Does this tragedy reflect the state of political debate in the US?
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Monday, 1 Jan. 2011
|18:06 - 19:00 GMT
Another grey morning in London today, Nuala wrote about the shooting in Arizona over the weekend and I鈥檓 spending the early part of my shift moderating your blog posts and looking over comments on Facebook and Twitter. It wasn鈥檛 long before many of you started to draw a link between the tragedy and tone of political debate in the US.
Who can possibly be surprised by this, given the level of hatred bouncing around American airways ? The rest of the civilized world looks at the U.S. political dialogue with a sense of horror . Banks, amsterdam
Comment sent via Facebook
18:17
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William from Florida on Facebook: The vast majority of gun owners use their weapons for self defense, hunting, and shooting sports in a responsible manner. This is not the wild west, crime is near record lows throughout the United States and we should not let discrete incidents color our views of gun owners.
Comment sent via SMS
18:17
108470832
I鈥檓 an American living abroad. I would like to ask your guests: what do you think president obama should do, how should he respond? Ottilie, Prague
Comment sent via Facebook
18:16
113631290
Patty Quinn on Facebook: Plenty of people, myself included (I'm an American) have been concerned about the tenor of the political rhetoric coming from certain extremist elements could set someone like Loughner over the edge.
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18:16
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Bill in Charlotte, North Carolina emailed:: The Tea Party establishment and Fox "News" have encouraged just this type of nut-jobbery.
Comment sent via Twitter
18:16
115281882
on air now talking about #tuscon shooting. listen @ , tweet comment to @bbc_whys
Comment sent via YOURSAY
18:15
113631290
Adam in Portland emailed - We have a secure wonderful country and it is most unfortunate that individual madmen seek to ruin the excellent lifestyle we have here. The firearm used is not at fault for this event nor is it's availability, the man who used it is.
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18:14
113631290
Philip emailed from Minnesota: Representative Giffords prophetically expressed her concerns about being in Sarah Palin's crosshairs. She understood then, that words and actions have consequences.
Comment sent via BLOG
18:13
113631290
Dan on the blog - Let's face it, with the constant hate-filled speechs, vitriolic language, and words inciting violence spilled by the ultra-conservatives, such tragedy was bound to happens sooner or later.
Comment sent via BLOG
18:12
113631290
Allison in LA on the blog - I think we finally (and sadly) have a catalyst to change the direction of politics in the United States if extremists on the right and left take this as a moment to reflect and not a moment to blame the other side.
Comment sent via BLOG
18:12
113631290
Michael Howard on the blog - 'If ballots don't work, bullets will.' - Joyce Kaufman, 7/4/2010 conservative political rally. Does anyone really believe that such inflammatory rhetoric has no real life consequences?
Comment sent via host
18:12
113631290
We''re talking about the effect that the shooting of Gabrielle Giffords has had on the US. Will it change political discourse, seen by some as having prompted such hostile debate? Or is it simply the action of a rogue individual?
Comment sent via SMS
18:11
116099282
Is it possible that no one has commented on the lack of gun control that needs to be addressed and is a perennial american tragedy that the Republicans and their constituents exacerbate. KM Milan
Comment sent via BLOG
18:10
113631290
Agatalingua on the blog: A congresswoman is in hospital at the hands of an armed man. Does he have to have had a political agenda? Couldn't he be simply mentally unstable?
Comment sent via Twitter
18:05
114690458
@大象传媒_WHYS It is the result of a loan disturbedindividual
Does this tragedy reflect the state of political debate in the US?
| Monday, 1 Jan. 2011 | 18:06 - 19:00 GMT
Another grey morning in London today, Nuala wrote about the shooting in Arizona over the weekend and I鈥檓 spending the early part of my shift moderating your blog posts and looking over comments on Facebook and Twitter. It wasn鈥檛 long before many of you started to draw a link between the tragedy and tone of political debate in the US.
Your comments
Comment sent via SMS
Who can possibly be surprised by this, given the level of hatred bouncing around American airways ? The rest of the civilized world looks at the U.S. political dialogue with a sense of horror . Banks, amsterdam
Comment sent via Facebook
William from Florida on Facebook: The vast majority of gun owners use their weapons for self defense, hunting, and shooting sports in a responsible manner. This is not the wild west, crime is near record lows throughout the United States and we should not let discrete incidents color our views of gun owners.
Comment sent via SMS
I鈥檓 an American living abroad. I would like to ask your guests: what do you think president obama should do, how should he respond? Ottilie, Prague
Comment sent via Facebook
Patty Quinn on Facebook: Plenty of people, myself included (I'm an American) have been concerned about the tenor of the political rhetoric coming from certain extremist elements could set someone like Loughner over the edge.
Comment sent via YOURSAY
Bill in Charlotte, North Carolina emailed:: The Tea Party establishment and Fox "News" have encouraged just this type of nut-jobbery.
Comment sent via Twitter
on air now talking about #tuscon shooting. listen @ , tweet comment to @bbc_whys
Comment sent via YOURSAY
Adam in Portland emailed - We have a secure wonderful country and it is most unfortunate that individual madmen seek to ruin the excellent lifestyle we have here. The firearm used is not at fault for this event nor is it's availability, the man who used it is.
Comment sent via YOURSAY
Philip emailed from Minnesota: Representative Giffords prophetically expressed her concerns about being in Sarah Palin's crosshairs. She understood then, that words and actions have consequences.
Comment sent via BLOG
Dan on the blog - Let's face it, with the constant hate-filled speechs, vitriolic language, and words inciting violence spilled by the ultra-conservatives, such tragedy was bound to happens sooner or later.
Comment sent via BLOG
Allison in LA on the blog - I think we finally (and sadly) have a catalyst to change the direction of politics in the United States if extremists on the right and left take this as a moment to reflect and not a moment to blame the other side.
Comment sent via BLOG
Michael Howard on the blog - 'If ballots don't work, bullets will.' - Joyce Kaufman, 7/4/2010 conservative political rally. Does anyone really believe that such inflammatory rhetoric has no real life consequences?
Comment sent via host
We''re talking about the effect that the shooting of Gabrielle Giffords has had on the US. Will it change political discourse, seen by some as having prompted such hostile debate? Or is it simply the action of a rogue individual?
Comment sent via SMS
Is it possible that no one has commented on the lack of gun control that needs to be addressed and is a perennial american tragedy that the Republicans and their constituents exacerbate. KM Milan
Comment sent via BLOG
Agatalingua on the blog: A congresswoman is in hospital at the hands of an armed man. Does he have to have had a political agenda? Couldn't he be simply mentally unstable?
Comment sent via Twitter
@大象传媒_WHYS It is the result of a loan disturbedindividual