Last night in Tucson, President Obama called the nation to something higher:
At a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized, and a time when we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who happen to think differently than we do, it's important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we're talking with each other in a way that heals, not in a way that wounds.
This morning, we're already struggling to get there. Folks are irritated about the Tucson event's T-shirts and the "Together We Thrive" message -- messaging, really. Folks are irritated by the way the crowd cheered in a time of mourning. Senator Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) says Democrats are trying to "manufacture" controversy for political advantage.
It's not so much that any one of those expressions is wounding, so much as they're still in the weeds, still missing the big picture. Six people died, more than a dozen others were wounded, gun violence continues, we're still not reaching mentally disturbed people in time. Now we have to argue out the solutions. These are political problems that need fixing in the political arena, whether your side's position looks strong or weak going in.
The good news, I guess, is that we are struggling. It's so much better than giving in or giving up or walking away. As the Reverend Welton Gaddy said on the show last night about Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, "Given what she's been through, if she opened her eyes, maybe we can, too."
Video of President Obama's speech, after the jump.
(Image from outside the hospital in Tucson by Kelly Richardson.)
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I was takin' a-back as well when folks cheered. More like a pep rally then a memorial. But then, something hit me. We, the American people, are sick of it.
These people died because politicians want to appease lobbyists over their constituents. They want to get re-elected over doing their jobs.
Last night was about remembering what was wonderful about those people, senselessly slain in the streets, and bonding together to say, "We won't stand for it anymore!"
A huge portion of our society came together last night.
We are over "business as usual." And like those individuals that tackle shooters, hit them with purses or keep them from flying planes into buildings, we won't have our government hijacking our country for their own greed.
If you stop...and listen...through the chatter of the talking heads. You can hear it. It's faint. And we haven't heard it since the 60's.
Change.
We, the people, are ready for it....finally.
Re: the cheers, they didn't bother me. What I heard was a huge emotional release, a catharsis: cheers, tears, laughter, hope, sorrow all mixed up in it. That's what was supposed to happen, wasn't it?
@Carolina, the cheers didn't bother me, either - and I agree - they WERE a release.
These are my feelings, too.
Exactly right on the cheers being a release. What other way did the crowd have to acknowledge each and every individual that died, was wounded, or participated in the aftermath to help the injured and take out the shooter before he reloaded? Were they supposed to moan loudly as each name of the slain was read aloud? Would silence have indicated the level of caring and sense of loss that existed in Tucson?
I was amazed that those expressions of acknowledgment and release were taken so incorrectly. I'm starting to think there really is no hope for this country, because common sense appears to not exist anymore.
A release, statement of joy over sadness. Let's remember also, the room was full of university students---good for them
Please explain the link to the suspect and his actions. Was Loughner a dissatisfied constituent? Did he think Rep. Giffords was bowing to lobbyists so he shot her?
Who was it who said that? I'm not saying you're wrong. That was just incredibly tacky, I agree.
Because this event was both personal and communal- people in the crowd may have had memories of only one of the victims, or only by association to a mourner specifically, been merely a constituent of the Congresswoman... or it happened in their town... so the range of feelings about the words, the music, or the gathering is pretty broad. 13,000 people is a lot of emotional ground to cover. Then there was the overflow... and another 13,000...
I only viewed the video of President Obama's words... toward the end, I didn't watch the entirety of the event... but as he took his seat, I think he looked embarrassed... and uncertain about the response. You didn't see the 'smile and wave' of a campaign event. He acknowledged the crowd, but his head was bent... at points I thought he might have been fighting his own inner turmoil. (MY perception, only)
The cheering surprised me... but my church often breaks out in applause- some others are more staid.
The thing that remains in my mind today, this morning after all my own fears, dreams and expectations? That our president called upon the nation to be what little Christina imagined it could be...
However, each of us interprets that to mean what WE envision a the best we can be... and there we go, back in the muck of needs wants and desires we carry individually.
At my father's memorial, we had folks that shared stories that made us laugh, stories that made us cry, and simple tales of remembrance that reminded us how precious what life we share means on the lowest and highest levels. Darks and brights are in all lives. Those of us still living must make the choices of where we will focus our eye.
Some of us need to holler to feel we're being heard... others only need to smile. We are not the same, even as we are all a part.
Don, the quote comes from the second paragraph of the first post (Cabrina).
And, Melody,
I know it could be interpreted as "cheesy" but this is what stuck with me, too. This child who was born on 9/11 hopefully only knew the good this country can be and it would be a fitting tribute to work to make it more idealistic even with our imperfections.
Great Speech! Leadership in action.
The event was billed as a "unity rally" by the school, so I can understand some of the cheering and applause.
What *I* was annoyed at was people complaining about the opening prayer, and then claiming that the scripture quoted by the President and others were 'great examples' for us needing to get back to the 'Christian Roots' of our nation. I mean...really?
For a looong time I have observed that there are *many* Christians who seeem to think that Christian domination of American society is just fine as long as it is a slightly non-denominational Christianity.
Sadly, true- I mean, Erick Erickson yesterday posted about the shooting, saying "Through it all though, well meaning people on both sides of the ideological and partisan divide are not talking about the one thing that should be talked about — a saving faith in Jesus Christ." And I twitched. I mean, between him and Sarah Palin, I have to ask, does NO ONE on the right realize Rep. Giffords is Jewish? Or that there are people in this country who aren't christian?
The Yaqui Tribe's ancestors likely pre-date Jesus. Christianity arrived in the Tucson valley in about 1533-1540. How did these people get along w/out "the one true religion" for so long.
Oh I know, they were just waiting centuries for murderous Spaniards to bring them true deliverance via a virgin birth, disease and swords. Ya, and their religion still makes "good Christians" cringe and complain. We have come so very far.... in only 475 years.
Actually, we should have had a Torah reading...Gabby is Jewish and the passages are generally short enough to match the RWNJ's attention span.
You also have to remember the acts of the Conquistadors when they were bringing the word of Christ to the heathen native Mexicans and Native Americans. Usually torturing and murdering in search of el Dorado.
@Jess - There are SOME on the right that realize there are people in this country who aren't Christian - and there might be a very, very few on the right who are themselves not Christian (like Rep. Eric Cantor, the only Jewish Republican currently sitting in the House of Representatives, and who is an actively practicing Orthodox Jew). Gov. Brewer did the same thing in her State of the State address the other day - although I agree with her decision not to give the speech she had planned, and instead to speak briefly about the tragedy and our need to bind up our wounds and go forward, my jaw dropped as she called for a moment of silence "for prayer", and as she spoke of going forward to "do the Lord's work". I was gratified last night, however, by the President's choice of Scripture, when he referred to it, and the choice of HS Security Janet Napolitano - both choices were from the Hebrew Bible - the Jewish Scripture - rather than the New Testament.
Not one Atheist spoke!! Discrimination once again!
mercedes benz not crosshairs?
Yeah...thought that, too.
Someone too young to remember what the symbol looks like? Ah, youth...
More like someone reflecting the vaules we hold in 2011...the first thing they think of when they see a peace sign is Mercedes. The entitlement mindset is alive and well in America.
I thought the peace sign had another line in the bottom segment, like this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Peace_symbol.svg
versus the mercedes logo mentioned above:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mercedes-Benz_logo.svg
I think maybe some gentle snark was at work here, not youth or entitlement :)
We're going to hear defensiveness and backtalk from the hatespeakers for quite a while -- at least until they satisfy themselves that they've made their (talking)points and congratulated each other that they didn't cut and run in the face of so much goodness and peaceful persuasion.
The President -- and MLK and Mahatma Ghandi -- have shown us the way to contain the haters and the violence. Let us quietly do the work now of surrounding them and calming the discord. We still need to get to work on the nation's business: there are still jobs to be found and regulations to be written and troops to withdraw from battle.
I cried when I watched this. I can imagine that any woman in politics must have been more deeply effected by the young hopeful's death. A very touching ceremony. But I disagree with the idea that this tragedy shouldn't be used as an icon to help fix things that are very wrong in the world. It shouldn't be wasted. If all we do is cry and come together in peace and love, it'll be forgotten quickly, and the hate will continue to fester in some madman's wounds until the next tragedy strikes. If nothing more, we should at least do something about the attainability of those types of weapons.
There are stages of grief, all that can come later. For now we need to honor the good and decent people who died. If we really realize what we lost, the need to prevent it is the next step. But not now.
If it were me who was killed, nothing would make me happier than to see fighters for justice railing to fix the wrongs in the world that got me killed. The murderer WANTED everyone to quietly mourn, he saw everyone as weaklings, his personal victims. We're not the Amish. We don't turn the other cheek. We don't lay down and die. Let the victim's families have their mourning time, but the rest of us have no excuse not to right the wrongs that got us here.
I thiink everyone should have raised their glocks in the air and shot a 31 shot salute!
So I am going to follow the lead of the President...no more posting about Palin (she has successfully made herself irrelevant in any case) and I will even temper my indignation with the words of Beck and Limbaugh...time to focus on the positive and change we can believe in.
I can remember when people said Richard Nixon was finished...twice. They were wrong both times. He kept coming back like the proverbial bad penny. At least he didn't get elected to anything the second time. I must insist that it is a serious mistake to ignore Palin and allow her to agitate undisturbed.
Ignoring her is an action. Besides, she is just a sock puppet. Go to her FB page and ask yourself how much of that was written by the person you have seen in interviews. There is really nothing there, unless we create it by reacting to it.
@Edgar - while I agree it might be a mistake to "ignore Palin and allow her to agitate undisturbed", I think we might fare better by working harder on our own message - a "where there is hatred, sow love" sort of thing .... but, most importantly, to respond rationally and with valid, sound logic backing up our arguments. The other thing we need to do is to promote rational, critical thinking rather than rhetoric on either side - to stop believing things just because this politician or that talking head said it - to critically question everything, to evaluate the arguments, to check the facts - and when the arguments and / or facts are found to be wanting, to say so - but with valid arguments and sound facts, not with a snipe of "you lie".
Valid arguments and sound facts are necessary and all well and good, but when somebody is aggressively other than truthful, I must insist that arguments/facts are *not* sufficient in and of themselves. Too many non-conservatives in the US seem unwilling to identify people who are not truthful (that can be done in a variety of ways) as such. That sort of thinking is what leads people to treat Creationism and "Intelligent Design" as "differing opinions" or "points of view".
he reminded me last nite why i voted for him!!!
Tragedy is part of life, the question is how you deal with it.
I feel the President showed us a way to deal with it that is inspirational.
What I took away also was how good and decent the people who died were.
This is the real America outside the media bubble.
You are a smart man Edward.
I agree with Edward and newsblog's assessment. Real America outside all of the political punditry are caring individuals who want to do right even if they have disagreements of exactly what that looks like.
I believe change can come and I believe this nation will survive and become stronger with President Obama as our leader. I believe this even though I'm neither a Christian nor a Theist. I am a patriotic American who would like to be included without prejudice.
Rather astonishing that there are people who will find hate even in this kind of event. I just have to shake my head...and then remain standing for change.
Thank you President Obama!
This was a Presidental speech! The effort to bring unity to our country, honoring the victims and the heroes, not laying blame and making me proud to be a democrat.
This had to be one of the most inspiring speeches I've heard the President give since the 2004 Democratic National Convention.
As the tears ran and my heart beat fast with pride, I can only say I'am proud to be part of American that President Obama and Christina Taylor Green sees.
May God Bless And Keep My 300 Million + Family Members Safe.
Again, my heart and prayers go out to all those effected, and all those who need it.
I need to suggest that our voice, our words and our vote, are not weapons. They are tools. We do not put elected officials into office using weapons, nor do we take them out of office using weapons. The constitution provides us with tools, not weapons.
Anyone that suggests that American citizens should use weapons in our political process, instead of the tools provided for us, must be prepared to except the consequences of their recommendation. When you suggest someone uses their weapons, there is an implied process used when handling weapons, as well as an inherent outcome. In contrast, there is also an implied process when dealing with tools and a much different inherent outcome.
Lets build and inspire, not destroy and coerce.
Very well said!
We need to isolate the gun issue from all the other issues that we face. All sides must agree to do this one thing. This won't be easy to do. As recent history has shown, Republicans use the gun issue as a recruiting tool. It's a convenient wedge issue, just like "defense of marriage", abortion, and gay issues. It will be difficult for Republicans to abandon guns since doing so would be to discard a very successful tool. Gun issues help Republicans win elections.
I don't think I can adequately explain how it felt to be in Tucson the last 5 days, but after all the sadness I felt a similar sense of wanting to celebrate all that is good in America especially after this dark moment and to say we will overcome. I know it came off rally like, but I think we were over being so so sad, grief stricken, and powerless. This was our moment to say, we are better than what happened and we are proud to be Americans.
Last night was a MEMORIAL...the victims funerals are yet to come. We can all become somber as their caskets are lowered.
Meanwhile, it was good and healthy to celebrate the heroes and the survivors and the first responders and the health care professionals.
I, too, was reminded last night as to why I voted for President Obama. His calming energy and voice of reason is exactly the right combination to lead our country forward during this challenging time. When the hateful voices get loud, which they will, I remind myself what I tell my middle school students. "Just because your voice is louder doesn't make you a good leader. Usually, it's the one who is initially listening and then calmly speaking with reason, heart, and collaboration who is the leader we want to follow."
Also, remember that simply by talking about those who use hate and fear to "stir it up" gives them power. Let's stop talking about them on tv, radio, in print, and at our local coffee shops and instead focus on what WE need to do to move forward in a positive manner. I know the American people are ready for this movement of positive change! We are worn out by the negative rhetoric and finger pointing, and quite honestly, I think if we all truly looked in the mirror we would be ashamed for our behavior that is paralyzing our country. Let 's be role models for not only our children, but for the world. Carpe diem--seize the day!
Now is not the time for political vitriol, it's time for gun control and health care.
Here's a youtube video which explains:
It is amazing that the good Lord blessed us with two ears; two eyes and one mouth. Our words are very powerful and once spoken, you can't take it back. Last night speech was very powerful and I too have to pause and approach my differences with kinder words. United we stand - divided we fall:) Lets come together and focus on those things that matter most for our great Nation.
Last night was an image that America is a whole by all nationalities. That is what make our Nation so great:) God Bless America.
But that doesn't prevent some from speaking out of both sides of their mouth.
So since I can't believe people are going to run along this mentality, I'd rather get it out of the way with snark to disarm trolls.....
Man this speech was boring last night and talk about rude- people kept cheering when they heard words of encouragement and words that made them feel stronger and more united as a people. The speech was wayyyy too long- I mean it lasted like almost an hour or something. Dude I can't be expected to sit in front of a television for a whole hour without a snack break!!! I'm an American- if I run out of Dorritos I power down; kind've like robots and alcohol. Cheering at this event- this event that I didn't go to, for a community I'm not a part of, for people that I didn't know and had no emotional attachment to- is just disgusting. And I would know this as an expert of civility (isn't my post evidence of my civilness???). The fact of the matter is I hate President Obama he is the worst president since president was a term we used to describe people!!! Boehner should've been the one to give the speech, if only because I was stoned and wanted to hear the man talk with his giant gavel. So until you liberals stop saying mean things about Palin and Boehner and stop disagreeing with me and stop voting Democrat, I'm not going to cheer anything the president does. Especially a long, boring speech about dead people! Because I'm classy and you're not.
You forgot the part about them not celebrating the Second Amendment by bringing their guns. Buncha lousy commie flouride drinkin' New World Order one world Govt bastards!
YES how could I have forgotten! ALL YOU DARN LIBERALS!!! You're trying to take my guns away! Tellin' me to knock off the over-the-top rhetoric and calls to violence! Only a wussy liberal would say that- hatin' on guns and all. It aint the guns, it's the people! DUH!
Mickey, Jayne would be proud.
The hero of Canton ;-)
OMG, this particular part of the comments is so funny! Thank you all! You cannot begin to imagine how much I needed to laugh, even momentarily!
"like robots and alcohol..."
loved the Bender reference, thanks!
Alas, like the perfect Country & Western song, there are things missing. There was no reference to Hitler (acceptable substitutes: socialists, Nazis, Facists, etc.) There were no complaints that MY FAVORITE PROGRAM "Live to Dance" was postponed by an hour. No demands that Rep. Giffords give up her Government Health Care before treatment.
Oh Bruce...bitch, bitch, bitch ;-)
F!ck you, moron.
I don't know where Rand Paul or anyone else gets off telling other people how they should grieve a tragedy. President Obama was responding to the needs of the Tucson citizens. Offering kind, uplifting, non-partisan words to a city that has been devastated is appropriate, and this is no time for Republicans to be making this tragedy about them or about petty politics.
No no no no. Rand Paul is absolutely right. There Is nothing contraversial about assassination attempts and mass murder. Not when he was walking hand in hand with Sharron "2nd Amendment Remedies" Angle. Killing public figures and elected officals are just another form of free speech, like not allowing certain races into private places of business.
He used the term "moral imagination". To me that means doing our best to imagine what someone else is thinking, feeling, going through, and doing whatever we can to help. It's compassion, and compassion without action is mere sentimentality.
I feel like Loughner is the Grinch and the Tucsonians are the Whos.
I sobbed(like Boehner ;)) through most of the president's speech. We know the president is a most eloquent speaker. But last night his words poured out from his heart, from his Spirit. It was not only a speech, it was an experience, an enlightenment, a call to higher ground (not a call to arms)
We in this country have a long road ahead, thehealing process will be painful and we will no doubt hit many bumps, and perhaps more tragedies, along the way.
If we learn anything from this tragedy, we need to learn not to wait until tragedy hits... not to let the fuse of dissent and hateful rhetoric fizzle slowly, gaining strength along the way, until the inevitable explosion, which was Tucson, in this case.
It seems we never learn until the shock of tragedy hits. Complaints pile up about a dangerous intersection, citizens fight for a stop light/sign, yet the complaints fall on deaf ears, until someone is killed, at that intersection. Then the red light is installed. Let's hope the stop sign is now in place. Stopping the hate rhetoric in this country, or at least we, Slow and Proceed with Caution, before we speak and certainly before we act!
I dont know what to do Im gonna try this
I sobbed too. I'm good again. I think we're all good again. Except of course, for the a$$holes!