In the aftermath of the assassination attempt on a conservative Arizona Democratic Congresswoman, there has been much hand-wringing and despair within the political chattering classes. As mainstream media figures promise to dial back the vitriol, it will be interesting to see if it has any effect on our political process. I'm betting that it will have little to no effect.
For example, the day after the horror, Sarah Palin's website still included the image of a bullseye placed on the map of the Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords' district. I doubt that there is a direct link between such an incendiary metaphor and the dreadful assault she and others endured, but it does seem insensitive for the 2008 Republican Vice-Presidential candidate to fail to revise the webpage in the wake of the tragedy.
I am looking forward to following the various threads for debate which will surely issue from the sad event: handgun control, the insanity defense, the death penalty, and many more that will ignite partisan debate. It will be interesting to see if the vitriol truly does become lessened.
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