Monday, January 10, 2011

Civil Discourse

Is Sarah Palin responsible for the shootings in Arizona? No, she's not.

Is the GOP or the Tea Party responsible for the shootings in Arizona? No, they aren't.

Is FOX News, and all of their venom that is spewed on the airwaves responsible? Nope, they aren't either.

Is a mentally ill man who likely suffers from paranoid fantasies and was just looking for a target responsible for the shootings? Yes, he is.

Despite the fact that no political or media outlet is directly or indirectly responsible for this tragedy, should we allow America to continue on it's vitriolic and destructive path? I'm going to go with no on this one.

Should we instead take this moment to rethink the current public discourse before a politician or media outlet can be directly or indirectly blamed for violence? I'm gonna say yes.

Even if it means not taking easy potshots at FOX News? Damn it. Still yes.

I hope everyone else agrees. I hate taking the high road alone.

20 comments:

She Said said...

pop <---- the sound of my bubble bursting.

No, I agree with you. This tragic event is bringing up an important discussion, desperately in need of attention.

Vic said...

This is the most rational thing I've heard on this subject yet.
If everybody did more listening and THINKING, and less ranting, we'd be in a better place as a country.

VEG said...

Damn right. Democrats aren't responsible. Republicans aren't responsible. News stations aren't responsible. Some psychotic lunatic delusional asshole? Totally responsible.

What's hard about that?

msprimadonna67 said...

Oh, I agree with you 100%!

Liz Woodbury said...

you are a smart lady.

G. B. Miller said...

Interesting template you got here. Makes it a little hard to read the comments.

Having said that, I agree with your premise 100%.

From what I've seen, the guy was extremely apolitical, didn't vote in the last election and his main beef apparently was that the congresswoman didn't answer his question to his satisfaction the last time he had contact with her.

Jen said...

You know I agree. I struggled not to post about this, but I couldn't find the words. Glad you did.

BugginWord said...

Agreed. And mostly strongly agree on that last point. We could do with a lot less competition and a lot more greater good, damnit. Good ideas can come from both sides if you listen and work together. I know, I know. *walks off humming "kumbaya"*

Anonymous said...

You are right as usual, Libby. I am with you on the high road. I hope that those of us on the high road don't use words like "lunatic", "deranged", "crazy" and the like to describe people we do not understand. Using such language makes us no better than FOX news. Perhaps on the high road, we can have a discussion about better accessibility to mental health treatment.

Kelly said...

I couldn't agree more. Well said Libby.

LL Cool Joe said...

Reminds me of the lyrics by Eminem

"They say music can alter moods and talk to you
Well can it load a gun up for you , and cock it too
Well if it can, then the next time you assault a dude
Just tell the judge it was my fault and i'll get sued"

Riot Kitty said...

Bravo!

Patty Punker said...

damnit, you're right.

if this dude said he did it because he read catcher in the rye or listened to marilyn manson or played grand theft auto, i'd so be you're responsible for your own actions and evil will occur in human nature no matter what media exists. fox news and sarah palin were just so easy to blame, but i know better.

maybe the jury is still out? no, just kidding, i really know better. really i do.

Me, You, or Ellie said...

It's just so hard, isn't it? The hatred and vitriol and downright craziness makes me want to weep. And run away from home.

Ellie

Miss Yvonne said...

Agreed!

Patty O. said...

I totally agree. Though I must interject here that Sarah Palin was extremely irresponsible and just plain stupid to post that list. I find it highly ironic that a Christian pro-life woman would publish a list with targets on it. I don't think she meant anyone to take it literally, but I still think that was disrespectful of life and definitely not something Jesus would approve of.

Anonymous said...

Of course you are right. IMO: People want an answer to the "why"...and blaming someone's actions is easier than pointing toward a mental instability. In the same breath, though, I would say there are a large contigent of sheep out there, so calling for more respectful discourse is a priority, along with better mental health services. In other words: ditto.

Missed Periods said...

I do wish we had less vitriolic political discourse, but I haven't heard any proof that one has anything to do with the other.

The Absence of Alternatives said...

I also hope that we will be able to move the needle just a bit towards banning assault weapons. For instance, no civilian needs a magazine with 30 rounds.

Jay Ferris said...

I hear ya, and am especially tired of people acting like Sarah Palin is anything other than exactly what we made her. We need to start ignoring the hell outta that bitch, and stat.