I suppose it's possible that the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords -- who was out speaking with constituents, some of whom were harmed, in her Arizona district when a gunman in his 20s reportedly walked up to her and began shooting -- had nothing to do with this:
It's possible. But whenever a politician is harmed in an act of violence we have to pause for a moment to think 1) this is comparatively rare in this country, for which we should be thankful, and 2) in light of it's rarity, what could have caused it? Isolated individuals with distorted views of reality and a tendency toward violence are always to be found, but it's hard to separate this shooting from the sometimes extreme rhetoric against Giffords, a Democrat, leading up to her November re-election, the high number of death threats against President Obama, and the increasing anger under which many operate politically these days.
The hate-mongers will try to back away from responsibility in this, as they always do, but violent rhetoric, unpinned from facts and reality, gives solace to those nursing extreme fears. Whether the gunman was politically motivated or not, painting targets across a map certainly doesn't ensure anyone's safety.
-- Monica Potts
