AZ sheriff blames political rhetoric

[scooterbug44]

Exclusive: FBI details surge in death threats against lawmakers - Erika Lovley - POLITICO.com

"Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) were threatened with assassination.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (D-Texas) were threatened with bodily harm.

Someone told Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) that her throat would be cut.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) was told someone would physically ?f?- her up? if she held a town hall meeting in her district, according to the FBI files.

There may have been more threats ? the FBI won?t release information on investigations that are still open ? and there will likely be more this year; Senate Sergeant at Arms Terrance Gainer says threats against members of Congress were up 300 percent in the first few months of 2010.

Though each threat case is different, the FBI documents reveal some common characteristics. The suspects are mostly men who own guns, and several had been treated for mental illness."

BTW, the words used to threaten Congressman Ryan when he was out walking with his daughter in his hometown: "You?ve got a bull?s-eye on your head.?

 

[zip3]

Wrong, Palin took down her gun sights specifically because of the shooting. There is no jumping to conclusions on my part for pointing that out. So again why did she take it down? was it to appease those on the left? Was it to avoid criticism? Was it because she feels complicit? Whatever it was, her reasons are directly related to the shooting.

You so hate Sarah Palin that it is silly. Sarah Palin just drives you crazy. You are one of those people that fuel hatred and spout off your beliefs. After reading this forum I think it is clear that we should all try to agree that we disagree without snarky mean comments. Like our TV stations we do not want to fuel crazy people. Yes, I am guilty because Obama drives me crazy but I will try to cool it.

 

[LuciferSam]

Sarah Palin is a hateful, despicable media whore who panders to violent extremists.

 

[AlphaCrab]

Sarah Palin is a hateful, despicable media whore who panders to violent extremists.

You forgot "un-Christian."

 

[beachFool]

Stats please.

There may have been more threats ? the FBI won?t release information on investigations that are still open ? and there will likely be more this year; Senate Sergeant at Arms Terrance Gainer says threats against members of Congress were up 300 percent in the first few months of 2010.

 

[Smiling JOe]

A simple reminder to all who are fighting over cross hairs -- cross hairs don't make sane people kill other people.

Today on the news, I've heard reports of many politicians, both black and white, democrat and republican, making political statements about fighting the enemy (the opposing party), taking a gun to a knife fight, targeting, etc. The same types of language is used in sports broadcasting. Those words aren't enough to incite acts of violence in sane people, and you cannot worry about what it may incite in the insane because those people are as likely to listen to voices in their heads and go out and commit terrible acts of violence.

 

[30ashopper]

The political affiliations of Loughner, who is being charged by state and federal authorities with the shooting of Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D) as well as 19 other victims outside a Tucson grocery store on Saturday, have become the subject of a white-hot partisan debate in recent days.

In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, liberals sought to paint Loughner as an anti-government, tea party conservative. Conservatives retorted that Loughner lacked anything close to a coherent political philosophy -- a case strengthened by subsequent glimpses into his personal life that suggests someone struggling with mental illness.

The Fix - Jared Lee Loughner was a registered independent, didn't vote in 2010 election

 

[Lake View Too]

Clock, corner and time out.

Can some statistics geek come up with numbers that correlate relationship between violent crimes and 'heated rhetroric'. I for one do not subscribe to the idea that political speech is any more incendiary today than in the past. If the theory is that we are a more violent society since Limbaugh, Glenn Beck et al dominated the airwaves, there should be an upward correlation in violence against politicians. I would wager that there is less violence inflicted upon elected officials now than at any period in our country's past.

I might be wrong, but it will be interesting for someone to figure it out.

I'm not a statistics geek, but didn't Timothy McVeigh kill a whole lot of people for "political reasons"? Short memory, huh?

 

[beachFool]

American politics has always been filled with rough rhetoric (I'm an historian, and I can state that 19th century political discourse was quite bombastic).

Yes but 21st century weapons are much more lethal.

For instance, Andrew Jackson was targeted by nut-case. The would-be assassin fired with two,either flintlock or ball and cap, pistols.

Neither firearm discharged. The damp, rainy weather likely impacted the powder charge.

Fast forward to the present and any nutcase can bust off 31 rounds with much more powerful ammo.

 

[AndrewG]

Sarah Palin is a hateful, despicable media whore who panders to violent extremists.

This is beyond ridiculous. You're just trying to fan the flames as usual.