WHY NO LESSON WILL BE LEARNED FROM THE TUCSON MASSACRE

by R J Shulman

SANTA FE, New Mexico (PTSD News) - No sooner had the news media misreported that Representative Giffords had been killed in a madman's shooting spree, then the media machine began to try and explain what had happened. No matter what was said, however, it could not change the facts that a terrible event had occurred and the question that remained is whether this would be an aberration or the just one in a string of such horrible actions. Sadly, signs seem to point to the fact that terrible event will not change anything on our road to hell.

Some of the signs that there may be more Tucsons:

1. After months of pointing guns figuratively and and in some cases, actually at politicians who disagreed with them, and creating at atmosphere where violent opposition is acceptable, conservatives say this is not the time for fingers to be pointed at them.

2. Talk radio has dismissed that there could be any connection with almost two years of the constant drumming of talk of guns and revolution to stop health care reform and the shooting of Representative Giffords who supported that reform.

3. The call letters of channel nine in Tuscon, one of the main stations reporting on the tragedy is KGUN

4. America is the only so called civilized country that allows a "your money or your life" profit approach to basic health care and has about half of its citizens ready to take up arms to protect health insurance CEOs rights to bonuses that are at the very core of this system.

5. Sarah Palin whose web site had a gunsite aimed at Representative Gifford's district among others and who has directed a hate campaign against government, has not appologized that at the least she has acted in bad taste.

6. While condemning the shooting, no conservative elected officals have appologized for ratcheting up the rhetoric.

7. Right wing talking points blame the increase in violent rhetoric on some liberals who supposedly called George W. Bush a Nazi as much as years of right wing gun toting attacks on liberals and the government.

8. A poll of popular show Coast to Coast listeneres taken just two days after the shooting indicates that almost two thirds of people responding think that current gun laws are too restrictive against gun ownership.

9. Second Amendment gun rights have more avid supporters than First Amendment free speech rights.

10. There were more violent protests over health care reform that seeks to stop among other things, a greed driven system that causes more than 4,000 Americans to die each month for lack of health care insurance than over George W. Bush choosing to maximize his cronies and vice president's personal profits by launching two wars that may have killed over a million people and backrupted the US treasury.

11. Americans worship of celebrity for any reason will encourage more peopole like the shooter (whose name will never be written on the PTSD site) to get their name in the headlines by any means necessary.

12. George W. Bush is pitching a plagairized book on a nationwide tour, rather than having to protect his backside from other inmates in a maximum security prison for treason, war crimes and theft of taxpayer money.

13. The designated hitter rule in the American League has not been repealed.

14. Fox News

15. December 21, 2012.

I am sure if you are paying attention, you can add to this list.