REALITYCHEX.COM - Constant Comments - Tucson Shootings -- January 10

The Ledes

Friday, February 28, 2025

New York Times: “Boris Spassky, the world chess champion whose career was overshadowed by his loss to Bobby Fischer in the 'Match of the Century' in 1972, died on Thursday in Moscow. He was 88.”

New York Times: “The actor Gene Hackman was found dead in a mud room in his New Mexico home and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, was found dead on the floor of a bathroom on Wednesday, according to a search warrant affidavit. An open prescription bottle and scattered pills were discovered near her body on a counter in the bathroom. A dead German shepherd was found between 10 and 15 feet away from Ms. Arakawa in a closet of the bathroom, the affidavit said. There were no obvious signs of a gas leak in the home, it said, and the Fire Department did not find signs of a carbon monoxide leak. The maintenance workers who found them said they had not been in contact with the couple for two weeks. The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on Thursday afternoon that 'there were no apparent signs of foul play.'... The causes of their deaths had not been determined.”

The Wires

The Ledes

Thursday, February 27, 2025

CNBC: “Initial filings for unemployment benefits hit their highest level of the year last week in another potential signs of weakness in the labor market. Jobless claims for the week ended Feb. 22 totaled a seasonally adjusted 242,000, up 22,000 from the previous week’s revised level and higher than the Dow Jones estimate for 225,000, according to a Labor Department report Thursday. The level of claims matched the highest since early October 2024 and comes amid questions over broader economic growth and worrying signs in recent consumer sentiment surveys.”

CNBC: “High mortgage rates and elevated home prices combined to crush home sales in January. Pending sales, which are based on signed contracts for existing homes, dropped 4.6% from December to the lowest level since the National Association of Realtors began tracking this metric in 2001. Sales were down 5.2% from January 2024. These sales are an indicator of future closings.”

New York Times: “Gene Hackman, who never fit the mold of a Hollywood movie star, but who became one all the same, playing seemingly ordinary characters with deceptive subtlety, intensity and often charm in some of the most noted films of the 1970s and ’80s, has died, the authorities in New Mexico said on Thursday. He was 95. Mr. Hackman and his wife were found dead on Wednesday afternoon at a home in Santa Fe., N.M., where they had been living, according to a statement from the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Department. Sheriff’s deputies found the bodies of Mr. Hackman; his wife, Betsy Arakawa, 64; and a dog, according to the statement, which said that foul play was not suspected.” ~~~

~~~ Update. New York Times: “An investigation was underway on Thursday after the prolific actor Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, were found dead along with their dog at a house in New Mexico, the local authorities said. The bodies of Mr. Hackman, 95, and Ms. Arakawa, 64, were found by sheriff’s deputies in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Santa Fe on Wednesday afternoon, the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. The couple had lived in the Santa Fe area for years. Sheriff Adan Mendoza of Santa Fe County said in a phone interview that an associate of Mr. Hackman and his family had placed an emergency call on Wednesday afternoon after discovering the bodies of the actor and his wife.”

New York Times: “Michelle Trachtenberg, a touchstone of millennial youth culture who grew up onscreen, rising to fame as a troubled teenager on the supernatural 1990s series 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and as a conniving young socialite on 'Gossip Girl,' was found dead on Wednesday in Manhattan. She was 39. The New York Police Department said in a statement that officers, responding to a 911 call just after 8 a.m. on Wednesday, found Ms. Trachtenberg unconscious and unresponsive in a Manhattan apartment. She was pronounced dead by emergency medical workers, who had also responded.”

Help!

To keep the Conversation going, please help me by linking news articles, opinion pieces and other political content in today's Comments section.

Link Code: <a href="URL">text</a>

OR here's a link generator. The one I had posted died, then Akhilleus found one, but it too bit the dust. He found yet another, which I've linked here, and as of September 23, 2024, it's working.

OR you can always just block, copy and paste to your comment the URL (Web address) of the page you want to link.

Note for Readers. It is not possible for commenters to "throw" their highlighted links to another window. But you can do that yourself. Right-click on the link and a drop-down box will give you choices as to where you want to open the link: in a new tab, new window or new private window.

Public Service Announcement

Zoë Schlanger in the Atlantic: "Throw out your black plastic spatula. In a world of plastic consumer goods, avoiding the material entirely requires the fervor of a religious conversion. But getting rid of black plastic kitchen utensils is a low-stakes move, and worth it. Cooking with any plastic is a dubious enterprise, because heat encourages potentially harmful plastic compounds to migrate out of the polymers and potentially into the food. But, as Andrew Turner, a biochemist at the University of Plymouth recently told me, black plastic is particularly crucial to avoid." This is a gift link from laura h.

Mashable: "Following the 2024 presidential election results and [Elon] Musk's support for ... Donald Trump, users have been deactivating en masse. And this time, it appears most everyone has settled on one particular X alternative: Bluesky.... Bluesky has gained more than 100,000 new sign ups per day since the U.S. election on Nov. 5. It now has over 15 million users. It's enjoyed a prolonged stay on the very top of Apple's App Store charts as well. Ready to join? Here's how to get started on Bluesky[.]"

Washington Post: "Americans can again order free rapid coronavirus tests by mail, the Biden administration announced Thursday. People can request four free at-home tests per household through covidtests.gov. They will begin shipping Monday. The move comes ahead of an expected winter wave of coronavirus cases. The September revival of the free testing program is in line with the Biden administration’s strategy to respond to the coronavirus as part of a broader public health campaign to protect Americans from respiratory viruses, including influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), that surge every fall and winter. But free tests were not mailed during the summer wave, which wastewater surveillance data shows is now receding."

Out with the Black. In with the White. New York Times: “Lester Holt, the veteran NBC newscaster and anchor of the 'NBC Nightly News' over the last decade, announced on Monday that he will step down from the flagship evening newscast in the coming months. Mr. Holt told colleagues that he would remain at NBC, expanding his duties at 'Dateline,' where he serves as the show’s anchor.... He said that he would continue anchoring the evening news until 'the start of summer.' The network did not immediately name a successor.” ~~~

~~~ New York Times: “MSNBC said on Monday that Jen Psaki, the former White House press secretary who has become one of the most prominent hosts at the network, would anchor a nightly weekday show in prime time. Ms. Psaki, 46, will host a show at 9 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, replacing Alex Wagner, a longtime political journalist who has anchored that hour since 2022, according to a memo to staff from Rebecca Kutler, MSNBC’s president. Ms. Wagner will remain at MSNBC as an on-air correspondent. Rachel Maddow, MSNBC’s biggest star, has been anchoring the 9 p.m. hour on weeknights for the early days of ... [Donald] Trump’s administration but will return to hosting one night a week at the end of April.”

New York Times: “Joy Reid’s evening news show on MSNBC is being canceled, part of a far-reaching programming overhaul orchestrated by Rebecca Kutler, the network’s new president, two people familiar with the changes said. The final episode of Ms. Reid’s 7 p.m. show, 'The ReidOut,' is planned for sometime this week, according to the people, who were not authorized to speak publicly. The show, which features in-depth interviews with politicians and other newsmakers, has been a fixture of MSNBC’s lineup for the past five years. MSNBC is planning to replace Ms. Reid’s program with a show led by a trio of anchors: Symone Sanders Townsend, a political commentator and former Democratic strategist; Michael Steele, a former chairman of the Republican National Committee; and Alicia Menendez, the TV journalist, the people said. They currently co-host 'The Weekend,' which airs Saturday and Sunday mornings.” MB: In case you've never seen “The Weekend,” let me assure you it's pretty awful. ~~~

~~~ AP Update: "Joy Reid is leaving MSNBC, the network’s new president announced in a memo to staff on Monday, marking an end to the political analyst and anchor’s prime time news show."

Y! Entertainment: "Meanwhile, [Alex] Wagner will also be removed from her 9 pm weeknight slot. Wagner has already been working as a correspondent after Rachel Maddow took over hosting duties during ... Trump’s first 100 days in office. It’s now expected that Wagner will not return as host, but is expected to stay on as a contributor. Jen Psaki, President Biden’s former White House press secretary, is a likely replacement for Wagner, though a decision has not been finalized." MB: In fairness to Psaki, she is really too boring to watch. On the other hand, she is White. ~~~

~~~ RAS: "So MSNBC is getting rid of both of their minority evening hosts. Both women of color who are not afraid to call out the truth. Outspoken minorities don't have a long shelf life in the world of our corporate news media."

New York Times: “Chuck Todd, the former 'Meet the Press' moderator and a longtime fixture of NBC’s political coverage, told colleagues on Friday that he was leaving the network. A nearly two-decade veteran of NBC, Mr. Todd said that Friday would be his last day at NBC.... Mr. Todd, 52, is the latest TV news star to step aside at a moment when salaries are being scrutinized — and slashed — by major media companies. Hoda Kotb exited NBC’s 'Today' show this month, and Neil Cavuto of Fox News and CNN’s Chris Wallace departed their cable news homes late last year.”

CNBC: “ CNN plans to lay off hundreds of employees Thursday [Jan. 23] as it refocuses the business around a global digital audience.... The layoffs come as CNN is rearranging its linear TV lineup and building out digital subscription products. The cuts will help CNN lower production costs and consolidate teams, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss nonpublic changes. Certain shows that are produced in New York or Washington may move to Atlanta, where production can be done more cheaply, said the people. For the most part, the job cuts won’t affect CNN’s most recognizable names, who are under contract, said the people. CNN has about 3,500 employees worldwide.... NBC News is also planning cuts later this week, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss nonpublic changes. While the exact number couldn’t be determined, the job losses will be well under 50....”

Page Links

Monday

Jan102011

Tucson Shootings -- January 10

If they bring a knife to the fight, we bring a gun. Because from what I understand, folks in Philly like a good brawl. -- Barack Obama, at a Philadelphia fundraiser, June 13, 2008

During a press availability with President Sarkozy, President Obama makes comments about the Tucson shootings:

President & Mrs. Obama observed a moment of silence to honor the Tucson shooting victims at 11:00 am ET this morning. White House press release. AP post-event story here:

Mark Kelly, the husband of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, released a statement late Sunday night which the Arizona Daily Star has published in full here.

Dr. Michael LeMole speaks at a press update this morning on Rep. Giffords' condition:

... Related AP story.

William Glaberson of the New York Times profiles Judy Clarke, "the capital-defense lawyer who will represent Jared L. Loughner.... [She is a well-known public defender who gets life sentences in cases that often begin with emotional calls for the death penalty. Ms. Clarke has helped a number of infamous defendants avoid death sentences, including Theodore J. Kaczynski, the Unabomber; Eric Robert Rudolph, the Atlanta Olympics bomber; and Susan Smith, the South Carolina woman who drowned her toddlers. Over a legal career of more than 30 years, Ms. Clarke has become perhaps the best-known federal public defender in the country, with a reputation for taking on cases that seem impossible."

George Stephanopoulos speaks to Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik. Suspect Jared Loughner has said, "not a word" to authorities:

... "From Day One, a Disturbing Presence in Class." New York Times reporters recount Jared Loughner's history of bizarre behavior, concentrating on incidents that resulted in his being suspended from Pima College.

Adam Nagourney of the New York Times pieces together how the assassination attempt and mass murder unfolded from accounts by eyewitnesses & authorities.

Jennifer Medina of the New York Times: "Sheriff [Clarence] Dupnik ... entered law enforcement five decades ago.... Since being elected sheriff in 1980, he has won re-election eight times [even though] ... he is a Democrat in a largely conservative part of the country. Sheriff Dupnik has been widely praised by local leaders for avoiding political grandstanding, but he certainly does not shy from the spotlight."

Laurie Merrill of the Arizona Republic: "Three men and a woman were instrumental in disarming and tackling the man suspected of killing six and injuring 14 in Tucson during a political event for Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, according to Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik. Dupnik identified the heroes as Patricia Maisch, Roger Salzgeber, Bill Badger and Joseph Zamudio." ...

... Sam Quinones & Jason Song of the Los Angeles Times relate the heroic act of 61-year-old Patricia Maisch who "saw Loughner reach for another ammunition magazine with his left hand and she took it from him, then helped subdue him by kneeling on his ankles." ...

... KTAR & AP: Giffords intern Daniel Hernandez, a college sophomore who aided the Congresswoman after she was shot, may have saved her life. With video.

Rob Stein & Shankar Vedantam of the Washington Post on Rep. Giffords' medical status: "Giffords ... has entered a crucial 48-hour period when swelling from the trauma of the bullet blast could cause as much damage to her brain as the initial wound, possibly triggering a major deterioration of her condition. The Arizona Democrat also faces many additional risks, including possible infections, more bleeding, and a long period of rehabilitation to limit permanent disabilities."

The New York Times has an interactive page featuring brief bios of each of those killed in Tucson Saturday.

Ashby Jones of the Wall Street Journal: Arizona judges reflect on their colleague Chief Judge John Roll.

Maeve Reston of the Los Angeles Times profiles Phyllis Schneck, a 79-year-old woman killed by the Tucson shooter. Her husband of 50 years, George Morris, suffered two gunshot wounds & is still hospitalized.

Richard Ruelas of the Arizona Republic profiles Dorothy Morris, who was killed in Tucson.

Dan Balz of the Washington Post: "A great debate has begun to unfold about the conduct of politics in a climate of hatred and fear. No one can know at this point what the long-term effects of the tragic shootings will be, if any. At a minimum, they offer a reminder that elected officials deserve better than the routine demonization that has become so commonplace in politics today." ...

... Jeff Zeleny & Jim Rutenberg of the New York Times: "Leaders in both parties sought Sunday to project a nonpartisan civility....President Obama's ... advisers were weighing the possibility of a national address. John A. Boehner replac[ed] a contentious health care debate on Wednesday with a bipartisan security briefing for lawmakers. Yet beneath that public sense of comity was a subtle round of jockeying — on cable news, blogs, Twitter and even Ms. Palin’s Facebook page — as both sides sought to gain the high ground...."

George Packer of the New Yorker: "... for the past two years, many conservative leaders, activists, and media figures have made a habit of trying to delegitimize their political opponents. Not just arguing against their opponents, but doing everything possible to turn them into enemies of the country.... The massacre in Tucson is, in a sense, irrelevant to the important point. Whatever drove Jared Lee Loughner, America's political frequencies are full of violent static." ...

... Paul Krugman: "Let’s not make a false pretense of balance: [the toxic rhetoric] is coming, overwhelmingly, from the right..., and there’s a market for anyone willing to stoke that anger.... The purveyors of hate have been treated with respect, even deference, by the G.O.P. establishment." ...

... Tim Egan of the New York Times: "Even if the gunman’s motives are never truly known, the splattering of so much innocent blood on a Saturday morning gives a nation as fractious as ours a chance to think about what happens when words are used as weapons, and weapons are used in place of words."

Andy Borowitz: "Calls for a reduction in violent political rhetoric have plunged the Fox News Channel into chaos, with a Fox spokesperson warning today that such a move 'would leave us with 24 hours to fill.'”

Jonathan Martin of Politico: "Whether [Sarah Palin] defends, explains or even responds at all to the intense criticism of her brand of confrontational politics could well determine her trajectory on the national scene — and it’s likely to reveal the scope of her ambitions as well."

Carl Hulse & Ashley Parker of the New York Times: "Members of Congress are used to threats and abuse from constituents, but now they are worried.... On Wednesday, the Capitol security agencies are to join the F.B.I. in conducting a joint security briefing for Republicans and Democrats, who acknowledge new worries about their safety — and that of their families and staff members." ...

... Ed O'Keefe of the Washington Post: "In the wake of the shooting that critically wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) and killed one of her aides, a federal judge and four others, U.S. Capitol Police spent the weekend fielding calls from lawmakers with concerns over potential threats and questions about what more should be done to protect staffers and family members at home."

** David Rothkopf of Foreign Policy: "... no society that holds itself up as an example to the world should, as the United States does, brazenly shrug off what are clearly deep national character flaws when it comes to our love of guns or our celebration of hate politics. Tragedies like that which unfolded in Arizona this weekend not only wound the victims, but also America's ability to lead and to advance our interests and values worldwide.... We are not talking about the aberrant behavior of a lone gunman here. Instead we should see that what we are discussing are grossly uncivilized aspects of American society, aspects of ourselves that we ought to change not because we fall below international norms, but because we fall so short of doing what is right, moral, or sensible." Read the whole post.

It Was All Perfectly Legal. Tom Steller of the Arizona Daily Star: "When Jared Loughner went to the Sportsman's Warehouse near his home Nov. 30, there was nothing to stop him from buying the gun authorities say he used in Saturday's shooting rampage. He didn't fit any of the categories of 'prohibited possessors' defined in federal or state law. He passed an instant federal background check and was on his way with a Glock semiautomatic pistol that sells for around $550.... Federal law establishes two categories of people who can be prohibited from buying a gun because of their mental incompetence, said Tucsonan Charles Heller, co-founder and secretary of the Arizona Citizens Defense League, a pro-gun-rights group. They are:

• Those who have been incarcerated in a mental health facility against their will.

• Those who have been accused of a crime and found mentally incompetent to stand trial.

Otherwise, in Arizona, there is little to stop even an adult who seems mentally unstable from buying a gun. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said Loughner's purchase was corroborated by store receipts and video, among other evidence, according to a search warrant return released Sunday.... The gun used in Saturday's shooting is the same type of gun that Giffords said in a 2008 election campaign that she owned." ...

... Nathan Thornburgh of Time: "The most pressing questions now: Who else knew of Loughner's mental illness? What obligations did his college have, and which ones did they fulfill, to report Loughner to other agencies? ... Why is Arizona (along with other states) so far behind in reporting disqualifying mental illness to the federal background-check system? If there is anything that both sides should be able to agree on, it's that unstable individuals should not have access to any kind of weapon, much less the so-called fourth-generation semiautomatic Glock 19 that Loughner bought. This time, the price for bureaucratic torpor was too high."

... Gail Collins: "... we should be able to find a way to accommodate the strong desire in many parts of the country for easy access to firearms with sane regulation of the kinds of weapons that make it easiest for crazy people to create mass slaughter. Most politicians won’t talk about it because they’re afraid of the N.R.A., whose agenda is driven by the people who sell guns and want the right to sell as many as possible."

News Stories

Arizona Republic: "The Federal Public Defender's Office in Phoenix has recommended that San Diego attorney Judy Clarke take [Jared] Loughner's case." Clarke represented the 'Unabomber,' the Atlanta Olympics bomber and Susan Smith, the South Carolina woman who drowned her two children by driving her car into a lake. "She will appear with [Loughner] at his initial court appearance and ask to be appointed as Loughner's attorney." ...

... Arizona Daily Star Update: "The judge ordered Loughner held without bail. Throngs of reporters and television news crews lined up outside the federal courthouse [in Phoenix], where the hearing was moved from Tucson. The entire federal bench there recused itself because Roll was the chief judge." Washington Post story here. ...

... Wall Street Journal: "Arizona shooting suspect Jared Lee Loughner was turned away from a Walmart store when he tried to buy ammunition, but was sold the bullets at another Walmart nearby, hours before the rampage, according to people familiar with the matter. Federal investigators probing the shooting are focusing on the sequence of Mr. Loughner's actions as they try to establish that he was acting with some planning despite his apparent mental-health issues...." ...

... New York Times: "Jared L. Loughner wanted change back from a $20 bill that he used to pay for a taxi ride to the Safeway store..., according to the manager of the taxi company. His demeanor was so unremarkable that the driver thought nothing of walking into the store with Mr. Loughner to get change, and did not know that a shooting rampage occurred at the scene until many hours later." The driver, John Marino, did not know the police wanted to talk with him until the next day "when security camera images of him ... became part of the police investigation." ...

... Washington Post: "... Jared Lee Loughner ... registered to vote on Sept. 29, 2006, identifying himself as an independent. Records show he voted in the 2006 and 2008 elections but is current listed as "inactive" on the state's voter roles -- meaning that he did not vote in November." ...

... Arizona Republic: "FBI agents working on the Gabrielle Giffords shooting encountered trouble gaining entry to the suspect's family home Monday morning. Family members of Jared Loughner apparently had put on 4-by-4 double-thick plywood that blocked access to the front porch of their north Tucson home."

Comments Off

Permalink

Email Article