This is horrible. That’s all I really have to say right now. I think this might be the first Congressperson murdered since Rep. Leo Ryan was ambushed and murdered by Jim Jones’ cult. She is also the first female politician to be murdered in American history.
UPDATE: Apparently there’s reports that Giffords is not, in fact, dead, but is alive and in surgery. If this is the case, we sincerely hope she recovers.
UPDATE: Reports are confirmed. She’s in surgery.
UPDATE: Looks like the shooter has a YouTube channel. Given his age (early 20s) and the content of these videos, this looks to be the case of a young man who has come down with schizophrenia. He’s the right age for it.
UPDATE: Reports now seem to suggest she’s out of surgery, and while still in critical condition, surgeons expect she’ll pull through.
UPDATE: The Brady Campaign is already dancing in the blood of the victims, saying this needs to be addressed immediately, even though we don’t yet know the circumstances:
We also are deeply concerned about the heated political rhetoric that escalates debates and controversies, and sometimes makes it seem as if violence is an acceptable response to honest disagreements. Shortly after President Obama took office, the head of the NRA crowed that “the guys with the guns make the rules;” participants in Congressional forums and Presidential events started carrying guns in public; and then, just last year a candidate for U.S. Senate said the citizens unhappy with elections results should consider exercising their “Second Amendment remedies” and Sarah Palin used gun “target” metaphors encouraging voters to defeat Rep. Giffords and others.
This seems to me to be a bit, ahem, premature.
UPDATE: Josh Sugarmann is joining the blood dance too. Though, I don’t have high expectations of Sugarmann. I tend to think of the Bradys as more misguided than evil. Josh Sugarmann is a horrible person.
If she comes out of this okay (and hopefully she does), then CNN owes a huge apology to her and her family. They were the only outlet I saw actually declaring her death even though every other mainstream source I saw said they could only confirm she was shot. They have since removed all of their banners, though they haven’t issued a formal correction that says, “We got it wrong and we just don’t know.”
I’m glad the gunman is supposedly in custody and hope that justice will be swift. And certainly, thoughts for all of the families involved in today’s events.
It’s really a shame, given that she was trying to get closer to people in her district. This is what we always complain about – that our reps are too distant and unreachable. As soon as she tries to do something about that, she gets shot in the head.
I’ve always wondered why our reps don’t simply run a blog just like this one. Or maybe a web forum, open to constituents, where questions can be answered directly and openly. It would be even better than face to face meetings.
The only good thing to come out of this is the fact that bystanders tackled the gunman and held him until police took him into custody. Finally people are acting for their own safety and that of others. Had they just waited and let the professionals handle it there would have been a higher body count.
Tragic that it happened in the first place. I just hope Jack Ruby isn’t around when the shooter is transferred at the police office.
NPR, Fox, Reuters, et al all reported it as well, in fact I think it was NPR who led with that story.
Not gonna blame them too much. The news outlets are under tremendous pressure right now to get the latest info out as quickly as possible.
Ah. When I found out, CNN was the only site claiming she was deceased. Everyone else just had that she had been shot. Certainly, I’m seeing reports of more positive news of her condition come out, so here’s hoping for the best. And, of course, hopefully those outlets remember that there are many other victims, too. I hate that such violence is only promoted because it makes for a bigger headline.
There appears to be reports now that a member of the public drew and fired on the individual after he shot Rep. Giffords. This was reported by Fox News a few minutes ago.
I am wondering how many others would have been shot if the shooter was not neutralized by a member of the public.
Meanwhile all of the leftosphere is flushing their criticism of Giffords down the memory hole.
Ed:
Do you have a link?
Prayers sent for her recovery…. One will never know when S will HTF.
Sebastian, I am looking for the source of the Fox News report.
Federal Judge John Roll was also shot at this event and has been declared dead.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/01/08/arizona-congresswoman-reportedly-shot-public-event/
According to the law enforcement official, the suspect began shouting something before shooting wildly with an automatic weapon. Shots then rang out from the crowd — a security agent or someone else fired at the suspect who survived.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/01/08/arizona-congresswoman-reportedly-shot-public-event/#ixzz1ATmvV4gk
Suspect is a 22 year ol white male named Jared Loughner.
It appears the shooter Jared Lee Loughner has a YouTube channel
http://www.youtube.com/user/Classitup10
This guy is crazy. I mean that literally. This is the work of a mentally ill person. And he’s the right age for schizophrenia to set in.
I am trying to find a cached version of his MySpace page, since it has been deleted by MySpace.
Schizophrenia? Maybe. If the news is true that he is an Afghan war vet, it might be post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
From the congresswoman’s website:
“Born and raised in Arizona, she is a longtime gun owner and strong supporter of the Second Amendment. In 2008, she joined in an amicus brief for District of Columbia v. Heller asking the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold the appellate court ruling that overturned the controversial DC gun ban.”
http://www.giffordsforcongress.com/about/bio/
Screen capture from the suspects MySpace page.
http://twitpic.com/3o8ajp
Fox News is now reporting that at least 2 people in the crowd returned fire at the suspected shooter Jared Lee Loughner, they also reported that the suspect eventhough fired at was not shot.
Looks to me that the crazy went to bingo ammo and fled, so the damage was done and the gunman wasn’t going to able to shoot anyone else just too soon. Just a guess.
A quote from another article on Rep. Giffords’ gun rights beliefs.
“U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords of the 8th Congressional District and 5th District Congressman Harry Mitchell, both Democrats, also objected to the ban. Giffords owns a Glock handgun and regards gun ownership as a constitutional right and an “Arizona tradition,” said spokesman C.J. Karamargin.”
http://findarticles.com/p/news-articles/arizona-capitol-times/mi_8079/is_20080321/arizona-democrats-split-dc-gun/ai_n51710249/?tag=content;col1
“Schizophrenia? Maybe. If the news is true that he is an Afghan war vet, it might be post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).”
The video doesn’t match PTSD at all. It reminds me unnervingly of conversations with my older brother.
I wouldn’t make a big deal about his listing the communist manifesto among his favorite books. He listed mien kampf and plato’s republic and some stuff by Ayn Rand too. It seems more like an attempt to appear smart by reading books that are famous and important and edgy.
just based on his youtube just seems like incoherent insanity. I wouldn’t try to put him on any “team” or claim that the motivation is political. At least not left/right political.
A friend of his says he was a pothead, which increases fairly substantially the risk of schizophrenia. My money is still on that as the diagnosis.
I asked a psychiatrist friend to watch Loughlan’s video. I cannot spell it – but his off the cuff diagnosis involves brain damage caused by over-consumption of drugs and alcohol at the same time.
Roaming the ‘net I see several references to “alcohol poisoning,” withdrawal from society, and other things that fit the “first thought after watching the video” diagnosis eerily well.
We shall see what we shall see. But efforts to reinstitute rational gun laws just became infinitely more difficult.
Stranger
All in all
“If they bring a knife to the fight, we bring a gun. Because from what I understand, folks in Philly like a good brawl. I’ve seen Eagles fans.â€
…………Barack Hussein Obama
Weapon used?
One report claims a handgun with an “extended magazine”. Sounds plausible.
Glock, 9mm is the word on the gun
Picture on the Myspace account looks like a Glock 19.
Giffords is good on guns and the kind of pol we could use more of in Washington. As I am a gun owning Dem, she was my kind of gal. The tragedy is that radicals on both sides will turn this into a pissing contest. This seems to be simmilar to the shooting of Pres Regan and John Lennon rather than politically motivated.
Even so, perhaps Palin shouldn’t use targets for Dems and the Brady campaign should stop issuing press releases for a while.
More on Loughner here including a picture of him.
http://directorblue.blogspot.com/2011/01/exclusive-giffords-alleged-shooter-may.html
As to Paul Helmke and the Brady Campaign, they are vultures and scum.
Amazing how many experts there are on the shooter coming out of the woodwork. They seem to know every detail and have analyzed the situation w/ perfect accuracy.
He was described as “seriously disturbed” by a Jr College classmate. Pothead, drug arrests, history of alcohol poisoning, etc.
But before that “As I knew him he was left wing, quite liberal and oddly obsessed with the 2012 prophecy.”
http://wireupdate.com/wires/13960/jared-lee-loughner-reportedly-met-with-congresswoman-giffords-before-tragic-shooting/
Brady is embarrassing itself more than ever!!
I am not shocked but I am disgustedly disappointed!
God bless all the wounded and my prayers to the family of the dead!
From Rep Giffords’ Congressional website:
Guns
•Congresswoman Giffords signed Amicus Briefs submitted to the Supreme Court in support of rights granted under the Constitution’s Second Amendment regarding the DC and City of Chicago gun bans.
•Congresswoman Giffords is a cosponsor of the Veterans Heritage Firearms Act which allows a 90-day amnesty period during which veterans and their family members can register in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record any firearm acquired before October 31, 1968.
•She was a cosponsor of the Second Amendment Enforcement Act in the 110th Congress. It would restore Second Amendment rights in the District of Columbia by correcting DC’s law in order to restore the fundamental rights of its citizens under the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and thereby enhance public safety.
•Congresswoman Giffords spearheaded a letter to Southwest Regional Chief of U.S. Forest Service Gail Kimball on May 12, 2008 expressing concern of decreasing opportunity for recreational shooting on National Forest Service land. It was signed by Congressman Trent Franks and Harry Mitchell.
http://giffords.house.gov/legis/bipartisanship.shtml
So far, he’s a veteran because he once stopped by a recruiting center, he used an automatic weapon because he had a Glock, and he killed a Congresswoman who isn’t dead. The media is crazier than usual.
Being addicted (and even then, addicted is shaky evidence) to marijuana already prohibits you from purchasing a firearm.
Sorry Brady Bunch. If you were trying to skewer CCW holders and gun owners one and the same you really lost this time.
“We also are deeply concerned about the heated political rhetoric that escalates debates and controversies, and sometimes makes it seem as if violence is an acceptable response to honest disagreements.”
Commie libs wanting to shut down debate again. The only free speech they respect is their own.
In their minds: Pro-gun views = “hate speech” = violence = need for government restrictions on speech.
The Brady Center attacking the First Amendment by implying the need for government restrictions on speech would be ridiculous if the Obama administration didn’t just call for Internet ID’s for all Americans. Do they have plans for us?
Josh Sugarmann just jumped in calling for gun bans.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/josh-sugarmann/congress-must-rein-in-gun_b_806264.html
According to Vote Smart her NRA rating is D+ (her rating at the NRA PVF site is now archived). If correct, that’s odd, her being a Blue Dog incumbent with all these reports on her being pro-RKBA.
Question…was the assailant in any way connected with any mind control programs?
Google: Halliburton sells centrifuges to Iran under CEO Cheney. Never criminalized…continuing to this day…is this not Government sponsored terrorism? Project Censoed ’04.
Ever since Dorothy Kilgallen was silenced and her interview papers from Ruby’s disclosure were disappeared, the press have been terrorized into conjuring news rather than reporting facts.
9-11 airline shot-sells mostly benefitted a former CIA Director out of a Swiss bank
On 9-11 the white van with men dressed as Arabs on its roof, jumping with glee while filming the destruction of the WTC [which imploded] were arrested as suspected terrorists and later released by Homeland Security.. Michael Chertoff, an Aszkanazi Jew who gave them free passage back to Israel [all Mossad members] and Aszkanazi Jews!
Whatever happened to Army Specialist Derek Lawrence Petterson, 27, from Ft. Stewart, Ga. who was arrested for speeding in Jacksonville on 5-11-02? His truck loaded with
guns ammo, wire explosive device which was planted beneath power lines! Five million bail…no national news coverage…initial court hearing postponed…reported by Noelle Phillips in the Savannah Morning News 5-16-02
State sponsored terrorism is TREASON!!!
You are insane. Please go away.