reload?

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot in the head today at a constituent meeting. She's probably done a hundred of these things and today was the day that someone decided that the process wasn't going to work for them anymore. This confused and poorly misinformed young man committed an act of terrorism that no one will soon forget.

Violence is not the answer. We hear that all the time and most of us believe it. I have to really really believe that most of us believe it because if not then we are just walking around with targets on our backs waiting for someone to take us out. MOST of us believe that violence isn't a solution. And those who incite violence need to be held accountable for the acts of violence committed in the name of "political change" or Thomas Jefferson's often misunderstood quote, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time, with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure." If you spew hate against an idea or a political foe, hate will be doled out by those to those who they think have wronged them. If one repeats the same rhetoric over and over again, one will begin to act upon this rhetoric, no matter how nonsensical or ridiculous or dangerous it is.

Why was this horrific act of violence such a shock to people? Because we thought we were safe. We thought we were fighting the enemy in another country. Because we forgot that there is a whole group or party of people here that are so angry at the process that they somehow think that marking congressional districts with targets and cross hairs or words like "Don't retreat. Reload." is the only way to change the political system. Those are the "patriots" that should be held accountable for inciting such acts of violence.

I hope that this young man's actions today is something that will make people in powerful positions think about what they say and what they do. Sometimes people don't know where to draw the line. If you are in a position of power, you need to remember that and make sure you remind people that life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness isn't answered with a gun in hand.