Stop the Blame Game

A person is responsible for his or her own actions. Lately, however, in light of the shooting in Tuscon, there has been this need to place blame on someone other than the shooter. Enough already. The shooter is responsible for his own actions. Unfortunately, due to his mental state, we may not be able to hold him accountable for his actions, but he is the one who made the decisions to act as he did, lucid or not.



I am so deeply troubled by those who are trying to politicize the actions of a lone lunatic with at least perceived mental problems (Pima Community College told him he could not re-enroll until he had passed a mental health evaluation). I am not a Palin supporter (frankly, I don't understand what some people think is so great about her), but I find this attempt to make her responsible for the shootings ridiculous. How about another famous quote from 2008: “If they bring a knife to the fight, we bring a gun.” http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0608/Obama_brings_a_gun_to_a_knife_fight.html The name of the person speaking that line? Now-President Obama. Should he be questioned in relationship to this shooting as well - after all, his rhetoric could have incited the shooter as well. Given that Congresswoman Giffords is a "Blue Dog" Democrat, and thus not in lock-step with the party line, she's not necessarily a favorite of left-wing extremists.



How about we wait and see as to what comes out in the trial before we jump to all this speculation which is only driving the country further apart? The people involved in the shooting, the sadly deceased, the injured, the tormented bystanders, and their families, need our support. How about we agree to support those in need and honor the heroes of the day instead of fighting over the political leanings (if they can be determined) of the shooter? How about we come together as Americans and not advocates of a political party? This is what Rep. Giffords was reaching for in her email before attending the "Congress on your Corner" event: ". . . I would love to talk about what we can do to promote centrism and moderation. . . . [I] think that we need to figure out how to tone our rhetoric and partisanship down." http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/01/10/giffords-email-need-to-tone-our-rhetoric-and-partisanship-down/



I know the last question may be easier for me to comply with, being unaffiliated, but let's give it a try, folks. Otherwise, you are only spreading the same vitriol about which some of you are complaining.