There Is No Place for Violence and Threats in a Democracy

Before attending yesterday's Washington 4th Congressional District Committee Meeting in Yakima, if I had ever heard of Democratic Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, I couldn't remember that moment. 

For me hearing of the attempt on her life, having just found a seat at the Yakima Democratic Headquarters in preparation for my first foray into political involvement beyond Kittitas County, this will be one of those frozen in time memories which include listening to the radio and hearing the reports of small planes flying into the the two towers on 9/11, hearing that Bay Bridge collapsed into the San Francisco Bay while I was at work in a grocery store in Placerville, California, and, again at work in an Insurance Firm in Emeryville, California watching news reports of the Space Shuttle Challenger exploding.  Yesterday will also be memorable because moments before, as I was walking into the meeting, I saw a woman carrying a rifle bag (I did not know there was a gun and pawn shop nearby) and just for a moment, I did stop to ponder what her intent might be. 

Assassinations and assassination attempts are, unfortunately, part of the fabric of American history.  There is no escaping our past which includes the shooting of President Abraham Lincoln, the shooting of John F. Kennedy, the shooting of George Wallace, the  shooting of  Bobby Kennedy, the shooting of Martin Luther King, the shooting of Ronald Reagan and the shooting of John Lennon.  No discussion of political violence would be complete without at least touching on the bombing of the Murrow building in Oklahoma City carried out by Timothy McVeigh with some assistance from a few other politically frustrated friends.  We are all too well acquainted with this type of violent and wanton taking of human life.

In this past month since unexpectedly becoming more involved in local party politics, I've wrestled with how to best deal with difficult issues of political discourse that could come up here locally.  Our community has a recent black eye in the Manweller-Huber fisticuffs that evolved out of several acts of free speech.  While I do not wish to reopen that can of worms, and I am, of course, extremely sympathetic to the Huber family, I am also concerned about not seeing a repeat on any member of the Democratic Party's part in this county.

I know many of the members of the Republican Party (and, even, Tea Partiers) here quite well, and, many I also count as not only good friends, but dear friends.  I also know that realistically, there will be moments of vitriol, of passion, possibly of stupidity, possibly of disingenuous commentary or behavior that is otherwise unsavory.  But I ask that our people, the Democrats, stand tall, not take personal offense even when it is warranted, and move forward with the critical tasks of rebuilding our party's infrastructure, telling our story of the good works the Democrats have done in the past and will do for Central Washington in the future, and reaching out to serve our Kittitas County community members of all political persuasions.  Let us do our part to build a positive democracy here locally without violence, threats and, simply put, with respect for all, even when we passionately disagree with them or the way they express themselves.

Keith Olbermann's Call to Political Leaders and Pundits to Repudiate Violence and Threats

Sunday New York Times Article on Gabrielle Giffords Shooting