Arizona Violence from European Point of View

EUROPEANS ARE EATING IT UP -- They’ve always been fascinated with American gun violence. Throw in the West, plus a good-looking congresswoman, and the story got huge, immediate play in the Brit papers:

--The Sunday Telegraph, “US Democrat is shot in head as 'loner' kills six”: “The attack immediately focused attention on the shrill political climate in the US. Miss Giffords had narrowly beaten off a tough challenge in November’s congressional elections by a Tea Party-backed Republican candidate, she had previously received death threats and her offices had been shot at. … Another chilling twist was the presence of John Roll, a district judge, among the dead. … The Congresswoman, who is Jewish, is a gun-owner and supporter of the right to bear arms. … It is believed to be the first time that a woman politician has been the object of an assassination attempt in America, a country where elected leaders have often been the subject of attacks.”

--The (London) Sunday Times, top of page, with half-page-wide photo of Giffords: “Congresswoman shot as gunman goes on rampage.”

--The tabloid Mail on Sunday: “18 SHOT IN SAFEWAY MASSACRE.”

Threats to Governors

30 Governors have received written threats. FBI is investigating. Michigan Governor Granholm has received one of them. This violent streak in American politics is unnerving and not excusable for any reason.

One wonders how many of the threats were from within Michigan or did the threats on Governor Granholm come from non resident extremists?

Congressional offices say they are now getting huge numbers of nasty emails an calls from folks not only who do not live in there districts but not even in the state. A very large percentage of the calls come from Americans all across the nation--which of course makes no sense since Congresspersons are elected by only the folks in their districts and that is the only group of folks they need to respond to or to please.