Weekly Opinion Editorial
RESTORE
CIVIL DEBATE!
by Steve
Fair
Last Wednesday, James Hodgkinson opened
fire at a baseball field in surburan DC where Congressional Republicans were
practicing for a charity game. He
wounded House Majority Whip Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA), and three others. Hodgkinson was shot and killed by Capitol
police who were providing security for Scalise.
A list of Republican lawmakers was found on Hodgkinson. Whether it was a ‘hit list’ or not, is
unclear. Hodgkinson was an avid
supporter of Senator Bernie Sanders and a vocal critic on social media of
President Trump and Republicans.
Initially, both Democrats and Republicans
condemned Hodgkinson’s actions. Speaking
on the Senate floor, Sanders said, "I
am sickened by this despicable act. Let me be as clear as I can be: Violence of
any kind is unacceptable in our society and I condemn this action in the
strongest possible terms. President Trump called for unity and said, "We may have our differences, but we
do well in times like these to remember that everyone who serves in our
nation's capital is here because above all they love our country. We can all
agree that we are blessed to be Americans and that our children deserve to grow
up in a nation of safety and peace. We are strongest when we are unified and
when we work together for the common good."
But Trump’s call for unity wasn’t
heeded. Within hours, liberals flooded Twitter
with messages blaming Republican’s support of the second amendment as being the
reason for the attack. Sean Hannity blamed
the ‘dehumanizing’ of Republicans by Democrats for the shooting.
The fact is Hodgkinson was motivated by a
heart of hate. While most people are
content to debate issues, a small minority want to bring about change in a more
substantive manner. Years ago in a small
Texas town, a
bar was being built in a neighborhood.
Two tea totaling widow women who lived next door were very concerned and
vowed to pray and ask God to halt the bar’s construction. One was very diligent in her prayers, the
other not as faithful. Two weeks before
the beer joint’s scheduled opening, it caught fire and burned to the
ground. “I guess my prayers were answered,” the faithful widow said. “It’s
wasn’t your prayers,” said the other.
“How can you be so sure?” asked
the first. “Because I put feet and gasoline to my prayers,” said the
other.
Some people simply go too far in a
civilized society. They move from debate
to destruction, from meditation to mayhem seamlessly, believing the progression
is the next logical step in political activism.
That should concern every American.
Civil debate is on life support in our country. Both the political left and right can take
equal credit for creating this toxic political environment. We should all remember that no matter their political
leanings, every person is made in the image of God.
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