Congresswoman shot in Tucson Arizona alive in hospital

Before its content was deleted following today’s shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, the alleged gunman’s MySpace page included, as seen above, a picture of suspect Jared Laughner and a photo of a what appears to be a Glock 9mm handgun atop a U.S. history textbook.

The images were among a handful of photos on Laughner’s MySpace page, where he used the nickname “fallenasleep.”

Loughner, 22, was taken into custody shortly after this morning’s shooting spree outside a Tuscon supermarket. According to news reports, Loughner shot Giffords and several other victims with a Glock 9mm.

Tucson, Arizona (CNN) --

It was a day and an event like so many others -- until it wasn't.
Six people were killed and 12 others wounded, including U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, when a gunman opened fire in front of a Safeway supermarket in Tucson, Arizona, authorities said. The congresswoman had been hosting a meeting with constituents Saturday morning when the attack began.
Dr. Steven Rayle told CNN's Wolf Blitzer he was about 10 feet away from Giffords when the gunman shot the congresswoman.
"He continued to fire, sort of rapidly, really at point-blank range. And the way things were set up, people really had no route to escape. They were sort of hemmed in by the architecture and the things around there," he said.
After a moment of hesitation, Rayle said he ducked behind a concrete post, then laid on the ground so as not to be a target.
Who is Gabrielle Giffords? AZ shooting suspect may have had help Doctor: I helped hold down suspect Friend: She's a phenomenal woman
Rayle said the suspect "had a sort of determined look on his face" as he opened fire.
"He was not sort of going around and picking out people and firing at them ... He was just firing his gun indiscriminately," he said.
The 22-year-old suspect, who law enforcement sources identified as Jared Lee Loughner, was trying to reload when he was tackled to the ground, another witness said.
The gun, which another bystander had wrestled from the gunman, was empty and cocked open. The shooter had another magazine at the ready, Joe Zamudio told CNN.
"He was ready for war. He was not playing around," Zamudio said. "He was going to keep shooting. It was not over. He had just ran out of bullets."
Zamudio said he was one of the bystanders who pinned the gunman to the ground until police showed up.
Jason Pekau, who works at a nearby store, said he heard the gunshots from 50 yards away.
"It sounded like tons of pots and pans falling down on the ground right next to my ear it was so loud," he said.
He described a chaotic scene in the parking lot immediately after the attack.
"I just saw people running, screaming towards where the shooting happened. Everyone screaming that it was Gabrielle Giffords," he said.
Witnesses told him she was shot "point-blank in the head," Farley said.
"I did see them take her away on a stretcher," Pekau said about the congresswoman. "She was moving, from what I saw with my own eyes."
Giffords may owe her survival to a quick-thinking intern, an Arizona state legislator told CNN.
Arizona state Rep. Steve Farley said Daniel Hernandez, his former campaign manager -- and a trained nurse -- was interning for Giffords and staffing Saturday's meet-and-greet event.
"He said that when he was in the back ... he heard shots in the front. He rushed to see what had happened. Gabby was on the floor," Farley said. "He was able to use his nurse training and snapped right into it and was able to apply pressure to the wound and keep her active and alert. He rode with her in the ambulance to the hospital."
Video from the scene showed one of Giffords' banners still hanging in the storefront. Yellow tape was draped around the parking lot as police began their investigation.
Giffords won her third term in a closely contested race against a Tea Party-sponsored candidate and was one of three Democratic legislators who reported vandalism at their offices following the March vote on health care reform.
President Barack Obama spoke from Washington soon after the attack. He called it a national tragedy and underlined how simply the day began -- like any other.
"It's not surprising that today, Gabby was doing what she was always does -- listening to the hopes and concerns of her neighbors," said Obama, referring to the congresswoman by her nickname. "That is the essence of what our democracy is all about."

January 09, 2011
Categories: Announcements
Mother of 9-year-old: 'Stop the hatred'

Roxanna Green, the mother of the 9-year-old killed during the mass shooting in Arizona on Saturday, has implored the country to "stop the violence, stop the hatred" that led to her daughter's violent death.

In an emotional interview Sunday morning on MSNBC, Green spoke about how her daughter had been born on Sept. 11, 2001 and had been featured in a book called "Faces of Hope." Less than 24 hours after Christina Green died, her mother asked for people not to forget her daughter, the youngest victim in the shooting rampage.

"I just want her memory to live on, she's a face of hope, a face of change," Roxanna Green told MSNBC. "Stop the violence, stop the hatred."

Green said she initially thought her daughter had been hurt in a car accident when a family friend first called to say they were on their way to the hospital. But Christina had been shot in the chest, and doctors were unable to save her.

Arizona Shooting: Mum Speaks Of Losing 'Princess'

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5:14pm UK, Sunday January 09, 2011
Adam Arnold and Huw Borland, Sky News Online
The mother of the nine-year-old killed in the Arizona shooting has spoken of her "devastation" at losing her "beautiful princess".


Christina Greene, nine, was among the dead

Christina Greene is among six people killed in the attack in Tucson.
Her mother, Roxanna Green, told Fox News: "I can't even put it into words.
"I can't express the devastation and hurt, and how we were so robbed of our beautiful princess."
Among those who were attacked was US congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who is in intensive care after being shot in the head.
A hospital spokeswoman said she is still in a critical condition and unconscious.
The shootings took place outside a supermarket where the 40-year-old Democrat was meeting constituents.
The dead included federal judge John Roll, Phyllis Schneck, 79, Dorothy Murray, 76, Dorwin Stoddard, 76, and 30-year-old Gabriel Zimmerman.


Judge John Roll lost his life in the atrocity

Police investigating a shooting spree have released an image of a second suspect.
He was pictured at the scene of the attack in Tucson, Arizona, as officers appealed for the public's help to try to identify him.
The suspect is described as white, about 40-50 years old, with dark hair and was last seen wearing blue jeans and a dark blue jacket.
Another man, who is thought to have carried out the shooting, is already in custody after being arrested at the site of the atrocity.
He has reportedly been identified by a federal law official as 22-year-old Jared Lee Loughner.
Police said the gunman opened fire at point-blank range using a semi-automatic pistol.

Police release image of second suspect over shooting
A Tucson fire official said the number of wounded was 13.
Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik said the detained suspect, who was tackled after the shooting and is in custody, has "a troubled past".
Ms Giffords was airlifted to a hospital in Tucson, where she underwent surgery. One of the doctors who treated her said he was optimistic about her recovery.
The bullet travelled straight through her brain, he told reporters.
US President Barack Obama said: "We don't yet know what provoked this unspeakable act," calling the shooting a "senseless and terrible act of violence".

Sky's US correspondent Greg Milam said Mr Obama has dispatched FBI director Robert Mueller to Arizona to oversee the investigation.
House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner has ordered flags at the US Capitol in Washington lowered to half mast in memory of the victims.
He said the incident was a reminder that public service comes with a risk.

Deadly Shooting Spree
See pictures from the scene of the Arizona attack
Mr Boehner told reporters: "This inhuman act should not and will not deter us from our calling to represent our constituents and fulfil our oaths of office.
"No act, no matter how heinous, must be allowed to stop us from our duty."
Gun violence is common in America, which is periodically rocked by mass shootings, but political shootings are rare.

Judge John Roll lost his life in the atrocity
The shootings followed contentious congressional elections in November.
The polls were marked by heated rhetoric over issues like the Democrat-led drive to overhaul the US healthcare system and immigration reform.
A window in Ms Giffords' office was smashed in March, after Congress passed the healthcare overhaul that had been opposed by Republicans.
"The rhetoric is really heated. Not just the calls but the e-mails, the slurs," Ms Giffords told television network MSNBC at the time.
Ms Giffords was hosting a "Congress on Your Corner" event when the gunman attacked from about 4ft away, National Public Radio said.

Jared Loughner is said to have been arrested over the attack
The suspect approached the politician from behind, firing at least 20 shots at her and others in the crowd, MSNBC reported.
In March, Republican Tea Party favourite Palin released a 'target list' of Democrats she wanted to see unseated in last November's mid-term elections. Mrs Giffords was on the list.
At the time, Mrs Palin drew criticism for telling her followers "Don't retreat - instead, reload!"
Regarded as a rising star in the Democratic Party, Ms Giffords was one of the few Democrats to survive the Republican sweep in "swing" districts in the elections.
Ms Giffords is a moderate who narrowly beat a Tea Party candidate who tried to throw her out of office over her support for the health care law.
Sky News' US political commentator Jon-Christopher Bua said: "Today we are saddened to see that words of violence like 'reload' have horrible consequences."
He also predicted increased security for US politicians following the Tucson attack.
"Life in Washington and elsewhere for Members of Congress is about to become more challenging as heightened security will be the order of the day."

Shot US congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords 'doing well'

The shooting in Arizona has shocked US politicians and the public
Continue reading the main story
GIFFORDS SHOT

US congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot in the head by a gunman in Arizona, is responding well to treatment and can follow simple commands after surgery, doctors say.

They said it "was still very early" but they were "cautiously optimistic".

Ms Giffords, 40, was injured and six other people killed in a shooting at a public meeting at a Tucson supermarket.

A 22-year-old man has been arrested and police are hunting for a second man in connection with the shooting.

Surgeons at the Arizona University Medical Center said Ms Giffords was still in a critical condition but they were optimistic, especially since the bullet that hit her had not crossed both hemispheres of the brain.

They said their surgery had initially controlled the bleeding, then taken the pressure off the brain.

Transfusions had worked well, they said, and after the surgery Ms Giffords could respond to simple commands.

In their press conference, the surgeons said they had treated 11 other patients in the wake of the shooting, of which one - nine-year-old Christina-Taylor Green - they were unable to resuscitate.

Five patients remain in serious condition and one has been discharged. Six surgeries were performed.

Dr Peter Rhee, medical director of the hospital's trauma and critical care unit, said: "I never thought I would experience something like this in my own back yard. It's a very trying period for all of us."

Video: Slain girl’s father says attack the price of “a free society”

POSTED AT 10:55 AM ON JANUARY 10, 2011 BY ED MORRISSEY
PRINTER-FRIENDLY

If you want to see heartbreaking grace and tremendous courage in the face of unspeakable tragedy, you don’t want to miss this segment from the Today show this morning with John Green, the father of the 9-year-old victim of the shooting in Tucson, Arizona. Christina Green was born on 9/11 and died in another act of nationally-covered violence, which her father says are “bookends” to her joyful life. Instead of lashing out, which would be entirely understandable for a heartbroken father, John instead offers us an amazing example of poise and perspective that puts many to shame:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

My granddaughter is only a year younger than John’s daughter; I cannot imagine having this much courage and grace. Please pray for the Greens, and perhaps for those tempted to use this tragedy for political purposes, take a lesson from John as well.

Addendum: Kudos to Meredith Viera for her sensitive and supportive handling of the interview.

carmen wrote:Interview with Christina Green's parents:

Video: Slain girl’s father says attack the price of “a free society”

POSTED AT 10:55 AM ON JANUARY 10, 2011 BY ED MORRISSEY
PRINTER-FRIENDLY

If you want to see heartbreaking grace and tremendous courage in the face of unspeakable tragedy, you don’t want to miss this segment from the Today show this morning with John Green, the father of the 9-year-old victim of the shooting in Tucson, Arizona. Christina Green was born on 9/11 and died in another act of nationally-covered violence, which her father says are “bookends” to her joyful life. Instead of lashing out, which would be entirely understandable for a heartbroken father, John instead offers us an amazing example of poise and perspective that puts many to shame:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

My granddaughter is only a year younger than John’s daughter; I cannot imagine having this much courage and grace. Please pray for the Greens, and perhaps for those tempted to use this tragedy for political purposes, take a lesson from John as well.

Addendum: Kudos to Meredith Viera for her sensitive and supportive handling of the interview.

http://hotair.com/archives/2011/01/10/video-slain-girls-father-says-attack-the-price-of-a-free-society/

malena stool wrote:

carmen wrote:Interview with Christina Green's parents:

Video: Slain girl’s father says attack the price of “a free society”

POSTED AT 10:55 AM ON JANUARY 10, 2011 BY ED MORRISSEY
PRINTER-FRIENDLY

If you want to see heartbreaking grace and tremendous courage in the face of unspeakable tragedy, you don’t want to miss this segment from the Today show this morning with John Green, the father of the 9-year-old victim of the shooting in Tucson, Arizona. Christina Green was born on 9/11 and died in another act of nationally-covered violence, which her father says are “bookends” to her joyful life. Instead of lashing out, which would be entirely understandable for a heartbroken father, John instead offers us an amazing example of poise and perspective that puts many to shame:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

My granddaughter is only a year younger than John’s daughter; I cannot imagine having this much courage and grace. Please pray for the Greens, and perhaps for those tempted to use this tragedy for political purposes, take a lesson from John as well.

Addendum: Kudos to Meredith Viera for her sensitive and supportive handling of the interview.

http://hotair.com/archives/2011/01/10/video-slain-girls-father-says-attack-the-price-of-a-free-society/

Thanks carmen,
It's just impossible to imagine how he must feel, our thoughts and prayers go to him and his family

Jared Lee Loughner note reveals aim to assassinate Gabrielle Giffords
Investigators are examining whether far-right organisations played a role in Tucson shooting that killed six people

guardian.co.uk, Monday 10 January 2011 07.47 GMT



Tributes are left outside the hospital treating US congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords after the gun attack at a public meeting that left six people dead Link to this video
A note written by Jared Lee Loughner ahead of his shooting rampage in Tucson appears to show that he made careful preparations to assassinate Gabrielle Giffords, the Arizona congresswoman gravely wounded in the attack that also killed six other people.

The existence of the note is revealed in court papers filed after Loughner, 22, was charged on Sunday with murder and attempted assassination. The FBI document says that on an envelope Loughner wrote "I planned ahead", "My assassination" and "Giffords". He then signed the note.

The envelope was kept in a safe at Loughner's home alongside a letter from Giffords in 2007 thanking him for attending an earlier open air constituency meeting of the kind he attacked on Saturday.

The papers also reveal that Loughner bought the semi-automatic Glock pistol six weeks ago.

Giffords, 40, is in a critical condition after being shot in the head at close range. Loughner is expected to appear in court later today as the FBI continues to try to establish a motive for the attack.

The FBI director, Robert Mueller, who travelled to Tucson, Arizona, to take charge of the investigation, said that one focus of the inquiry is whether far-right organisations and websites played a role.

"The ubiquitous nature of the internet means that not only threats, but hate speech and other inciteful speech is much more readily available to individuals than quite clearly it was eight or 10 or 15 years ago," he said.

Investigators are exploring suspected links between Loughner and an online publication known for its strongly anti-immigrant stance, American Renaissance. It has denied any links to the accused killer.

The Southern Poverty Law Centre, one of America's leading trackers of hate crimes, said there are signs in some of Loughner's writings of far-right influence. Mark Potok, the director of research on hate groups at the centre, drew attention to Loughner's online ramblings that reject the US currency.

"At one point, Loughner refers disparagingly to 'currency that's not backed by gold or silver'. The idea that silver and gold are the only 'constitutional' money is widespread in the anti-government 'Patriot' movement that produced so much violence in the 1990s," he said.

Potok said the Patriot movement believes that paper money issued by the government is not legal tender. He said there were also clues to Loughner's thinking in his internet postings in which he accused the government of "mind control on the people by controlling grammar".

Potok said that fits with the theory of a Patriot conspiracy theorist who claims that the government uses grammar to "enslave" Americans.

On Loughner's first encounter with Giffords, at a constituency event in 2007, he is reported to have asked her: "How do you know words mean anything?"

A former friend told the Wall Street Journal that he became "aggravated" when Giffords responded in Spanish before moving on with the meeting.

Other organisations monitoring extremist groups have noted that Loughner spoke despairingly of a "second American constitution", a reference used by some extreme rightwingers to post-civil war constitutional amendments that ended slavery and gave former slaves citizenship.

"One thing that seems clear is that Giffords, who was terribly wounded but survived, was the nearest and most obvious representative of 'the government' that Loughner could find. Another is that he likely absorbed some of his anger from the vitriolic political atmosphere in the United States in general and Arizona in particular," said Potok.

Acquaintances of Loughner have related hearing him rant about issues such as the national currency and language control.

Lynda Sorenson, 52, who attended a community college algebra class with Loughner last year, wrote emails to friends describing him causing disruption and expressing fears that he might be dangerous.

"We do have one student in the class who was disruptive today, I'm not certain yet if he was on drugs (as one person surmised) or disturbed. He scares me a bit. The teacher tried to throw him out and he refused to go, so I talked to the teacher afterward. Hopefully he will be out of class very soon, and not come back with an automatic weapon," Sorenson wrote on 1 June.

A fortnight later, Sorenson said of Loughner: "We have a mentally unstable person in the class that scares the living crap out of me. He is one of those whose picture you see on the news, after he has come into class with an automatic weapon. Everyone interviewed would say, 'Yeah, he was in my math class and he was really weird.' I sit by the door with my purse handy. If you see it on the news one night, know that I got out fast …"

Loughner was later asked to leave the class.

Giffords's doctors say her chances of survival are good but have not said how complete her recovery will be. One of her surgeons, Dr Peter Rhee, has experience as a military doctor in Afghanistan and Iraq.

"I never thought I would experience something like this in my own backyard," he said.

TODAY: Tucson shooting suspect held without bail

Posted: 01/09/2011
Last Updated: 4 minutes ago




By: ABC15.com staff, wire reports
TUCSON, AZ - The suspect in a deadly Tucson shooting is being held without bail and has been assigned a lawyer who defended Oklahoma City bombing conspirator Timothy McVeigh.

Jared Loughner entered the courtroom Monday handcuffed and wearing a tan inmate uniform. His head is shaved and he has a cut on his right temple.

Loughner made his initial court appearance in federal court at 2 p.m. at the Sandra Day O’Connor U.S. Courthouse, while state charges have yet to be filed.

The court set Loughner’s preliminary hearing for Jan. 24.

ABC15’s Corey Rangel was at the courthouse this afternoon. Stay with ABC15 throughout the day for updates.

Loughner described as a social outcast with wild beliefs steeped in mistrust faces a federal court hearing on charges he tried to assassinate Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in the Tucson shooting rampage that left six people dead and wounded 14 others.

His expression was impassive as he walked in, looked straight at the crowd at the back of the room packed with reporters, then turned around to speak to his attorney, Judy Clarke. He responded "yes" when asked if he understood his rights.

He is charged with one count of attempted assassination of a member of Congress, two counts of killing an employee of the federal government and two counts of attempting to kill a federal employee.

Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik says state charges will also be filed.

He says the county attorney's office will file them on recommendation from his office.

Dupnik says there's no rush because Loughner is in custody.
Public defenders are asking that the attorney who defended Oklahoma City bombing conspirator Timothy McVeigh and “Unabomber” Ted Kaczynski defend Loughner.

Dupnik said Loughner was not cooperating and told ABC’s “Good Morning America” the suspect had said “not a word” to investigators. Dupnik said authorities were all but certain Loughner acted alone, saying “he’s a typical troubled individual who’s a loner.”

The hearing in Phoenix comes just a few hours after President Barack Obama lead a shocked and saddened nation in a moment of silence for the victims and their families. Obama observed the moment of silence at 9 a.m. Arizona Time with White House staff on the South Lawn.

As authorities filed the charges against Loughner Sunday, they alleged he scrawled on an envelope the words “my assassination” and “Giffords” sometime before he took a cab to a shopping center where the congresswoman was meeting with constituents Saturday morning.

A federal judge, a congressional aide and a young girl were among the six people killed, while Giffords and 13 others were injured in the bursts of gunfire outside a Safeway store in Tucson.

Investigators said they have seized evidence suggesting Loughner planned the Saturday attack ahead of time.

Police say he purchased the Glock pistol used in the attack at Sportsman's Warehouse in Tucson in November.

Court papers filed with the charges against Loughner said he had previous contact with the Democratic lawmaker. The documents said he had received a letter from Giffords in which she thanked him for attending a "Congress on your Corner" event at a mall in Tucson in 2007.

Authorities don't know Loughner's motive, but said he targeted Giffords at Saturday's public gathering.

The Associated Press is reporting the suspect Jared Loughner was rejected by the Army in the past because of a failed drug test.

Arizona Shooting: Suspect's Family 'So Sorry'

Ian Collier, Sky News Online
The family of the Arizona shooting suspect has apologised to the victims' relatives.

Alleged Tucson gunman Jared Loughner
"We are so very sorry for their loss," the said in a written statement.
"There are no words that can possibly express how we feel. We wish there were, so we could make you feel better.
"We don't understand why this happened. It may not make any difference, but we wish that we could change the heinous events of Saturday.
"We care very deeply about the victims and their families."
It came just hours after Gabrielle Giffords' doctors said was now breathing on her own.

Doctor: 'She is holding her own'
Medics are hopeful about her recovery despite a bullet passing through her brain during the shooting spree.
The Democrat congresswoman remains in a critical condition at Tucson hospital but doctors have said she "has no right to look this good".
Dr Michael Lemole, head of neurosurgery at the University Medical Centre, said: "She is holding her own.
"We're hopeful. It's week to week, month to month."
President Barack Obama and the First Lady will travel to Arizona later to attend a memorial service for the victims of the Tucson shootings.
A US college dropout arrested after the shooting rampage on Saturday has appeared in court for the first time.
ARIZONA SHOOTINGS: TIMELINE OF EVENTS

Jared Lee Loughner, 22, arrived at a federal court in Phoenix, Arizona, to face two counts of first degree murder, one count of attempted assassination and two other counts of attempted murder.
He was shackled, his head was shaved and there was a cut above his right temple.
He answered questions briefly and said he understood court procedures. He did not enter a plea.
A judge ruled Loughner would be held in custody until his next court appearance on January 24.
The Tucson trip is an opportunity for the President to show his "human side" - to contrast the image held by some that he is a detached intellectual - and to play the role of healer to a shocked and distressed American people.
Jon-Christopher Bua, Washington Notebook blog
The charges, brought by the US government, relate to the shooting of government officials.
The state of Arizona is likely to charge Loughner over the others who were injured and killed.

Deadly Shooting Spree
See pictures from the scene of the Arizona attack
High-profile public defender Judy Clarke has been assigned to represent Loughner.
In all, 19 people were shot by Loughner at an event hosted by Mrs Giffords in Tucson.
Among the dead were federal judge John Roll, 63; nine-year-old Christina Green, who had been born on the day of the 9/11 attacks and wanted a career in politics, Congresswoman Giffords' aide Gabriel Zimmerman, 30; Dorwin Stoddard, 76; Dorothy Morris, 76; and Phyllis Scheck, 79.

Blood libel – what does it mean?
Sarah Palin borrows phrase from a notorious passage in the Bible to condemn the Arizona shootings
Stephen Bates
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 12 January 2011 16.52 GMT

Tea Party favourite brands linking her rhetoric and 'crosshairs' map with the shootings in Arizona as 'blood libel' Link to this video
Sarah Palin's use of the phrase "blood libel" could scarcely be more incendiary, especially in a religious country like the US.

The blood libel refers specifically to perhaps the most notorious verse in the Bible: Matthew 27:25, which has been used by some Christians to persecute Jews for nearly 2,000 years. That it should be used by an avowedly Christian politician about a Jewish one just takes crassness and insensitivity to a new level.

One can only hope that Palin, or her advisers, did not appreciate the context, or the history. The verse in Matthew refers to the scene during Christ's trial before Pontius Pilate, before his execution, where the Roman governor, not being able to find fault with the accused man, publicly washed his hands of his fate, saying the crowd bore responsibility for his death.

The Gospel says the crowd shouted back: "His blood be on us and on our children," a phrase taken by Christians for centuries to indicate that the Jewish people as a whole and for perpetuity bore direct responsibility for the crucifixion and were therefore fair game for persecution and extermination.

It has been used to justify pogroms, expulsions and discrimination and has fed Christian myths, such as those circulating in the middle ages, that Jews kidnapped and sacrificed Christian children to use their blood during Passover commemorations.

It took until the post-Holocaust period for organisations such as the Roman Catholic church to acknowledge the sensitivity of the phrase. Only in recent years has the famous Oberammergau passion play in southern Germany cut the words.

In 2004, Mel Gibson claimed he had excised the line from his gory film, The Passion of the Christ, owing to Jewish sensitivities, though scholars noted he actually retained it – in Aramaic.

Why Not Regulate Guns as Seriously as Toys?
By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF
Published: January 12, 2011

Jared Loughner was considered too mentally unstable to attend community college. He was rejected by the Army. Yet buy a Glock handgun and a 33-round magazine? No problem.

To protect the public, we regulate cars and toys, medicines and mutual funds. So, simply as a public health matter, shouldn’t we take steps to reduce the toll from our domestic arms industry?

Look, I’m an Oregon farm boy who was given a .22 rifle for my 12th birthday. I still shoot occasionally when visiting the family farm, and I understand one appeal of guns: they’re fun.

It’s also true that city slickers sometimes exaggerate the risk of any one gun. The authors of Freakonomics noted that a home with a swimming pool is considerably more dangerous for small children than a home with a gun. They said that 1 child drowns annually for every 11,000 residential pools, but 1 child is shot dead for every 1 million-plus guns.

All that said, guns are far more deadly in America, not least because there are so many of them. There are about 85 guns per 100 people in the United States, and we are particularly awash in handguns.

(The only country I’ve seen that is more armed than America is Yemen. Near the town of Sadah, I dropped by a gun market where I was offered grenade launchers, machine guns, antitank mines, and even an anti-aircraft weapon. Yep, an N.R.A. dream! No pesky regulators. Just terrorism and a minor civil war.)

Just since the killings in Tucson, another 320 or so Americans have been killed by guns — anonymously, with barely a whisker of attention. By tomorrow it’ll be 400 deaths. Every day, about 80 people die from guns, and several times as many are injured.

Handgun sales in Arizona soared by 60 percent on Monday, according to Bloomberg News, as buyers sought to beat any beefing up of gun laws. People also often buy guns in hopes of being safer. But the evidence is overwhelming that firearms actually endanger those who own them. One scholar, John Lott Jr., published a book suggesting that more guns lead to less crime, but many studies have now debunked that finding (although it’s also true that a boom in concealed weapons didn’t lead to the bloodbath that liberals had forecast).

A careful article forthcoming in the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine by David Hemenway, a Harvard professor who wrote a brilliant book a few years ago reframing the gun debate as a public health challenge, makes clear that a gun in the home makes you much more likely to be shot — by accident, by suicide or by homicide.

The chances that a gun will be used to deter a home invasion are unbelievably remote, and dialing 911 is more effective in reducing injury than brandishing a weapon, the journal article says. But it adds that American children are 11 times more likely to die in a gun accident than in other developed countries, because of the prevalence of guns.

Likewise, suicide rates are higher in states with more guns, simply because there are more gun suicides. Other kinds of suicide rates are no higher. And because most homicides in the home are by family members or acquaintances — not by an intruder — the presence of a gun in the home increases the risk of a gun murder in that home.

So what can be done? I asked Professor Hemenway how he would oversee a public health approach to reducing gun deaths and injuries. He suggested:

• Limit gun purchases to one per month per person, to reduce gun trafficking. And just as the government has cracked down on retailers who sell cigarettes to minors, get tough on gun dealers who sell to traffickers.

• Push for more gun safes, and make serial numbers harder to erase.

• Improve background checks and follow Canada in requiring a 28-day waiting period to buy a handgun. And ban oversize magazines, such as the 33-bullet magazine allegedly used in Tucson. If the shooter had had to reload after firing 10 bullets, he might have been tackled earlier. And invest in new technologies such as “smart guns,” which can be fired only when near a separate wristband or after a fingerprint scan.

We can also learn from Australia, which in 1996 banned assault weapons and began buying back 650,000 of them. The impact is controversial and has sometimes been distorted. But the Journal of Public Health Policy notes that after the ban, the firearm suicide rate dropped by half in Australia over the next seven years, and the firearm homicide rate was almost halved.

Congress on Wednesday echoed with speeches honoring those shot in Tucson. That’s great — but hollow. The best memorial would be to regulate firearms every bit as seriously as we regulate automobiles or toys.

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