009--it now seems...

Truth or Consequence How Did You THINK It Was Going to End Up?
In the aftermath of the Assassination attempt on Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) and the cold-blooded murders of six other innocent people, Judson Phillips, the founder of Tea Party Nation issued a statement, “We didn’t intend for this to result in violence.” Huh? How did you think it was going to end up? Phillips went on to say, “No one should be killed for their political beliefs, but . . . there can be no Civil Discourse with people as crazy as those on the left are....

Sharron Angle Defends Her Political Rhetoric
Yahoo! Buzz Sharron Angle , the unsuccessful GOP Senate Candidate from Nevada, denied that her fiery campaign Rhetoric played a roll in Saturday’s attack on Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords . In a statement, Ms. Angle said that blaming her, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin or the Tea Party movement “puts all who gather to redress grievances in danger.” Ms. Palin earlier released a video statement defending her Rhetoric and calling it a “blood Libel’’ to link political...

Both Sides Not
George Packer in The New Yorker:Only one side has made the Rhetoric of armed revolt against an oppressive tyranny the guiding spirit of its Grassroots movement and its midterm campaign. Only one side routinely invokes the Second Amendment as a form of swagger and intimidation, not-so-coyly conflating rights with threats. Only one side’s Activists bring guns to democratic political gatherings. Only one side has a popular national TV host who uses his platform to indoctrinate viewers in the...

The Exploitive Rhetoric of Tragedy
In the wake of the horrendous shooting rampage in Tucson, why isn't anyone talking about banning "Mein Kampf"? Or "The Communist Manifesto"? Or for that matter, "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," "Peter Pan" or "The Phantom Tollbooth"? After all, unlike Sarah Palin's absurdly infamous Facebook map with crosshairs on Congressional Districts that some pundits have blamed for the violence, we have some evidence--suspect Jared Lee Loughner's own words--that these books were a dire...

Chris Christie Fires Back at Rudy: 'Maybe He Had a Bad Breakfast'
You must login to comment. The Fox Nation is for those opposed to intolerance, excessive government control of our lives, and attempts to monopolize opinion or suppress freedom of thought, expression, and worship. Read more... We invite all Americans who share these values to join us here at Fox Nation. 'Cautious Optimism' for Rep. Giffords Mark Kelly, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' husband, holds her hand in her room at University Medical Center in Tucson, Ariz. the day after the shooting rampage in ...

Sarah Palin: Death Panels And Blood Libel
h/t Instapundit for his links on former Governor Sarah Palin's evidently immediately Controversial new video, controversial because she uses the term "blood Libel." Glenn Reynolds used it in a recent Wall Street Journal piece. That was the first time I personally recall seeing it applied here - The Arizona Tragedy and the Politics of Blood Libel. From the text of Palin's video statement: But, especially within hours of a tragedy unfolding, Journalists and pundits should...

Father chased son into desert before shooting
Mysterious black bag in hand, Jared Loughner ran into the desert, his angry father stopping pursuit in his truck. Hours after Randy Loughner’s futile confrontation with his 22-year-old son Saturday morning, six people were shot dead and more than a dozen others wounded — and Jared Loughner was in custody. The sheriff’s deputies who swarmed the Loughners’ house removed what they describe as evidence Jared Loughner was targeting Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who doctors said Tue...

Sarah Palin speaks out on Americas Enduring Strength and charges critics with blood libel
This morning Sarah Palin released a statement through Facebook slamming her critics charges that overheated political Rhetoric contributed to the weekend shooting rampage in Arizona that left a Gabriel Giffords fighting for her life. Sarah Palin charged her critics with “blood Libel” Like millions of Americans I learned of the tragic events in Arizona on Saturday, and my heart broke for the innocent Victims. No words can fill the hole left by the death of an innocent, but we do mou...

Influence and over-determination
In comments yesterday, Mark Matson posted this incredibly instructive little video demonstrating the power of even barely noticeable influence: In the broadest sense, this is a demonstration of the (small-s) situationist Thesis: the hidden power of situational factors to influence behavior. Situationist influences are generally taken to be much less important than dispositionist ones--those that reside in the individual's inherent disposition--their character, tastes, preferences, beliefs, et...

Should Tucson Prompt a Discussion About Climate Change?
Some angry e-mails this morning about civility, specifically about my earlier posts asserting that, so far, the Tucson massacre story has more to do with Mental Illness and Gun Control than it has to do with violent Rhetoric in political discourse. Here's one such e-mail: Get your head out of the sand Goldberg. These kinds of shootings wouldn't happen in a country that wasn't ruled by Fox. Wait until your targeted for Death Threats, then you'll see. Put aside that bit about death threats -- I ke...

Determined to Stifle Arizona Violence Debate, Palin Claims She's the Victim... of a "Blood Libel"
Echoing the new battle cry of the right, Sarah Palin has come out of hiding to accuse those who suggest over-the-top Rhetoric and a volatile political climate might offer some explanation of Saturday's gun rampage in Arizona of Manufacturing a “blood Libel” against her. Desperate to defend herself after being called out for placing the crosshairs of a rifle over the home district of a congresswoman who was then the Victim of an Assassination attempt, the former Governor of Alaska scr...

Republicans, Democrats, Tea Partiers Uniting to Protect Youngest Ariz. Rampage Murder Victim
KIRK ADAMS, SPEAKER OF Arizona STATEHOUSE: All indications are that they [Westboro Baptist Church] do plan to Protest, that this will not stop them. But there's an interesting story, Greta, that's developed here. Republicans and Democrats and Tea Partiers in Tucson are coming together to provide sort of a human buffer to the Protesters so that the families will not have to hear the disgusting cries of the Protesters against this 9-year-old girl. And I think this is an example of the community co...

Palin slams 'blood libel', takes no blame for violence (AFP)
WASHINGTON (AFP) – Sarah Palin on Wednesday slammed as "blood Libel" charges that overheated political Rhetoric contributed to a weekend shooting rampage in Arizona that left a US lawmaker fighting for her life. "Especially within hours of a tragedy unfolding, Journalists and pundits should not manufacture a blood libel that serves only to incite the very hatred and violence that they purport to condemn," she said in an online video message. The conservative former Re...

The Consequences of Inflamed Rhetoric
By now, I’m sure you’ve heard about what happened in Arizona over the weekend.  In case you’ve managed to avoid the news for the past few days, though, Rep. Gabrielle “Gabby” Giffords (D-Arizona), U.S. District Judge John Roll, and eighteen others were shot by a lone gunman at a “Congress on your Corner” event held by Rep. Giffords. A medical Helicopter evacuates Victims from a “Congress on Your Corner” event in Tucson, Arizona, where U....

Bill Maher: 'I'm So Tired of the Second Amendment'
Comic and HBO "Real Time" host Bill Maher has always been good at stirring the pot, and his comments about Gun Rights on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno" Tuesday night are certain to stir up something! When Jay Leno asked Bill Maher for his take on the Tucson Shooting Spree that killed six and wounded more than a dozen people last weekend, Maher responded to the Tucson event rather indirectly, but was quite direct as to how he feels about gun issues in general. You must login to comment. The Fox...

Poll: Most Say Rhetoric, Killings Unrelated
From a deeply saddened CBS News: Poll: Most Americans Feel Rhetoric, Tucson Shooting Unrelated Posted by Daniel Carty January 11, 2011 Nearly six in 10 Americans say the country’s heated political rhetoric is not to blame for the Tucson shooting rampage that left six dead and critically wounded U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, according to a CBS News poll. So either our media master has better ratchet up their efforts or move on to their fall back position - Gun Control. In the wake ...

Angle Defends Herself Against Criticism
Former Nevada U.S. Senate Candidate Sharron Angle, whose talk of "Second Amendment remedies" during last year's campaign has been cited as an example of violent political Rhetoric, defended herself in a statement, CNN reports. Said Angle: "I condemn all acts of violence. The despicable act in Tucson is a horrifying and senseless tragedy, and should be condemned as a single act of violence, by a single unstable individual. Expanding the context of the attack to blame and to infringe upon the pe...

Angle: Media 'inappropriately attributing blame' for Tucson shooting
Former Nevada Senate Candidate Sharron Angle denied her campaign Rhetoric helped motivate the Tucson gunman and accused the media of "finger-pointing towards political figures" to boost Ratings. Angle's suggestion during the midterm campaign that voters could pursue "Second Amendment remedies" to settle political differences with Congress has been widely criticized in the wake of the attack that left six people dead and Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) in critical condition. "I have consiste...

Reforming our Gun Culture
Submitted by findingavoice on Wed, 01/12/2011 - 6:15am. Well, your second-amendment solution reared its ugly head this week in Tucson with the shooting of Gabby Giffords, a blue dog Democrat who was re-elected in November. Those folks who try to say there is some equivalence between angry liberal talk and Sarah Palin’s “cross hairs” Rhetoric are self-serving deniers who refuse to acknowledge the part they play in the deterioration of Civil Discourse in our country. On Sunday w...

Angle: Blame is 'irresponsible'
Defeated Nevada Senate Candidate Sharron Angle, whose talk of "Second Amendment remedies" has been much-cited in the recent arguments over language and politics, defended herself in a statement released late last night: My thoughts and prayers go out to all those suffering from the horrible act of violence in Arizona. I pray for the families of those lost and injured to receive all ...

The Great American Craziness
I do not believe that Sarah Palin and her blather about "reloading" or Sharron Angle, she of "Second Amendment solutions," have anything to do with the gunning down of innocents in Arizona. You can’t blame a third of a huge nation, who love simplistic hyperbole, for the actions of one crazy person in Tucson. What bothers me is people, sane and insane, with guns, better ones, another manifestation of technological revolution. What bothers me is the cowardice of national ...

The Arizona shooting and the context of right-wing extremism
By Michael J.W. Stickings Offering some of the best commentary yet on the Arizona shooting, Slate's Jacob Weisberg makes the crucual distinction between what may have been going on inside Jared Lee Loughner's troubled head, "politically tinged schizophrenia," and outside: To call his crime an attempted Assassination is to acknowledge that it appears to have had a political and not merely a personal context. That context...