Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) in critical condition, 6 others killed in Arizona

[Gustaf]

...its more than made up for by other things.  This forum is decidedly lacking in those things.

Yeah, after Stark's departure the forum is definitely lacking the presence of a pro-pedophilia constituency. 

Well the 'other things' I was referring to range in age from 19-38, so your personal attack is somewhat misplaced.

I don't get it - we're making this place more like Thailand, and you complain?

Even if speech were truncated here its more than made up for by other things.  This forum is decidedly lacking in those things.

Right, so you don't actually care for freedom of speech. Glad we cleared that up.

Saying a preference is one among many doesn't mean one values it not at all.  Of course freedom of speech is nice, but so are other things.

Yes, such as civil, respectful discourse. Or just the fact that Dave wants his private forum to work like that. If you think a country where criticism of the rich and powerful gets you thrown in jail or shot is paradise on Earth it rings hollow to call it fascism when you're not allowed to state that the Republicans killed Giffords (which is a slanderous lie).

[opebo]

Yes, such as civil, respectful discourse. Or just the fact that Dave wants his private forum to work like that. If you think a country where criticism of the rich and powerful gets you thrown in jail or shot is paradise on Earth it rings hollow to call it fascism when you're not allowed to state that the Republicans killed Giffords (which is a slanderous lie).

Not really.  On an internet forum is precisely where freedom of speech is practical - because it doesn't matter, its all just for fun.  But here in Paradise, letting a load of social conservatives take over just because they're a bit leftist economically is not my idea of fun.  Vive la Ancien Régime!

[Gustaf]

Yes, such as civil, respectful discourse. Or just the fact that Dave wants his private forum to work like that. If you think a country where criticism of the rich and powerful gets you thrown in jail or shot is paradise on Earth it rings hollow to call it fascism when you're not allowed to state that the Republicans killed Giffords (which is a slanderous lie).

Not really.  On an internet forum is precisely where freedom of speech is practical - because it doesn't matter, its all just for fun.  But here in Paradise, letting a load of social conservatives take over just because they're a bit leftist economically is not my idea of fun.  Vive la Ancien Régime!

So you want the freedom to talk yourself when it pleases you but you want to deny it to others who disagree with you.

[You kip if you want to...]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/11/rush-limbaugh-jared-loughner-full-support-democrat_n_807543.html

[J. J.]

Yeah, I know. It's that damn Jew socialist from New York, so feel free to dismiss him.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/10/opinion/10krugman.html?_r=1

When you heard the terrible news from Arizona, were you completely surprised? Or were you, at some level, expecting something like this atrocity to happen?
Put me in the latter category. I’ve had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach ever since the final stages of the 2008campaign. I remembered the upsurge in political hatred after Bill Clinton’s election in 1992 — an upsurge that culminated in the Oklahoma City bombing. And you could see, just by watching the crowds at McCain-Palin rallies, that it was ready to happen again. The Department of Homeland Security reached the same conclusion: in April 2009 an internal report warned that right-wing extremism was on the rise, with a growing potential for violence.

And that is the problem.  Is this guy "right wing?"   It is the absolute strawman argument. 

This is the guy who lists the Communist Manifesto among his favorite book, along with Mein Kampf, and talks about changing grammar. (Maybe he was a fan of Nelly.)  I'm not seeing ideology.

McVey very clearly was.

[nclib]

Two articles address Giffords' Jewish identification in relation to the shooting.

A Gnawing Worry: Did anti-Semitism factor into the shooting of Congresswoman Giffords?

The Shooting of Gabrielle Giffords

[patrick1]

Two articles address Giffords' Jewish identification in relation to the shooting.

A Gnawing Worry: Did anti-Semitism factor into the shooting of Congresswoman Giffords?

The Shooting of Gabrielle Giffords

Er, the shooters mother is supposedly Jewish.

[Insula Dei]

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Post from an academic's blog about the infamous Palin map. The picture of the map's absent but it's clear where it should have been and I am to lazy to load it up an edit it in.

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

And news comes out today that this man really had no idea what the political environment was in this country - as I suspected.

[Marokai Backbeat]

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http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0111/47521.html#ixzz1AsRTkmK9

[Brittain33]

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http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0111/47521.html#ixzz1AsRTkmK9

I don't think badly of him for this... the RNC leadership race is important and it's going on now. He doesn't need to be one more member of Obama's audience. There are much worse examples of fundraising he could have been doing.

[DrScholl]

Boehner didn't really need to be there anyway, but I don't really think the RNC leadership race was more important than the vigil. It's poor form as a leader.

[Queen Mum Inks.LWC]

Did anybody else find the amount of cheering and applause during the memorial slightly awkward?

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

I think it's not politically wise for Boehner to not be there... he's Speaker of the House... he's 2nd in the line presidential succession... he should have been there.

[anvi]

Did anybody else find the amount of cheering and applause during the memorial slightly awkward?

Why did you find it awkward?

[Beet]

Did anybody else find the amount of cheering and applause during the memorial slightly awkward?

Not really but I understand a lot of people did. The problem is, once you start applauding over every little thing, the instinct is to continue doing so. They probably should have told the audience to hold the applause beforehand.

[Psychic Octopus]

Did anybody else find the amount of cheering and applause during the memorial slightly awkward?

Awkward? I was outright uncomfortable with it. This is a memorial, not a political rally. Obama knew that, and you could even see on his face as he walked out to the podium. Of course, his stellar speech made up for it.

[Queen Mum Inks.LWC]

Did anybody else find the amount of cheering and applause during the memorial slightly awkward?

Awkward? I was outright uncomfortable with it. This is a memorial, not a political rally. Obama knew that, and you could even see on his face as he walked out to the podium. Of course, his stellar speech made up for it.

Yeah... I felt sorry for him.  You could tell he was uncomfortable.

I also found it very odd when they clapped after the guy did the blessing.

[anvi]

They started applauding and cheering in response to opening prayers and statements.  Then they applauded as the president talked about each victim and the heros that were there.  I feel it just built up, and ended up in kind of a catharsis when the 9-year old girl was talked about, and then it was mentioned that Giffords had opened her eyes.  I think maybe they also wanted to show the country that the citizens of Tucson are proud and stick together, despite this terrible thing that happened to them.  I didn't have the sense that anyone was treating it like a political rally.  Besides, they're the people most effected, and it's their memorial, they can respond however they like.

[Queen Mum Inks.LWC]

No, they're not the people most affected.  It's a group of 14,000 people in a university events center.  The people most affected were the victims family and friends.

I think the location was a poor choice.  I don't think it was being treated like a political rally... just too much applause and cheering.

Giffords opening her eyes was an appropriate time, but it was VERY awkward when they clapped when Obama mentioned the death of the girl.

[anvi]

A lot of the families and victims' friends were there; I saw many of them sporadically applauding and standing too.  And, insofar as this event was a tragedy that drew the whole nation's attention, it was the city's people at large that were effected too.  Even Brewer has said as much.  As far as applause that broke out when the girl was mentioned, maybe they were applauding her memory, not her death; she too had already been talked about several times before in the service.  It may have been the audience's way of communicating their support for the families.  I don't know; it was not a traditional memorial service held in a church, of course.  But it didn't make me feel awkward. 

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

It really was one of his best speeches since taking office.

Initially I felt uncomfortable about the cheering and hooting... but I think once the people there got the vibe of what the President was saying, they started to behave themselves.

[hawkeye59]

That speech was Reagan-esque. In a good way.

[Sam Spade]

I thought the speech was excellent and quite appropriate, if not exactly matching the feelings of what normal people feel about the tragedy.  Of course, it was way too long, but that is to be expected.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

I thought the speech was excellent and quite appropriate, if not exactly matching the feelings of what normal people feel about the tragedy.  Of course, it was way too long, but that is to be expected.

This.