Saturday's tragedy in Tucson Arizona (a place I visited in the 1990s) when a lone gunman, Jared Loughner, shot dead six people and wounded several others including Congress member Gabrielle Giffords, has ignited debate about American gun laws and Sarah Palin's "part" in the whole episode.
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| Photo from businessinsider.com |
Ever since she first burst on to the scene when selected by John McCain as Republican candidate for Vice-President - I have had a very low opinion of her abilities as a Leader. Certainly I think she is not presidential material, and I worry for the future of the United States, and indeed the World, if this person ever becomes President. She has tweeted "Don't Retreat, RELOAD" - and basks in the right-wing conservatism of the so called Tea Party. Now - in no way do I think she is involved in the Tucson shootings, I am certain that as a public representative that she abhors such lunatic action. However, people do look up to her, and her use of cross-hairs in her "Sarahpac" campaign bolsters her image of a tough gun-toting gal that some people want to see in the White House. The Obama 2012 Campaign has just one message for her - To Sarah Palin: Please Run in 2012!
Mark Zuckerberg has said that the question "Is Sarah Palin To Blame For AZ Shooting" is the "Top Question On Facebook Today (Sunday)" - I'm not surprised. Her enemies, and there are many, will see this as an opportunity to get at her - just look at some of the (very) offensive comments in the link above. The rhetoric before and after such events really tests the idea of free speech in America. I believe in "free speech" - even if that means saying things that others don't want to hear, or hearing what others have to say that you don't want to hear. Incitement to hatred is not "free speech" - people need to be careful about what they say or do - hiding behind a "free speech" screen is cowardice.
But - is she to blame? No.
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