A gun goes off in Arizona

On a day when football is supposed to be the foremost thought in America's mind, a gun goes off and takes the life of a few public officials in Arizona. Allegedly, a 22 year old walked up to Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, a Senator who was spending her Saturday afternoon trying to get close to the people, and shot her in the head. In broad daylight. Thankfully she survived, but 9-year-old Christine Taylor Greene and Federal Judge John Roll (along with four others) were not so lucky. Once the major news networks got a hold of the story, you learn somethings about the gunman, and, sadly our current state as a nation.

He's a weedhead, he's a loner, he had weird ideas. You know, the usual litany of things you hear about a guy from the mid west who'll spend a good day plotting the killing of an elected official, or mailing out bombs just for a good chuckle.

But one other thing came out, something that caught my eye.

According to the County Sheriff, the young disturbed lad went on his killing spree due to the "vitriol" and anger that is tearing the nation apart. And given the way politicians have been going at each other for the past few months, I don't blame him for making the connection.

We have Democrats, Republicans, extreme left wing and the Tea Party. There are so many different opinions and so many angry people on all sides that you wondered for sometime when the first shoe would drop. I mean sure, Sarah Palin had a website that placed gunsights on the states where politicians she didn't approve of lived and worked, but, you know, it's Sarah Palin, who's gonna take that seriously?

Right?

There were gang wars in the 90's that didn't take the national stage the way these political turf wars have.

That's all kinds of scary.

On the one hand, if everyone is arguing, then nothing gets done. Something people have considered an issue for ohh about 8 years now. But never has that fact hit so close to home.

We've been good at making war. We could make a 90 minute instructional video about it staring a guy with six pack abs and a fake smile. And while all great nations at some point have to make war, but given the amount of energy we've expended on recent wars and conflicts, conflicts of dubious origins, you had to wonder when we'd start making war on ourselves.

A look at history shows that every empire has a level of decline, a time when internal strife makes it easy for some outside force to topple them from the top of the mountain. But, given the fact that no other country seems hell bent on world domination, I think we're safe for now.

That leaves my other concern.

History has also shown that in times of decline, some empires decide to become totally insular. The Ottomans at one time were at the head of science and architecture, now...you get an ottoman from Sears during the winter sale. Egypt dominated lands as far as the eyes could see. Then they got comfortable, lazy and ignorant. A few centuries later and you have a slave trade and crimes against humanity that still resonate.

And let us not forget, Rome. Rome was the IT nation, everyone wanted to be Roman. People went to Rome for protection, trade, and philosophy. Then the Romans figured they knew it all, argued amongst themselves, forgot about the goths outside their walls and BAM...the Dark ages.

Are we headed for an American Dark Age? Are we going to a place where you don't know where the next meal is coming from, or the next crime, or the next law holding you in place? I mean if all these different viewpoints are drawing us in too many directions, and if the best course of action seems to be just have one viewpoint and stick with it (cause well, if we all agree, then no one gets to argue), then wont we stop thinking, and learning, and all those OTHER things Americans should be good at?

I might be reaching, but I'm a fan of civil liberties. I hope for the continued life of the Arizona representative. I also hope for the continued liberty to have, and argue my own opinion.

We just need to get rid of the loudmouths. That is something Obama can do nothing about. You can't legislate human nature, so what the hell do you do?

I'm thinking...