Today's political thought

I am disturbed about the execution of Dr. Tiller yesterday. I'll admit that I don't follow the abortion debate any more, simply because no one's mind is going to be changed by anything anyone says. It's like debating emotions...people have deep feelings about it that can't be swayed by reasoned argument.

Myself, I think it should be legal. I find it to be personally wrong and would not use the option, but I have known far too many people for whom the option was needed. We have millions of unwanted children already, and if you are really and for true against abortion, you need to adopt a kid. No, not a cute little baby, but a special needs kid who isn't cute any more but desperately needs a home.

However, the terrorist execution of a doctor who performs legal abortions yesterday disturbs me more than I can put into words. Through the 80's and 90's, there were countless acts of domestic right wing terrorism that we in America seem to be unable to call terrorism. Doctors were killed by Christanist "pro-life" jihadists, government buildings blown up by right wingers upset they lost an election, public bombings by (you guessed it) Christianist jihadists, all here in the US. They faded after 9/11...partly because the right wing felt like they controlled everything and partly because the tactics were FINALLY thought of as barbaric and beyond the pale.

But now they are back, and egged on by the right wing media. Dr. Tiller was a particular target of the #1 show in cable "news", and those host said:

- He "destroys fetuses for just about any reason right up until the birth date for $5,000."

- He's guilty of "Nazi stuff,"

- a moral equivalent to NAMBLA and al-Qaida

- "This is the kind of stuff that happened in Mao's China, Hitler's Germany, Stalin's Soviet Union"

- "operating a death mill"

- "has blood on his hands"

- "executing babies about to be born

And we're shocked a terrorist decided that a man described like this needed to be the target of his wrath? Well, gee, he lost the election and thinks the current President is a Muslim, so somebody has to pay, so he turns on Fox News to find out who it should be...

This is just the first of a coming wave of right-wing terrorists. The media has been whipping them into a frenzy, claiming the US government is now socialist (which they imply means Nazi).

Still...someone answer me this: Why is it that ever since the end of the Vietnam War when the left wing loses, they fall back, organize and try again; while when the right wing loses, they indulge in domestic terrorism?

Dark days indeed.