(no subject)

[lagilman]

I had wanted to come home and do a post about the opera I saw this afternoon. Instead, I am going to cuddle the CutePuppy, drink a glass of wine, & think kind, gentle, healing thoughts. Can't hurt, right?

EtA: this may be nothing politically-motivated. I find that damned unlikely, considering the threats against the Congresswoman previously, but possible. However, that does not mean we should give a free pass to the culture of violent hate espoused by national (and mainstream) political figures.

Reports are that the "target" map on the Palin website has been taken down, and her Twitter account shut down. I hope to HELL she and others of her ilk start to realize that if just as when you preach understanding and compassion, you spread that, if you call for violence and hatred... this is what you get.

Other folk have said that they don't want to hold Palin responsibile, that freedom of speech gives her the right to say whatever she wants. I agree that she has the legal right to say anything within the bounds of Freedom of Speech... but that does not absolve anyone from responsibility for those words, between them and the 3am reckoning of what they may have encouraged someone else to do.

(and yes, I consider that in my own words and writings. I have to. Fiction explores the darkness within us, but I have no desire to encourage it to grow.)


EtA2: Me: "the right to bear arms IN A WELL-REGULATED MILITIA." Okay? Can we remember that? Not the right to perform personal revenge fantasies with a goddamned automatic rifle!" My dad: "Feel better now? Me: "no!"

Comments

[copperwise.livejournal.com]

The suspect seems to be a whack-a-loon, with some sort of political ideation buried in his unbalanced brain. Incitement to violence sets this sort off quite easily. But then if the person you set off with your (generic you, not you personally) rhetoric of hate turns out to be mentally ill, it's so much easier to deny that you bear any responsibility for it, yanno?

So disgusted with this.

[lagilman]

I am utterly disgusted with the "I can say anything and not take responsibility for it" behavior -- part entitlement and part moral abyss.

What's that old saying? Oh yeah, "with great power comes great responsibility."

[neadods.livejournal.com]

I've already seen the first "How dare you liebrals race to blame the tea party!" and "Palin didn't tell anyone to shoot! You'll blame her for anything!" posts.

I give huge points to Boehner for point blank saying "attacking one of us is attacking all of us." Personally, I think la Palin is simply going into damage control (her public statement is terribly generic and naturally mentions nothing about retreating, reloading, or literally putting a gunsight on a shooting victim)... But I think that it won't be long until she's reusing O'Reilly's playbook on how it didn't matter what s/he said or hinted about Rep Gifford/Dr. Tiller, there is no connection between her/his words and bullets actually flying, how dare you say that!

[mtlawson.livejournal.com]

That's the first time in ages that I've seen something decent out of John. Since he represents the district just north of us, we see plenty of his "I'll say anything to win" spiel.

However, I'm afraid you're right about the good old 'splitting hairs' argument. But you know what? The cat's out of the bag, and as try as they might, the Tea Partiers and FOX News and everyone else can't put it back in. When you incite crowds and use hate speech, this is the sort of thing that happens.

[neadods.livejournal.com]

The cat's out of the bag, and as try as they might, the Tea Partiers and FOX News and everyone else can't put it back in. When you incite crowds and use hate speech, this is the sort of thing that happens.

May this stick more than culpability in Tiller's assassination stuck to his detractors. We'll know in about three days, if anyone starts saying "Well, of course this is a horrible thing, but..." The devil's in that "but."

[lagilman]

In the end "he was a nut-loon" will trump anything that might have triggered him. See above re: "not MY responsibility."

[mizkit.livejournal.com]

And as somebody somewhere said, politics and crazy are not unfamiliar bedfellows. One does not get a free pass for politically motivated murder just because one is batshit. One is using the politics to express one's batshitness, or vice versa, but either way, the idea that "The poor man's a nut job" is not an excuse for either his behavior or the agenda of hatred that almost certainly encouraged him to act.

[lagilman]

The fact that the suspect has refused to speak/incriminate himself is, I suspect, the first step to declaring him fit to stand trial. It will be interesting to see how that plays out...


(I think there is a HUGE difference between "batshit" and "not capable of morally comprehending their actions," myself. The former should be no protection at law)

[6-penny.livejournal.com]

Does she even want to comprehend the amplifying echoes of the free form fear/hate that her machine cultivates so assiduously?

[ubiquitous-a.livejournal.com]

There have been all of these condemnations from those on the Right all day about this incident, but that's just not enough to my mind. These people need to admit that their own violent, gun-toting rhetoric actually can cause unstable people who worship them to do the unthinkable. They need to apologize, and then they need to commit to never doing it again.

Yeah, I know....I'm dreaming, but their expressions of "shock" and "outrage", even if legitimate, are just not enough.

[jslinder.livejournal.com]

One of the things I have come to realize is that there is a cognitive disconnect among many of the radical right (I dislike lumping the tea party and GOP collectively as a whole because there are perfectly normal members of those groups out there).

They literally do not see their actions as having consequences unless those consequences apply to them or their ilk. It's notable in too much of their behavior to be just a quirk.

Now, I'm not sure if its a matter of the right being attractive to that particular personality type, or that being the core type that started the movement, no way to tell.

Studies are showing that how people's brain's work affects their political allegiance. I've assumed this for years. As a side note, that's also why I think the Democrat party in general has trouble being politically aggressive. Basically, people who are attracted to the more liberal side of the spectrum seem to be less aggressive in general..

[neko-san.livejournal.com]

Thanks; well said. She's a sister of a friend, so this is weirding me out a lot.