Gabby Giffords has just been shot in the head.

[gimmethesimplelife]

This just really sickens me. It is the kind of thing that happens in Juarez or Tijuana with the drug cartels duking it out with each other and with corrupt politiicians and corrupt police. I am not in any way saying that Mexican drug cartels are involved in this, what I am saying is that I keep track of what's going on on the Mexican border on another site, www.borderlandbeat.com, and I often feel some relief that I live on this side of the border as what is going on in Mexico is just unreal. Today, however, I realized there is no reason for me to feel smug, insane random acts of violence can happen here, too, for whatever reason. What can I take positive out of this? I guess to enjoy every day, not to sound paranoid (?) but tomorrow is never guaranteed when you get down to it.....Not that there is any excuse for anyone being shot today, but the death of the child is especially revolting. Rob, concerned Arizonan

[ljevtich]

I am saddened by this horrible act. My heart goes out to the families of all concerned.

[bae]

I am saddened by this horrible act. My heart goes out to the families of all concerned.

Indeed so.

I'm also sickened by the ghouls rushing in to make political use of the tragedy, before the blood is even dry.

[fidgiegirl]

I am relieved to see that House business will be on hiatus until, well, they didn't say until when . . . but the health care bill vote will be delayed and the only business will be related to today. At first I was confused as to why but when you think about it, otherwise, what message is it sending? Just off the Representatives who aren't planning to vote the way you want until it tips how you want it?

The whole thing is so sad . . .

[loosechickens]

regardless of whether this particular shooter was or was not affected by the overheated rhetoric about "targeting" people in crosshairs in political ads, or talking about "Second Amendment remedies", the general level of anger and hatred expressed in allusions to violence has ratcheted up in recent years, flames fanned by some for their own advantage, etc., and it's not unreasonable to believe that such talk has an effect, especially on those who might have mental or emotional issues.

In his recent campaign against Giffords in November, Republican challenger Jesse Kelly held fundraisers where he urged supporters to help remove Giffords from office by joining him to shoot a fully loaded M-16 rifle. Kelly is a former Marine who served in Iraq and was pictured on his website in military gear holding his automatic weapon and promoting the event.

"I don't see the connection," between the fundraisers featuring weapons and Saturday's shooting, said John Ellinwood, Kelly's spokesman.

He might not be able to see the connection, but an unbalanced person certainly could. Mentally ill people often see connections not so visible to others, and the underlying threats of violence that have overtaken our political discourse is something that we, in this country, really do need to address, if not in this particular case, then in general.

[kib]

Indeed so.

I'm also sickened by the ghouls rushing in to make political use of the tragedy, before the blood is even dry.

I agree, and hope I haven't come across as one of them. Gabby Giffords is the only congresssperson I have ever had an actual face to face conversation with, I was hugely impressed with both her politics and her willingness to LISTEN to her constituency. I have no idea if the individual who shot her was politically motivated or simply deranged, but I feel like I just lost the only voice in Arizona who was supportive of my POV, the one person who represented the opposing view here. She was a hero of mine, and this feels personal. Whether it was a political incident or not, I suddenly feel unwelcome in my own home.

[redfox]

The 9 year old who died was a 9/11 baby.

http://www.kvoa.com/news/9-year-old-...ge-identified/

[CathyA]

Too easy access to guns, too much hate going around, too much craziness.
Haven't heard anything about the "too many guns out there" issue.
And I agree with loosechickens..........all the hate/violent talk out there just HAS to factor into an instable person's perceptions of the world. And there are alot of unstable people out there, with easy access to guns.

[dado potato]

People may recall the deaths of John Lennon or William Lennon (Daddy of the Lennon sisters, shot and killed by a deranged stalker in 1969... who had the delusional belief that he was married to Peggy Lennon and that her Daddy was keeping them apart.)

I am sure there are many more examples of a disturbed individual "taking out" a prominent target that is exposed to him.

[Crystal]

From Keith Olberman:

"Appearing on a special edition of "Countdown," Olbermann told his audience that "we need to put the guns down. Just as importantly we need to put the gun metaphors away and permanently."

Olbermann continued, "Left, right, middle - politicians and citizens - sane and insane. This morning in Arizona, this age in which this country would accept "targeting" of political opponents and putting bullseyes over their faces and of the dangerous blurring between political rallies and gun shows, ended."

He concluded his special comment with this powerful statement, including an apology for his own actions: "Violence, or the threat of violence, has no place in our Democracy, and I apologize for and repudiate any act or any thing in my past that may have even inadvertently encouraged violence. Because for whatever else each of us may be, we all are Americans."