Some semi-related comments from a Tucson resident
The media is making too big a deal of this. It was a tragedy, and I strongly hope that Congresswoman Giffords makes a full recovery and runs for Governor so that we can have some responsible leadership in this state. However, comparing Tucson to Dallas (Kennedy assassination) is ridiculous, and comments about the shooter's alleged politics as well as calls for gun control are, in my judgment, both misguided and unseemly. People will get over this trauma and the incident pales in comparison to what occurs in Iraq and Afghanistan on a weekly basis.
Where was the threat assessment? Why wasn't one of the Congresswoman's staffers armed? (As of five months ago, anyone can carry a concealed weapon in Arizona without a permit.) The Congresswoman was the target of multiple threats, just completed a nasty campaign, and had her local office vandalized because of her health care vote. The House of Representatives Sergeant-at-Arms Office should also be asking themselves some questions. They can't be expected to assess security threats in 435 separate districts but they should be providing personal security assessment briefings to incoming members.
It was a stroke of luck that the shooter used a 9mmP caliber pistol rather than a 40 S&W or a 45 ACP caliber pistol. I buy powder and primers from the store where he reporteldy purchased his handgun and he could have easily selected from the display shelf a Glock 23 (40 S&W) rather than the Glock 19 which he used to commit his crimes. The number of dead would have likely been greater if he had used a more powerful caliber. This should be another argument (as if anymore are needed) for the U.S. military to change its handgun caliber from 9mmP to 45ACP.
At the risk of being redundant, for the second time:
"And as I said earlier, the bottom line is that this is not a political discussion board -- so while a brief unbiased comment on political ramifications is acceptable, even desirable, we should save the leaning in either direction politics for elsewhere. That means NOT 'intending' to provoke politically biased responses.
Thanks."
I asked nicely. Opinions on either side of this argument certainly exist among people who frequent this Board, however, most know that purely political discussions do not belong here. Please move any further comments to a political board and let's drop it here. I'd hate to lock this thread due to ideologically based comments that belong elsewhere.
Judy Clarke appointed as defense counsel,
and according to USA Today, Loughner's lawyer is 'One-Woman Dream Team', with an interesting prior client list:
Quote:
HIGH-PROFILE CLIENT LIST
Criminal defense attorney Judy Clarke has been involved in several high-profile cases. Among them:
-- Zacarias Moussaoui. The 9/11 conspirator represented himself during his 2006 trial. Clarke served as an adviser to him. He is serving a life sentence.
-- Eric Rudolph. Known as "Olympic Park Bomber," he pleaded guilty in 2005 to a series of bombings, including the 1996 Olympics bombing in Atlanta that killed one person and injured 111 others. He is serving life in prison.
-- Theodore Kaczynski. Known as the "Unabomber," he pleaded guilty in 1998 to a mail-bombing campaign that spanned almost 20 years and killed three people and injured 23 others. He is serving a life sentence.
-- Susan Smith. She was convicted in 1995 of drowning her two toddler sons in a lake in Union, S.C., in 1994. She is serving a life sentence with the possibility of parole in November 2024.
Regards
Mike