Nine times out of ten, I don't write about politics. This is not a political blog, for many reasons (some of which will be clear by the time you're done reading this, I'm sure). The podcast I'm co-hosting with Grant Holzhauer is not about politics, which is the best thing possible seeing as we're at different ends of the political spectrum. Of course, like pretty much everyone, I am compelled to say my piece after the tragedy in Tucson this past Saturday that left six people dead (so far), and more wounded, among them the target of the whole, unimaginably frightening ordeal, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona. Being a resident of the state doesn't afford me any further insight into the massacre, not just because I don't live in the Tucson area. What frustrates me today isn't what's happening in this state in the aftermath. What frustrates me is how obvious the reaction has been.
The idea that the right-wing personalities in the media, and conservative politicians, are already trying to remind us that plenty of left-wing folk talk some pretty crazy talk about the opposition, and how dare we even think of saying anything bad about Sarah Palin and her not-really-but-kinda-sorta target image that's mysteriously vanished from her website is to be expected. Were any notable conservatives going to applaud the near-murder of a Democratic politician? Not if they had any serious desire to be part of the mainstream, no. Of course, some of these same people had been advocating for violence, either not in so many words or in exactly those words. So why shouldn't they be applauding the aftermath of what they'd been asking for? Well, see, it turns out that people like Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck and their ilk don't actually think that anyone takes them seriously when they talk about reloading. Why would they? It's not like these people have any sense of how their followers will react, right? Right?
False equivalencies don't work here. If there has been any talk about violence against politicians, or against anybody, it has been coming from the right, targeted at the left. Are there people on the left as nuts as those on the right? Sure. The primary difference is that the left-wing crazies don't have television shows. They don't have radio shows. They don't write books that cause people in North Phoenix (not too far from where I live) to line up outside a bookstore for hours just to get an autograph. Whether the clearly mentally disturbed man who went on the shooting rampage this past Saturday followed the heated rhetoric of Glenn Beck or Keith Olbermann is of absolutely no consequence. What matters is what Olbermann pointed out in his special Special Comment on Saturday night: the violent rhetoric, on all sides, must stop. When you encourage your supporters to come to target practice in opposition of your opponent, tone it down. When you encourage your supporters to use their Second Amendment remedies should you not be elected legally, it might be time to tone it down. When you showcase a map featuring 20 targets--sorry, surveyor's symbols (and isn't that one of the stupidest fucking lies you've ever heard? These people aren't even trying to be sneaky anymore. It's offensive on so many levels.)--representing your opponents and, in capital letters, exhort your followers to reload, tone it the fuck down.
One hopes that if there is a positive effect in the aftermath of this horrendous event, it will be...well, hopefully there's more than one positive effect. First, we need to tone down the violent rhetoric. I would hope that President Obama would say as much, but I fear he's become as cautious as ever, and doesn't want to offend anyone by saying something that the invisible moderate voter will not agree with. This is what the media needs to do. Here--easy tip. Watch the Rally To Restore Sanity and/or Fear from October. It doesn't seem so silly anymore. Learn from Jon Stewart's climactic speech. Sanity is the opposite of what happened in Tucson. While we're fixing the rhetoric, let's consider that some people need mental health care and are not getting it. And let's consider that a state that allows a man who is as deranged as the shooter to get a concealed weapon without a permit needs to repeal that damn law. Gun control doesn't mean gun ban. Some people--including me--might need some training before they pick up a pistol. Some people, because of health issues, should not be allowed to carry guns. And, to reiterate a point brought up today by Chris Matthews, you do not need to carry a gun to a political rally. You should not have have to. We're a screwed-up state in a screwed-up country, but Arizona could make a big step forward by repealing that law, or at least changing its wording. In the meantime, spread the word. These kinds of horrendous massacres--whether they involve politicians, celebrities, or just regular people--should not happen. One man held the gun, but he was influenced. Eliminate the influences, so we're not mourning again soon.
No comments:
Post a Comment