It's Time to Reflect

The debate over the impact of loaded words has raged in the wake of the shooting in Tucson. It is but another unfortunate battle in America’s never-ending ideological war.

Earlier, I wrote about what I see as the "irresponsible behavior" associated with the use of gun metaphors in politics.

I want to be clear that I do not blame anyone for the Tucson assassinations except the killer himself.  But, I do believe that politicians, as well as the press, ought to be mindful of the language used in the public realm. We should be circumspect about the words or images we allow to be used in our presence without condemning them.

The fringes of our country's opposing political ideologies have waged this war for decades. Each side has accused the other of trafficking in death and hatred - all in the perverse hope that they will win hearts and minds.  The truth is every side has trafficked in accusations of death and hatred in order to score a point from their supporters.

Our newly ideological media enterprises have also entered the war with their own cocked weapons. 

Their celebrity personalities scream to millions about the “death purveyors” from the other side. They demonize, and dehumanize, their perceived opponents. They call for the leaders of our nation to fail. They dream up staged poisonings on live television. They name the worst people in the world. They use division as a means to score a point with their blinded audience.

The Truth Pursuit has also lobbed our own grenades of political disillusionment over the “murder fantasies” and hatred that continue to incite the public to ever-growing levels of division.  

But, what does engaging in this unyielding war accomplish? It doesn’t stop the war. It merely inflames it.

Indeed, the war ages on.

In the aftermath of a national tragedy, there is no unity. The calls for calm and reflection have been scant. The ideologues have launched even more attacks, looking for the win. But there is no winner in a winless war.

And, we are sick of this war and all wars, in fact.

We have assessed our editorial approach to ensure that we have disengaged from the battle of pointless words and shameless blame.

Our mission requires that we deliver the important stories of the day that will strengthen our society. And we will not find those stories unless we focus on the matters that matter to your everyday life.

We will continue to do all we can to create a dialogue that moves us in a positive, constructive direction.  We will continue to cover the stories that matter to you. And we will feature ideas that we hope will contribute to a betterment of ourselves, our nation, and our planet.

Here, we pledge not to fan the flames of war, but the winds of change.