There is no evidence that Jared Loughner’s rampage in Tucson was influenced by vitriolic rhetoric. There is also no proof that it wasn’t. In light of the fact that it has happened at least three times in the recent past, and as David Brock (CEO of Media Matters For America) pointed out, by persons who admitted that they were heavily influenced by conservative vitriolic rhetoric, I don't think that it is much of a stretch to believe that rhetoric and imagery might have played some small part in this tragedy.
In light of the fact that Loughner’s anti-government sentiments closely mirror those of some in the Tea party movement, it is difficult to believe that he wasn’t motivated, at least in part, by the stories we have all seen about Tea partiers bringing weapons, or threatening to bring them, to political rallies. It is very easy to find images of signs carried by these folks depicting or threatening violence if they don’t get their way through more peaceful means. Search "we came unarmed this time".
The constant barrage of messages on talk radio and conservative television shows painting non-conservatives, and in some cases non-conservative enough conservatives, as anti-American, nazi, Marxist, and any number of other pejorative designed to elicit hatred of a group, cannot help but to fan the flames of divisiveness.
If anyone had actually even implied that these folks needed to join Mr. Loughner in whatever sentence he receives from this horrible incident, then one could understand their outrage. No one sane has seriously suggested that. It has only been suggested that there is the possibility that the vitriol did, in fact, play a role, and that it needs to be toned down.
Rather than accepting that as a good idea, some right-wing talking heads instead immediately launched attacks at the sheriff who first said it (without naming any names, I might add, so it is interesting that the bit dog barked) and went on the defensive, claiming to have been hurt themselves. This in itself should have shown the American people (especially those with children) that those protesting harbored at least a little self-perceived guilt.
Given that there would be absolutely zero repercussions to the talkers who may have influenced this guy, even if the FBI found a letter outlining exactly how he had been influenced, I am astonished at the response. Rather than admitting that words can, indeed, have influence, the conservative talkers, almost to a man, asserted in one breath that no, words can not have any influence, so even if this guy listened to nothing but Fox and conservative talk radio, they cannot be held responsible. Then, in almost the next breath, they have all proclaimed how much harm the speculation that they might have some culpability has done.
I don't think that it has been too much to ask that the vitriol be reined in, but apparently there are those who do not agree with me. Especially those on the right have, since Saturday, ramped up their vitriol, one person even suggesting that the only way to make the hatred stop is for the left to give in completely to the right. If, he suggested, the right gets everything they want, exactly how they want it, then and only then can the calls for revolution, the vile name-calling, the painting of non-conservative American citizens as enemies of the state, be expected to be stopped.
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