Blood Libel, James Clyburn, Sarah Palin, and the Boycott Continues

Arghhhhhh!  This is why I just won't/can't blog on the Arizona shooting - because this kind of ignorance displayed by James Clyburn makes my head explode!  Pot, meet kettle.

Clyburn said that Palin didn't grasp why such rhetoric was so troubling, regardless of the motivations of the alleged shooter. The No. 3 House Democrat referenced the civil rights era and said that some of the shrill rhetoric in modern politics is reminiscent of that time.

"I have some experiences that maybe she does not have," he said. "When I see and hear things today that are reminiscent of that period of time, I am very, very concerned about it, because I know what it led to back then, and I know what it can lead to again."

My boycott continues.  What else can we talk about?   How's the weather where you are?

Enough Already!

I'm still not wading too far into the raging blame game that is still flaming all over the airwaves and internet as everyone tries to figure out where the blame lies for the Arizona tragedy.

Depending on where you look, it's Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin's fault.  Or maybe it's Rush Limbaugh's fault.  It's Sharron Angle's fault and the Tea Party's vitriol that caused this kid to go over the edge.  It's the fault of the administrators at the college Loughner attended because he was obviously nuts and they didn't do anything.  On and on it goes.

Enough already!  How about some kind of personal responsibility here?  Maybe the kid was just nuts.  Maybe it's nobody's fault.  Were there warning signs?  Sure.  Of course.  Where were his parents?

Enough with the blame.  You'll never really know the answer and knee jerk reactions aren't going to change things.

Turn it down, support the injured and the families of those who died.  Give blood.  Send money.  Do whatever you need to do but stop blaming everyone except the kid who pulled the trigger.

Silent on Tucson...For Now

This blog has been silent, you may have noticed, on the shooting in Tucson Saturday.  I learned of the shooting when I was sitting in a Mexican restaurant with my son celebrating his birthday (a day early!).  By the time I got home about an hour later the story had erupted into a politically-motivated-vitriolic-finger-pointing-without-facts mess.  Somehow it was all Sarah Palin's fault. 

Meanwhile, a federal judge was dead, as was a 9 year old child, among others.  As I watched coverage throughout the day I heard one story after another about Representative Giffords, as if she had been the only person injured.  The finger-pointing and the blame-game increased.  The knee jerk reactions are already starting.

I thought about firing up the laptop and blogging the events but something about it felt wrong.  So I've stayed quiet. 

I'm praying for Representative Giffords and am amazed at the forward progress she is making.  It's nothing short of miraculous.  I'm also praying for the other victims and their families. 

Beyond that, I'm not going to speculate on the motivations of Jared Loughner.  I'm not going to speculate as to whether or not political rhetoric is to blame. 

For once, I'm just going to hold my tongue.  And pray.