Social media was cast in the role of scapegoat in the drama that unfolded immediately after the shooting spree in a Tucson, Ariz., grocery store that left six people dead and a member of the U.S. Congress gravely injured this past weekend. Numerous early conclusion jumpers — many using social media themselves to express their opinions — argued that heated political rhetoric contained in Facebook posts and Twitter feeds inspired this act.
The actions of the mentally ill do not exist in a vacuum. 99.9% of people with such conditions a) stay on meds, and b) don't have/act on violent fantasies about shooting people. And, I am pretty sure, they do all have like.. actual political views too.
That said, its possible merely not liking Jews, and knowing she was one would have been sufficient, along with some of the other things in his head. Its possible. **But**, there is this attempt by some in the media to gloss over a basic reality. The left, for the most part, doesn't use guns, gun metaphors, veiled rhetoric, which implies violent removal of people, etc. The right *does*. Yet, we have people constantly constantly insisting that someone that, at worst, may say, "They should be arrested for that.", or, "I don't understand why people listen to someone that contradicts themselves so much.", like Olberman, with Rush and Beck, who call people Nazis, make constant claims of communism, play(ed) into the birther movement, etc.
This isn't some right wing version of Samual Clemens we are dealing with here, who was sarcastic, vitrolic, and no punches held, but not violent in his statements. No, we are dealing with people who, rather than reporting news, report "opinion" of the news, and that opinion is driven as much by their own ranting as the **known** decision, by the stations owner, to seek out people that talk that way, promote controversy, and not necessarily with actual *facts*, or any intent of presenting anything but a one sides view, whether its a truthful or factual one or not. Like the recent revelation that, no matter what evidence there is, or how small the number of paid shills that deny it, "climate change" **must** be presented as "unproven, uncertain, and possibly false", by people that work there. I.e. don't lie, but don't tell tell the truth about how weak your own argument is either. Oh, right, and then, later that night, Glenn can talk about how its a communist, Nazi, conspiracy, but people planning to horde us into concentration camps at gun point, to... who the hell knows, but it won't make any logical sense at all, and probably contradicts what he said about the same people last week.
This is what the media is regressing to, "The Onion", with only slightly fewer made up facts, and a clear political agenda, which includes using rhetoric you would normally only see during a war, directed at the enemy.
Young people especially lack respect for other views. Even programs like "The View" lack respect. They argue for their cause and think anybody who thinks differently is wrong. Our mainstream news media reports a lot of the news with weighted views also. Web social sites have given podiums to people and their using them. I don't think the Arizona shooter hated anyone in particular except he blames Government and those that reacted to him negatively. I don't see that he ever really had a cause. But even voters are vulgar and they feed off Politicians who fight like young kids on the playground for position. Our fore Fathers I think would be ashamed of our Political system today. In fact they would be ashamed of American's in general.
Loading ...
The Social Phenomenon That's Tearing Us Apart
Posted by: Sidney Hill January 12, 2011 05:00 AMSocial media was cast in the role of scapegoat in the drama that unfolded immediately after the shooting spree in a Tucson, Ariz., grocery store that left six people dead and a member of the U.S. Congress gravely injured this past weekend. Numerous early conclusion jumpers — many using social media themselves to express their opinions — argued that heated political rhetoric contained in Facebook posts and Twitter feeds inspired this act.
That said, its possible merely not liking Jews, and knowing she was one would have been sufficient, along with some of the other things in his head. Its possible. **But**, there is this attempt by some in the media to gloss over a basic reality. The left, for the most part, doesn't use guns, gun metaphors, veiled rhetoric, which implies violent removal of people, etc. The right *does*. Yet, we have people constantly constantly insisting that someone that, at worst, may say, "They should be arrested for that.", or, "I don't understand why people listen to someone that contradicts themselves so much.", like Olberman, with Rush and Beck, who call people Nazis, make constant claims of communism, play(ed) into the birther movement, etc.
This isn't some right wing version of Samual Clemens we are dealing with here, who was sarcastic, vitrolic, and no punches held, but not violent in his statements. No, we are dealing with people who, rather than reporting news, report "opinion" of the news, and that opinion is driven as much by their own ranting as the **known** decision, by the stations owner, to seek out people that talk that way, promote controversy, and not necessarily with actual *facts*, or any intent of presenting anything but a one sides view, whether its a truthful or factual one or not. Like the recent revelation that, no matter what evidence there is, or how small the number of paid shills that deny it, "climate change" **must** be presented as "unproven, uncertain, and possibly false", by people that work there. I.e. don't lie, but don't tell tell the truth about how weak your own argument is either. Oh, right, and then, later that night, Glenn can talk about how its a communist, Nazi, conspiracy, but people planning to horde us into concentration camps at gun point, to... who the hell knows, but it won't make any logical sense at all, and probably contradicts what he said about the same people last week.
This is what the media is regressing to, "The Onion", with only slightly fewer made up facts, and a clear political agenda, which includes using rhetoric you would normally only see during a war, directed at the enemy.