Calling For Violence Begets Violence and It Can Backfire

Only love can conquer hate

A man was killed, two others fighting for survival, and an ex-President wounded but OK. Why? This is not the way we win elections in America.

Repeated calls for violence have pervaded the extreme right of the Republican Party with violent rhetoric from their leader, but once unleashed, violence cannot be controlled or limited. It is a lesson all of us should have learned. Yesterday Donald Trump learned that unfortunate lesson the hard way. The question is whether his party has.

We immediately heard insinuations of a dire conspiracy before any facts were known, some spread by Trump’s supporters. The Kremlin in Russia gleefully claimed that with this action Trump had won the election, though nothing supports that idea.

In fact, we do not know how this will play out. At this point, the day after, little is known about the shooter, who is also dead, other than his age and where he lived. We don’t know his motivation and the rampant speculation about it is entirely inappropriate. But too many people will jump to conclusions and nothing good will come of that.

The FBI will find out the facts. Political assassination in this country, regardless of the target or their politics, is taken very seriously, or should be. Right now a chaotic election has become even more chaotic, if that is possible. And tomorrow the Republican Party has their national convention to nominate Trump…