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.
That''s all for the programme today. Thanks so much to everyone who took part. See you tomorrow!
Comment sent via YOURSAY
18:57
113631290
Andy emailed - With today's technology, talk radio, cable 'news,' rumors spread by email and other media, internet blogs, etc, it's easy to create a nation-wide Bad Barrel where authoritarian "social dominators" can turn good authoritarian followers into bad people
Comment sent via SMS
18:53
112960324
It seems pretty obvious that if you let people buy lethal weapons, they will use them. It does not take much of a brain to understand that weapons should never be allowed to be in the hands of ordinary people.
Matthieu from Nepal
Comment sent via YOURSAY
18:51
113631290
AJay in New York emailed - Hatemongers have no place in the American discourse. In a political system that has spawned Oliver Wendell Holmes, Abraham Lincoln, FDR, and countless statesmen of all political stripes, have we nothing left but verbal vitriol in a slum of babbling half-truths?
Comment sent via SMS
18:51
113735167
Sarrah Palin and the TEA PARTY are no better than the Talaban. They should bend down their heads in shame. Bernard-BRUSSELS
Comment sent via YOURSAY
18:50
113631290
Jennifer on the blog - Banning guns is not the solution to shootings like this! If someone wants to harm someone they will find a way to do it no matter what.
Comment sent via YOURSAY
18:48
113631290
James Sudler emailed - those who say it should be harder for people to get the guns in America don't know our laws. We can't discriminate against someone that is using his first amendment right on his blog or myspace.
Comment sent via YOURSAY
18:48
113631290
Carole emailed - It is not just america experiencing violence, it has become prevalent in the world today, that acts of violence is a choice how groups, as well as individuals have their say. We all must consider how we communicate with each other, what we choose to send out either via internet, blogging, etc.
Comment sent via Facebook
18:45
113631290
Leslie on Facebook - I live in Arizona. My husband grew up in that neighborhood and knows the parents of the little girl who was killed. They are calling it terrorism here. Domestic terrorism. This is so horrific.
Comment sent via Facebook
18:44
113631290
Tamy on Facebook - did you know President Reagan was shot by a man trying to impress the actress Jodi Foster. Mental illness and the motivation those these insane acts is very hard to understand and rationalize.
Comment sent via YOURSAY
18:43
113631290
R Martinez emailed - how can the commentators say that the abhorent political rhetoric from ultra conservatives was not a contributing cause to the tragic events in Tucson when , for example, a well meaning public servant is likened to a Nazi for wanting to provide universal health care?
Comment sent via SMS
18:43
115089277
Recent histories of attempted bombings against the US and her interests coupled with this shooting incident pigeonhole the erosion of the american dreamand values. It is a clarion call for america to return to her roots. or else, she might decline down the drain. from julius jeh of monrovia.
Comment sent via Twitter
18:43
113822651
@大象传媒_WHYS As an American, I honestly believe that our country is one of the MOST violent nations in the world. #realitybites
Comment sent via Facebook
18:42
113631290
Mick Mucus on Facebook - more than a question of political rhetoric or gun laws, this tragedy points at the acute need for mental health services in this country and a symptom of our horrible medical industry.
Comment sent via Facebook
18:40
113631290
Emmie Emuron on Facebook - Well anybody in the US can own a gun, right? So what do you expect?
Comment sent via Facebook
18:39
113631290
Mohamed Kenadid on Facebook - Would it hav been a terrorist attack if the perpetrator was a muslim or of middle eastern origin?
Comment sent via YOURSAY
18:39
113631290
Deb in Phoenix emailed - I am sad that we, as so often happens in america, have already lost focus on the issue and are focusing instead on guns.
Comment sent via SMS
18:38
116115572
such issues should be handled seriously to avoid it in the next generation -okello peter panyakoo ,kampala uganda.
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 host
That''s all for the programme today. Thanks so much to everyone who took part. See you tomorrow!
Comment sent via YOURSAY
Andy emailed - With today's technology, talk radio, cable 'news,' rumors spread by email and other media, internet blogs, etc, it's easy to create a nation-wide Bad Barrel where authoritarian "social dominators" can turn good authoritarian followers into bad people
Comment sent via SMS
It seems pretty obvious that if you let people buy lethal weapons, they will use them. It does not take much of a brain to understand that weapons should never be allowed to be in the hands of ordinary people. Matthieu from Nepal
Comment sent via YOURSAY
AJay in New York emailed - Hatemongers have no place in the American discourse. In a political system that has spawned Oliver Wendell Holmes, Abraham Lincoln, FDR, and countless statesmen of all political stripes, have we nothing left but verbal vitriol in a slum of babbling half-truths?
Comment sent via SMS
Sarrah Palin and the TEA PARTY are no better than the Talaban. They should bend down their heads in shame. Bernard-BRUSSELS
Comment sent via YOURSAY
Jennifer on the blog - Banning guns is not the solution to shootings like this! If someone wants to harm someone they will find a way to do it no matter what.
Comment sent via YOURSAY
James Sudler emailed - those who say it should be harder for people to get the guns in America don't know our laws. We can't discriminate against someone that is using his first amendment right on his blog or myspace.
Comment sent via YOURSAY
Carole emailed - It is not just america experiencing violence, it has become prevalent in the world today, that acts of violence is a choice how groups, as well as individuals have their say. We all must consider how we communicate with each other, what we choose to send out either via internet, blogging, etc.
Comment sent via Facebook
Leslie on Facebook - I live in Arizona. My husband grew up in that neighborhood and knows the parents of the little girl who was killed. They are calling it terrorism here. Domestic terrorism. This is so horrific.
Comment sent via Facebook
Tamy on Facebook - did you know President Reagan was shot by a man trying to impress the actress Jodi Foster. Mental illness and the motivation those these insane acts is very hard to understand and rationalize.
Comment sent via YOURSAY
R Martinez emailed - how can the commentators say that the abhorent political rhetoric from ultra conservatives was not a contributing cause to the tragic events in Tucson when , for example, a well meaning public servant is likened to a Nazi for wanting to provide universal health care?
Comment sent via SMS
Recent histories of attempted bombings against the US and her interests coupled with this shooting incident pigeonhole the erosion of the american dreamand values. It is a clarion call for america to return to her roots. or else, she might decline down the drain. from julius jeh of monrovia.
Comment sent via Twitter
@大象传媒_WHYS As an American, I honestly believe that our country is one of the MOST violent nations in the world. #realitybites
Comment sent via Facebook
Mick Mucus on Facebook - more than a question of political rhetoric or gun laws, this tragedy points at the acute need for mental health services in this country and a symptom of our horrible medical industry.
Comment sent via Facebook
Emmie Emuron on Facebook - Well anybody in the US can own a gun, right? So what do you expect?
Comment sent via Facebook
Mohamed Kenadid on Facebook - Would it hav been a terrorist attack if the perpetrator was a muslim or of middle eastern origin?
Comment sent via YOURSAY
Deb in Phoenix emailed - I am sad that we, as so often happens in america, have already lost focus on the issue and are focusing instead on guns.
Comment sent via SMS
such issues should be handled seriously to avoid it in the next generation -okello peter panyakoo ,kampala uganda.