In an effort to distance themselves from the shootings yesterday in Arizona, where 6 people were innocently killed including a Federal Judge and a nine year old girl, Sarah Palin and her followers have begun a campaign to suggest that all the coincidences surrounding the incident were just that… coincidences.
The we-had-nothing-to-do-with-it campaign began shortly after the shooting. The webmasters of Sarah Palin’s website immediately removed the picture showing the crosshairs over Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords district in Arizona. A feeble attempt, as with today’s technology, archives of the site were already made showing the now forsaken image.
The pitiful campaign is also being waged on Twitter by an employee of Palin’s. Her name is Rebecca Mansour. Mrs Mansour has taken it upon herself to use her Twitter account to defend her boss against all accusations that the crosshairs gesture was connected to the shooting. She also appeared on a radio interview to defend Palin’s website and to tell everyone how wrong it was to make the association.
And then there’s Mrs Palin herself. Shortly after the shooting, she offered her “condolences” to the victims, saying;
My sincere condolences are offered to the family of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and the other victims of today’s tragic shooting in Arizona.
On behalf of Todd and my family, we all pray for the victims and their families, and for peace and justice.
In one of her previous tweets after listing the Congresswoman’s district under the crosshairs, Palin advised her supporters to “RELOAD.” Her actual tweet read;
“Commonsense Conservatives & lovers of America: ‘Don’t Retreat, Instead – RELOAD!’ Pls see my Facebook page.”
What Palin, her staff, and her devoted followers don’t want to acknowledge is that when you’re a renown, followed public figure who negligently uses riotous words and actions to blatantly and willfully arouse the fearful, hateful emotions of your listeners, such as exhibiting crosshairs over congressional districts on your website suggesting that your opponents be ‘taken out’, then its to be expected that when a congresswoman (and excuse my crudeness here) gets shot in the head…then connections will be made.
And this connection was made by none other than the victim herself, when she was interviewed on MSNBC almost a year ago. Asked about whether the political leaders of both parties should condemn the growing divide in this nation, Mrs. Giffords specified that it’s not only the responsibilities of political leaders to tone down the violence. She named Sarah Palin and expressed her concerned about being targeted by Mrs. Palin’s crosshairs depiction. In an eerie conclusion, Mrs Giffords warned Sarah Palin that “words have consequences!”
No one is saying Sarah Palin caused the shooting in Arizona. But saying that she contributed to the vile political divide in this country is a huge understatement. We will always have disagreements as a people, but we have to continue to use democratic ways to move on, while respecting our various differences.
Palin’s antics proved that manufacturing lies to maintain fake non-issues, is a profitable way to exist. She is not about solutions, for solutions will mean that her antics are no longer needed, thus no paycheck. For Palin and and her fellow commentator associates, saying or doing anything is warranted only if its about maintaining the cash. As they deposit their checks however, the words of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords should ring in their ears, – “words have consequences!”
Related articles
- Sarah Palin: “My sincere condolences” to Gabrielle Giffords’ family (shortformblog.com)
- Rob Warmowski: Following Giffords Shooting, Sarah Palin’s Crosshairs Website Quickly Scrubbed From Internet (huffingtonpost.com)
- Michael Shaw: Reading the Pictures: The Giffords Shooting and the Palin Graphic: Almost Predictable (huffingtonpost.com)
Appreciate that Ezra. Excellent service you’re providing with this blog! Continue on with your mission Brother…
@Amy: You’re the ultimate diplomat… able to see both sides of the coin, probably at the same time too. lol.
But I do understand what you’re saying too. And I think you hit the nail on the head with your comparison of the news media and certain public figures to advertising.
They know what the masses want, and they send them these subliminal messages in an effort to coerce them into saying or doing certain things.
Perfect analogy!
Wow, incredible! It’s still up on her Facebook.
@ Ezra & Jill: While I have to agree with Jill’s earlier concerns about reposting Palin’s unconscionable graphic, I also see Ezra’s point of being responsible for outting Ms. Palin and promoting awareness of how public figures and the media can manipulate the masses. In the advertising field there is a ‘must read’ manual called ‘The Hidden Persuaders’. The book cites the various ways consumers are subliminally coerced into buying goods or services. Key words, catch phrases, images even colors and shapes are used to psychologically persuade you to react favorably to a product.
Some folks can see past the bullshit and make their own rational decision based on what they need and want. Others are totally sucked in. Palin knew exactly what she was inferring by using a well known, identifiable image such as the crosshairs of a rifle. She and her advisers were aware that people would take her message one of two ways — and all she needed was one person to take it the wrong way.
It’s okay Jill, and I do agree with you. The least she could have done was to completely distance herself from this, especially this. But she chose to keep it prominently displayed on her site.
She created this display, kept it up and after the shooting of one of the people named on her list, she keeps it up anyways. Amazing!
I apologize. I thought she took it down. My argument has no legs. She is standing by her reckless, inflammatory, dangerous actions and words by continuing to display them on her public website. I’d hoped she was taking some responsibility by making these things inaccessible. So much for hope, I guess. Again, I’m sorry.
Jill, you make a great point, and I’m glad you identified yourself as a liberal earlier. But if someone wants to take aim at a liberal/democrat, they won’t be coming here to a liberal blog to see the Sarah Palin crosshairs, they can see it still on her Facebook page. Yes, Sarah Palin still has it up on her page.
Here’s the link:
http://www.facebook.com/notes/sarah-palin/dont-get-demoralized-get-organized-take-back-the-20/373854973434
I agree with your words 100%, but in your own words this map “arouses fearful, hateful emotions . . . Suggesting your opponents be ‘taken out'”. All anyone needs to do is say “Sarah Palin’s map” and everyone knows what you are talking about. Posting the map with names and locations was reckless, stupid and potentially dangerous when Sarah did it. Why is it OK for anyone else to do it? Regardless of motive, you know just because liberals are disseminating this map virtually everywhere, it won’t be seen by exclusively like-minded people. We think we’re cornering Sarah but we’re really playing a very dangerous game.
@Lisalways: I couldn’t have said it better, so I’ll just agree with everything you said. Members of congress who have been in office forever, are all saying that the present political atmosphere is the worst they’ve ever seen. What changed? The issues are all the same – Democrats believe in the people, and Republicans are for Businesses – so if that’s the case, then why have things become so bad, so quickly?
Sarah Palin came on the scene with her blatant lies, like death panels and all the scare tactics they use to drum up small political victories. And being that she started out on the national scene as a vice presidential candidate, she quickly gained a following. Then FOX NEWS decided to not only continue their republican leaning ways, but they fully divulge themselves into it. The market was there, created by Mrs. Palin.
Enter the Main Stream Media (MSM). Instead of sticking to news and broadcasting facts as they are, the MSM saw the huge following FOX was having and decided that drama – having two different sides fight for 5 minutes then breaking to commercial – was better than actually reporting the news.
So yes, Sarah Palin created the atmosphere and everyone else, in an effort to capitalize on the market she created, they follow-suite!
Thanks Sarah!!!
Palin set the tone not long AFTER she went ON stage. The discourse in our country was not great before she came on board with McCain. But, it was never this bad; NEVER. I worried when I saw her ‘crosshairs’ map right after it was posted. The first thing that came to my mind was “Oh no, some lunatic or fringe group will jump on this and take it literal.” Now, if that came to my mind, why is it that it never crossed Sarah Palins mind?!? At minimum, it was highly irresponsible of her and her PAC. When I recap in my mind all the vitriol she spewed from the time she hit the campaign trail on, it sickens me. References about Obama being a Muslim, not a natural born Citizen, “The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama’s ‘death panel’ so his bureaucrats can decide,” Using the term Patriots (which we know Militia groups use), and real Americans… you get the picture. This woman needs to leave the national scene, MSM needs to stop covering her unless it is to expose her for truly wrong deeds. We need good debate, not hate. Palin preaches hate if you are not ‘one of em.’
I can definitely understand your concern, if I look at your point from just one perspective. But the overall point of me posting this blog and crosshairs is to show what the world had already seen. This picture of Sarah Palin’s crosshairs was posted on her site for months, so anyone who would want to harm any of the Democrats shown under the crosshairs, have already seen and possibly, memorized this picture.
My posting this picture too, is obviously for a different reason. It is to make a point to Palin, to conservatives, to everyone who have access to the national airways. The ones who say careless, reckless, and suggestive things on radio and television, then try to hide when the uninformed takes their words at heart. My point is, you may try to scrub your website, or delete your audio/videos, but in today’s technological age, archives of your words are being stored immediately after they leave your lips.
My words in this post are clear. Anyone reading this blog will see that I am 100% against anyone being harmed because of something as simple as a difference of political ideology. Unfortunately, that cannot be said about most of today’s political punditry, and it especially cannot be said about Sarah Palin.
So you and I and everyone on the left agrees posting the map with the crosshairs was WRONG. Palin took it down, along with the rest of her reckless, inflammatory rhetoric, as soon as possible after the tragedy. The first responsible thing I’ve ever seen her do. But look! Here it is in for all to see on this page. In fact, the ONLY places I can find this map and the incendiary rhetoric we’ve fought so hard to stop is on liberal Twitter tweets (“RT!”), blogs or Facebook pages. Of course the conservatives won’t touch it for obvious reasons. The media won’t show them because they are being responsible. By the liberal’s own rhetoric (I’m a lib but this is not my rhetoric), the blood spilled yesterday is on Sarah’s hands. So by that logic, if another “target” on that map is shot after yesterday, the blood will be on liberal hands. Posting and reposting, tweeting and retweeting what we say is such a dangerous weapon now makes us culpable.