Comments on: Should Gabby Gifford have been packing heat?

By: Chris Wickey

Chris Wickey — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 19:11:04 +0000

Dear Mrs. Gifford:

I am very thankful for your great recovery! What happened to you makes us all, determine more then ever, to stand up and do all the right things, at all times, no matter who is against us!!
God bless you in your recovery!

By: Matt Bowman

Matt Bowman — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 19:35:19 +0000

Fox and Friends missed:

“The Arizona Daily Star, based on its interview with Zamudio, adds two details to the story. First, upon seeing the man with the gun, Zamudio “grabbed his arm and shoved him into a wall” before realizing he wasn’t the shooter. And second, one reason why Zamudio didn’t pull out his own weapon was that “he didn’t want to be confused as a second gunman.””

True Zamudio didn’t blast anyone’s brains out. But it is bound to happen in a group of heroes with guns. It happens often in war.

By: Tom S.

Tom S. — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 19:09:53 +0000

” … he mixed his metaphors like a tossed martini salad that fell into a food processor during a tornado… “

By: Lorax

Lorax — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 18:55:56 +0000

I didnt call you stupid, I did say it was a stupid question though. Maybe you misread my response in your glee to use the witty “vent your spleen too much” phrase you came up with.

How does one vent a spleen I wonder and does that entail an efflux of T-cells B-cells both?

By: Seriously

Seriously — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 18:30:24 +0000

Don’t vent your spleen too much there, Lorax. The only point I’ve been trying to make from the beginning (and it’s kind of a moot point based on Greg’s response @26) is that it’s not productive to label Loughner with ANY kind of political affiliation given what we know now. I fully agree that he might have been inflammed by the violent rhetoric currently en vogue in American politics (which is primarily the fault of the right, including the Tea Party), but that’s a far cry from claiming that he did what he did because of his political views (which seem largely unmoored to political reality)

My Muslim question was meant to point out that it is no more reasonable to point at incidents of violence and to blame them on the entirety of the Tea Party than it does to blame terrorism on all Muslims.

But by all means, call me stupid because I haven’t pigeonholed this guy based on a few days of sloppy media coverage.

By: Greg Laden

Greg Laden — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 16:01:59 +0000

Don’t:

1: http://www.landoverbaptist.org/

2: Right, Kentucky. I don’t know why I was thinking Philadelphia.

3: Loughner is unlikely to be a tbagger, or not one that attended tbag meets.

Teabaggers have meetings? Are you perhaps referring to the Tea Party?

By: Donâ??t Reload Palin

Donâ??t Reload Palin — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 15:03:02 +0000

1. “Landover Baptists”
? Westboro? (Phelps) google.com/search?q=Westboro+Phelps+godhatessweden+godhatesfags

2. The Randgoon head stomp was in KY, afaik…

3. Loughner is unlikely to be a tbagger, or not one that attended tbag meets. His political concerns fall closer to many tbagger issues. I can only guess (and he’ll be in the news for a while) … but i think he could have obsessed about any politician.
The general problem related to Loughner and violent incitement by famous (“respected”) conservatives is that the far rightwing (which is the GOP in 2011) tries too hard to be sure Loughner and “gang” members can kill easily.

By: Lorax

Lorax — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 04:33:36 +0000

@27 My response would be “How does that fucking matter?” I mean if you were talking-point-cheap enough to ask a stupid question like that, which Im sure you are not. Otherwise you might then come up with the “I wonder what the response would be if I pointed out that Hitler, the epitome of hate-filled rhetoric, killed millions of people, since only a handful of people were killed in AZ rhetoric could not have a played a part.” retort.

By: Stephanie Z

Stephanie Z — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 02:59:18 +0000

My response would be that my Muslim Representative already does that. Of course, he’s a progressive, so maybe that accounts for it.

By: Greg Laden

Greg Laden — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 02:56:42 +0000

Seriously, that issue has come up before. I agree with that. Moderate Muslims that do not denounce the extremists are dicks. Same with moderate Christians who don’t denounce the slayers of reproductive clinic doctors, etc.

Mostly they do. Well, the moderate Muslims do. I don’t hear very many moderate Christians denouncing other Christians no matter what they do, outside off the Landover Baptists, who are denounced by everyone.