Not long after the news broke about the shootings of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and others, I received an e-mail from someone (who will remain unnamed) urging me not to lash out or point fingers. I could almost sense him fighting the urge to use the phrase, “Don’t go off half-cocked.” He ended the e-mail with: “Don’t go blaming talk radio or the Tea Party for this. Let cooler heads prevail.”
Well, y’know, sometimes cooler heads can just kiss my butt.
I would never say that the Tea Party wanted somebody to put a bullet in Gabrielle Giffords’ head, but at the same time, you can’t tell me that everybody in that movement feels bad that it happened.
I would never claim that talk-show lemmings—who leapfrog each other in a desperate attempt to be the one who is most out there—are giving secret orders to listeners to go out and shoot members of Congress, but at the same time, you can’t tell me that the ratcheting up of the vile content by some of these creeps isn’t enough to push some Travis Bickle-wannabe over the edge.
And I don’t believe that Sarah Palin wanted Gabby Giffords to get shot, but damn you if you try to claim that putting a bulls-eye over the district of a United States congresswoman is all just good, clean fun.
This all goes way past disingenuous. You can’t build a bonfire in a clearing and then deny any culpability when the embers get caught in the breeze and ignite dry tinder somewhere downwind. You don’t have to ascribe to chaos theory to make that connection. You do, however, have to practice self-delusion on a grand scale to claim that the connection doesn’t exist.
As Rush Limbaugh himself loves to say, words mean things; words are important. Messages tend to morph and degrade as they are passed along from one person to the next, even if they are done so on a word-for-word basis. It should surprise no one that hate speech that is spewed as self-congratulatory cleverness can, after a few iterations, become an insistent whisper in some nut-job’s head.
On the afternoon of Jan. 1, I was in a radio studio with three other guys, talking politics. One of the guys, Jonathan Hoffman, is a libertarian and a contributor to this paper. A generally affable fellow, Hoffman got on a roll near the end of the show and described President Obama and his backers as people who are bent on destroying this country.
I didn’t get a chance to reply, and it ate away at me the entire week. I wasn’t scheduled to be on the following week, so I planned to call in to respond to his wildly irresponsible charge. But then the shooting happened.
I’m a lifelong Democrat, and I don’t like much of what the Republicans do and/or try to do. In broad generalities, I believe that Republicans don’t give a crap about the environment and poor people, and that much of what they do legislatively is designed solely to keep themselves in office and to help their fat, rich friends get fatter and richer, which also helps keep them in office. However, I don’t think I have ever heard of, read about or met a Republican about whom I would say, “He’s bent on destroying the country.”
That kind of talk only goes in one direction, and we’d all be better off if it came to a halt. (I’m sure that some will claim that similar invective was directed at George W. Bush, but claiming that someone is ruining the country by his actions is much different than accusing an elected official of wanting to ruin the country.) I don’t know if the hate-speakers are capable of seeing that distinction.
I hope there’s a special place in hell for all of the media outlets that scrambled to be the first to declare Giffords dead. What ever happened to getting the story right? In this world of shrinking readership for daily newspapers and the splintering of on-air media, how about distinguishing oneself by doing things correctly? Right is always better than fast.
The media weren’t the only culprits, either. A friend of a friend who happens to be a member of the Arizona Legislature was texting everyone and telling them that Giffords had passed away. The tone was, “I know her. I’m her good friend, and I know that she has died.”
I’m actually proud to live in a community that reacted the way it did, from the woman who grabbed a spare magazine away from the shooter, to the emergency-response teams and medical personnel who all did their jobs heroically. I’m especially proud of Sheriff Clarence Dupnik, who spoke his mind and did his job while wearing his emotions on his sleeve. He focused in with laser-like precision and told all the Tree of Liberty jackasses what they could do with their cooler heads.
I don’t want to hear about “senseless tragedy.” This was a calculated act with a cause and an effect. Let’s just hope that part of that effect is to admit that the cause exists—and to take peaceful steps to deal with it.
This article appears in Jan 13-19, 2011.
None of my news sources declared GG dead – I didn’t hear about that until this column. If yours did, perhaps it is time to change news sources?
NPR, CNN, etc? you would have had to be under a rock not to have heard reports she had died…
Several news sources, including national sources reported that she had died.
Tom, you and Sheriff Dupnik are telling it as it is.
The truth is rare and appreciated by many.
But some prefer lies and politically correct jibberish, and to follow those who speak nonsense.
How can a person be a patriot when calling for “targeting” and “taking out” opponents and saying they want govt. out of our lives so they can take over the govt.
And they seek face time on tv.
We give too much face time and attention to those who manipulate and lie for personal gain. They do not deserve our attention.
We need to tune out these people and just say “Shut up.”
When we no longer listen to the haters, the rabble rousers, the lairs and extremists who falsely claim to be “conservatives” when in fact they are radicals, these people will have to find a new line of work.
For once in my life, I agree with Tom Danehy… this is actually more surprising to me than the shooting itself, though of course far less shocking.
I passed the following on to Dan Gibson too, but if you’re reading, Danehy, you’ll definitely want to take a look at this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4i1w6DB0lsM
You read the address right… Tucson, Arizona! “Mind control” to Major Tom!
You are simply wrong Tom.
YOU need to get your fact in order. First of all Gifford was targeted by the shooter since 2007. Testimony confirmed he never watched TV or listened to radio and hated the news. Now who is inciting ridiculous politically motivated accusations? Our country WILL be liberated from big government no matter how hard you try to silence us, or shame us into silence. BIG wasteful spending WILL stop, which has come from a Democratic Congress the American people no longer want and has not represented us at all. Your political theories are out dated. I have a feeling the facts do not matter to you because as usual you have an agenda that supercedes the facts. Well Shame On You!
The re-election of Democrat Gabrielle Giffords shows how the majority of voters in Arizona’s District 8 feel about a Democratic Congress. Representative Giffords is THE type of politician the United States deperately needs. I’m sure there are Republicans in the U.S. Senate and House that have similar qualities.
Mr. Danehy is correct in pointing out that most Republicans favor wealthy individuals and corporations. The government is NOT a villainous entity, any more than one political party is all bad. Members of both dominant political parties are flawed. Members of both are good people.
Hopefully, as a county, we can find common ground, as the one people we are, through objective analyses of truthful information about our government. Individuals who can distinguish facts from fictions are essential in debate.
For example, back in early 2008 some of us NRA members were apprehensive that, if elected, President Barrack Obama would confiscate all guns. That was not factual. Has he made any move toward confiscation? Or, has he tried to impose individual serial numbers on every bullet? That’s what some of said to generate opposition.
Then, there were the “death panels” to instill fear about a more benign health care system. That mistaken information helped big, profiteering corporations in the health industry succeeded in perpetuating an unfortunate health care system on the “for profit” model that kills people due to its lack of affordability.
There are better ways to operate our government and to conduct ourselves politically. Those include respect for each other and a focus on listening to each other with honest consideration for different opinions and views.
What a disgusting post, your subtle accusation toward the right is not only uncalled for but clearly inaccurate. To suggest the the those on the right stir ups this type of hated to encourage “not Job” to commit this horrific crime against humanity. Sheriff Dupnic saying we are the MECCA of Hate and Bigotry and you don’t call him out on this outrages comments. Oh and talk about Bush, the 8 years of pure hate campaign was non stop by the left. Why must you use this tragedy to further you political expediency. Why can’t we just come together as a community and let those directly affected morn in peace. Let the community of Tucson join and support our neighbors and stop pointing fingers accept to the evil person that commented this crime. Stop blaming everyone else
The shooter was a nut case..period! He didn’t have any specific ideology, didn’t listen to talk radio, watch TV, etc. Did you listen to our President last night? Why do you continue to beat the same old WRONG DRUM?? Mind control? If readers are that simple minded then what do we do with them??? Gee….how about letting the government control all of the media in the country…that way we will get the “correct” story? Why don’t we just “think” as we are told to “think”.
What infuriates me is that I keep hearing that those on the left have done the same thing (RE: viriol, gun slang, suggesting a la Coulter that certain people be killed). They just don’t get that even if you can come up with an example after lots of digging–it does not compare to a pervasive atmosphere of hate and repeated invective. How deep do you have to dig to come up with–say–100 examples from Coulter, Beck, Hannity, O’Reilly, etc, etc, etc. And to an audience of millions. We have heard over and over about the guy who dropped a gun at one of Giffords’ town halls–what about the ones who showed up in camoflauge clothing with unconcealed weapons and then made fun of Giffords in their blogs because she was probably afraid. (I saw this and read the blog.) Thanks, Tom. At the same time I did appreciate Obama’s speech. That was no place to focus on this, but it is what we need to bring away from this terrible tragedy. That and a return to real mental health services for the seriously mentally ill, with some teeth in getting dangerous psychotics in to treatment.
P.S. I don’t know if or how anyone would know if Jared watched various media. He wouldn’t have to. Blogs are even worse and they are influenced by media. You can’t separate the various components out from each other–media, blogs, filters into everyday conversations. I hear people repeat sound bites all the time–often verbatim–as if its an original thought of theirs.
Aren’t we doing exactly what we’re trying not to do anymore? Left accuses right; right accuses left…stop already. I recently moved to Chicago after living in Tucson for 33 years. I followed the events right up to the memorial last night. I’m so very proud of the way the Tucson community has had an outpouring of unity. Dont let it stop in this thread.
We all need time to heal. Peace people…
Danehy has a lot of nerve to be complaining about “overheated rhetoric.” The idea that Loughner targeted Giffords due to any “tea party” or Sarah Palin influence has been thoroughly and irretrievably debunked. He was after her as early as 2007, long before the tea party movement existed and long before anyone had heard of Sarah Palin. The accusation the sanctimonious and hypocritical left-wing extremist Danehy makes is itself, of course, a flaming example of the very thing he mock-piously pretends to condemn in his best Olbermann-perpetual-outrage tone.
I thought Obama “hit it out of the ballpark” with his speech yesterday. After, I flipped among MSNBC, Fox & CNN hoping for some intelligent discussion and perhaps lessons learned about toning down the vitriol. Fat chance. In disgust I turned to a Seinfeld rerun.
Good article, Mr. Danehy. I agree with you completely. Seeing some of the comments re: your article, I understand why Arizona now holds the distinction of being the armpit of the United States of America.
I guess you missed 8 years of vitriol at President Bush, not the least of which was a movie portraying his assasination. That movie was widely praised by “progressive” sources – including NYT and NPR.
I’m also proud of Sheriff Clarence Dupnik for speaking his mind. He DID focus in with laser precision on the hate-filled rhetoric that passes for political dialogue in this state. Sheriff Dupnik is one more hero in the panoply of heroes associated with the tragedy last Saturday. Thank you, Tom, for so clearly articulating my own sentiments. Burgess Needle
NPR was the first to report Gaby deceased. Dupnik should retire!
I love Tucson and all that it has given me, but have you read Tucson Ward 6 newsletter dated Jan 7, 2011.
Taking after Paul Krugman, Danehy? “You can’t build a bonfire in a clearing and then deny any culpability when the embers get caught in the breeze and ignite dry tinder somewhere downwind.” Sounds like you’ve arrested, tried and convicted in your own mind. You don’t recall Obama’s “they bring a knife, we’ll bring a gun” rhetoric? On what did you blame the Ft. Hood massacre? The D.C. snipers? James Jay Lee, the guy who took hostages at the Discovery Channel? John Patrick Bedell, the Pentagon shooter? For you THIS massacre is the sole responsibility of the Tea Party and its supporters?
How convenient. But it says more about you than about them.
You say, “I don’t like much of what the Republicans do and/or try to do. In broad generalities, I believe that Republicans don’t give a crap about the environment and poor people, and that much of what they do legislatively is designed solely to keep themselves in office and to help their fat, rich friends get fatter and richer, which also helps keep them in office,” but you’ve never said they’re “bent on destroying the country.” No? I’ll bet you’ve THOUGHT it.
You say “That kind of talk only goes in one direction.” Oh really? Shall I run you a list? How about Joy Behar on Sharron Angle – “That b!t*h is going to Hell.” Democrat Rep. Paul Kanjorski of Pennsylvania on Rick Scott, Republican candidate for Florida governor: “Instead of running for governor of Florida, they ought to have him and shoot him. Put him up against the wall and shoot him.” Rob Reiner, on Bill Maher’s show compared Tea Party supporters to Nazis. The Times Square bombing attempt was blamed by Mayor Bloomberg on “someone who didn’t like health care or something.” Bill Maher himself recently declared that the NRA should just change their name to the “Assassin’s Lobby.” That’s not hate-speech? None of THAT could “become an insistent whisper in some nut-job’s head”?
Would you like more? I can provide it.
You’re proud of Sheriff Dupnik? The man is supposed to be a law officer, an impartial enforcer of the law, not an advocate for the defense – and make no mistake, that’s what his statements are – a defense of the man guilty of planning and carrying out that massacre. It’s not his fault, the nasty Tea Party MADE him do it!
Somebody puts a car bomb in Times Square, don’t rush to judgement!
Somebody shoots a bunch of soldiers on a military base, don’t rush to judgement!
Somebody takes hostages at a cable TV channel, don’t rush to judgement!
Somebody starts sniping at people in Washington D.C, well obviously it’s an angry white male.
Somebody shoots a Democrat politician, obviously it’s the fault of the Tea Party.
What happened to “don’t rush to judgement”?
I’ll tell you what happened – it gave you the opportunity you’ve been waiting for to lash out at your (increasingly effective) opposition.
Yes, there was a cause here, but that cause was paranoid schizophrenia, not political rhetoric.
I’ve more to say, but this isn’t the forum for it.
The Liberal Left has been trying to work up Americans with this “rhetoric” stuff from the beginning. Fortunately, the American People are too smart to buy this propaganda. Actually, over 60 % don’t buy it. See that DNC “Target Stragety” Map with the bulls eyes? This kind of rhetoric has been going on since 1776 and perhaps before that. The Dems are really going to be sorry they tried this stunt come the 1st Tuesday in November, 2012. In case you don’t know Tom, there has been NO incidents of violence or even an arrest at any Tea Party Rally and certainly not on the National Mall at the Beck Rally. I thought the hooting and hollaring at the “Memorial Service” totally inappropriate as was a 38 minute speech by Obama. Quoting Thomas Edison “Be Courageous. America has had setbacks before and always came out stronger and more prosperous. Be a brave as your fathers before you. Have faith and move forward”. Why didn’t the Sherriff assign a LE Officer to the event?
This is an automatic gun control issue not a failure of the Mental Health Issue and certainly not a Republician or Tea Party issue.
And btw, I wish we could have a Sheriff like Clarence Dupnik who tells it like it is and does what’s best for his constituents and his community. One of the biggest drawbacks of living in Las Vegas is having to deal with what outsiders may call “corruption”… But what we regularly refer to as “juice”. Where else could a County Sheriff get away with so much crime AND so many innocent bystanders being shot to death under his watch?
Ricardo Small,
Just stop playing with us and go ahead and re-establish residency and run for the governorship bro.
Excellent. Applause, applause, applause!
Apparently my post of yesterday was a little too ‘right’, hit a nerve, so you quickly deleted it. I will try again today and keep it at a lower key (try to, anyway).
I think you are way off base with your article. You have absolutely no proof of anything relating to this catastrophe. Yet you condemn anyone even remotely connected to the Republican (right) Party.
Why not keep your extremist coments to yourself until more evidence is presented about this ‘alleged’ shooter. All the rumors so far portrays a young person who has been disturbed and infatuated with the idea of ‘creating chaos’ for years. Do you really think the Republican Tea Party folks pushed him over the edge? I, for one, do not, and I have as much right to my opinion as you, except you have the very envious position to write anything strongly liberal, and condemn anything conservative, and do your best to ram your ideals down the throats of your readers.
BE MORE OBSERVING; LESS POISON-PEN, PLEASE.
Um, not to belabor the obvious, but this guy was a documented, ranting loon long before the Tea Party, the last election, and all of the harsh words relating to ObamaCare. He was living in his own world, and there is zero evidence any of the rhetoric even registered in his mind, or that he even heard it. Actually, it appears nothing in the real world was getting through to his fantasy world.
So Danehy wants to blame SOMEBODY for the Safeway shootings? In typical liberal fashion, he so assiduously searches out SOMEBODY to blame, because hey, it can’t be actually be the fault of the guy who actually did it?! Danehy needs causality factors? Well, here’s another one for you, as absurd as it is, as per Danehy’s reasoning:
Obama caused the shootings of Giffords and 18 others. How? Obama summoned us to “get angry, and get up in the face of your neighbors and relatives” (Loughner did just that to Giffords). Then Obama pleaded “if they bring a knife to the fight, we’ll bring a gun” (Loughner did exactly that, too). So there you have it, Tom.
According to your methodology, Obama is to blame for Giffords’ present condition. This sounds absurd to me, but makes perfect sense in Danehy’s world.
I live in Las Vegas too. Doug Gillespie is a great sheriff as is our Metro cops. Las Vegas is a Law and Order Town and we like it that way. No madness during the last election. Voted for Harry Reid as unwilling to trade that Senate Power for a 61 year old Candidate who could do nothing for the State. The only place I have ever heard “juice” is in trashy novels. Its a sad day for America when the LW tries to use their own “rhetoric” to blame the “other party”. The Tucson Sheriff should be recalled immediately. Between Obama and Clarence, I believe the trial and prosecution will be jeoperdized.
Most of these postings make me sick. I like the article, thanks! Both sides spew hate, so if that’s what you’re selling, go elsewhere. We are responsible for our words AND actions. I have family who immediately started defending hate speech after the shooting because they were afraid blame would fall on them and their political party. Calm down, breathe, no sane person is blaming you for the shooting. If you’re angry, say so, but do it rationally and constructively. I don’t want my community to be torn down by hate, but to be built on the visions of a diverse group of individuals.
Even the comments here opposing your article sound quite angry. But really, conservatives are perfectly reasonable people, always willing to debate the issues in a calm manner. For example, the civil rights movement. Oh yes, Martin Luther King, his birthday is next week. One of Arizona’s finer moments. Immigrants, Gay Rights, a woman’s right to choose, it must be hell to always be on the wrong side of history. Thanks for the article Tom.
Tom, I thought I said that president Obama wanted to transform America into something that it is not, and was never intended to be, specifically, a European style social democracy. If your sure that I said “… bent on destroying this country.” I will defer to your memory since mine does not serve. They are one and the same in that the two cannot exist at the same time, so the traditional America must end up destroyed. I do recall that transforming America was a campaign promise of the president. I don’t think that the president sees his transforming efforts as ruining the country, I, and many others do. Please note that I did not call the president names, attack him personally, wish him ill, or make any Hitler comparisons. My statement was based on observations of his actions in office. Would you like to rethink the “irresponsible” charge?
Markos Moulitas did not put a bullseye on Rep Gifford’s district, he put it on her image. Bob Beckel of the Clinton administration claimed on television to have invented the district targeting crosshair imagery. So go ahead, damn everyone because it has been acceptable for a long time.
If you want to see some real hate, complete with Nazi references, check this out:
http://tinyurl.com/23azocq
I could make a better argument that the murderer was motivated by leftwing rantings, but I won’t, because it is not true. Evidence suggests that he is an apolitical nutcase who, as nutcases often do, developed a fixation with a public figure. I’m disappointed that you chose the exploitation route.
As for Clarence Dupnik, we should discuss his actions on the air next time we’re all together.
BTW – president Obama did an excellent job as national leader Wednesday night, on that I suspect we can all agree.
Tom, you should have listened to your friend’s email telling you “Don’t go off half-cocked.”
On his social network pages he was not associated with ONE right winged pundit from Jon Justice to Michael Savage. You think he would have at least ONE of them linked on his facebook page or Myspace Account if he was agreeing with them.
Jared was obsessed with far out conspiracies like Zeitgeist and Loose Change. He watched Waking Life and was obsessed with alternative dreaming. He was more associated with Alex Jones than Jon Justice or Rush Limbaugh. He believe the government was mind control and brain washing. He was describe by fellow students as a “left wing pot head.”
I would never “go off half-cocked” at name Jared as “left winged” and blame left winged pundits. Jared was in his own little word. The world where both the VERY far right (Alex Jones, 911 Truthers etc.) and the VERY far left (William Ayers, Anarchist communism etc.) meet.
I understand why Tom Danehy support Sheriff Dupniks outbursts. They both like to make broad generalizations. The dangerous thing is Dupnik is actually in charge of a law enforcement agency and Danehy poorly writes for a two bit newspaper that they give away on the side of the road. It takes a special person that actually is proud of a Dupnik ignorant remarks…
The shooter had a facebook page or some one was posing as him. The page was posted on after he was arrested and deleted after he was arrested. So it may be possible the police were monitoring his computer usage they dropped the ball here and are trying to cover it up. http://www.thomhartmann.com/forum/2011/01/…
Also it maybe possible that it was not the same Jared Loughner. I hardly would go by some post on a comment section by a user name as evidence he had a facebook account. I would go by the facts that are presented by people who personally knew him.
To quote my idol, Nancy Pelosi, “Are you serious?”
I’m been vacationing in AZ since 1985. Every year we spend thousands of dollars in AZ on air fare, rental car, hotels, meals, admissions, gifts, and gas. Lucky for AZ we ignored Grijalva’s call to boycott AZ.
The last 2 trips I’ve been looking for a property to buy. I’m paying cash.
We are registered Democrats from one of the bluest of the blue states on the east coast. We are government workers who are retiring with pensions, good health care plans, savings, a house that’s paid for–the whole bag of tricks.
We can retire anywhere in the world and have selected the Sonoran Desert as our first choice because we are avid birders and hikers and love being outdoors.
But we have backup choices if AZ doesn’t work out–Texas Hill Country, southern Utah, and Florida.
I’m not sure AZ is going to work out. The negatives are starting to outnumber the positives of flora and fauna of the Sonoran desert.
These negatives are: tax on out of state pensions, running out of water, porous border and illegal crimes on residents, high property taxes, impossible hot temperatures for 4 months out of the year, and inflamatory remarks by politicians and newspaper columnists.
If you want to attract new residents with money, Pima County needs to compete with other counties and other states. You have the Sonoran Desert, but we can always continue to visit it and still live elsewhere where taxes and the political environment are more agreeable.
Two weeks out from the shooting, your column still makes better sense that a lot of other stuff I’ve read since then. You successfully argue that the atmosphere of political speech makes a difference to people’s behavior.
Like you, I doubt that many Republicans or Tea Partiers would have wanted Loughner to shoot Gabrielle Giffords. Yet the mad fringe of the right wing pushes so hard on a narrative of anger and hatred that there is bound to be some destructive influence on mood and conduct.
What is the enormous appeal of owning guns? I don’t begrudge anyone their hobby, but guns are terribly dangerous toys. It is an objective fact that the U.S. has the highest level of gun violence of any country in the world. What leads the NRA and its enthusiastic adherents to believe that guns actually add something positive to mostly sedentary, mostly urban lives?