Dear Friends,
I haven’t written since September of 2010. I had nothing I wanted to say. We weren’t traveling, we were busy with the aviation museum in Fort Worth, and the holidays came galloping at me with the usual stress and anxiety.
Now, in light of the tragedy our nation experienced yesterday in Tucson, Arizona, I have something I want to say to everyone. Six human beings are dead—a federal judge and a nine-year-old child among them. Many more are in critical condition in hospitals.
When you pass hateful, vitriolic jokes or opinions to your friends in the form of emails and Facebook or Twitter comments, you are contributing to events like the one yesterday. You may react with: “it’s just a joke—lighten up, lady; but you don’t know everyone who reads that material.
A troubled young man tried to assassinate Gabrielle Giffords, a vibrant, gifted young United States Congresswoman. She successfully walked a line that few politicians can or will: She supported policies on both sides of the political fence. She is a politician who worked hard to stay in touch with her constituency and was admired and respected by Republicans and Democrats alike. This was a truly senseless crime.
There is so much hate, misinformation, and stupidity flying around on the Internet that it is no wonder that something like this hasn’t happened already. Please don’t contribute to it. Thanks to Photoshop, you can't even be sure a photo is real. Please think about what you’re spreading when you prepare to pass along something negative and hateful.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. We can all hit the “delete” key—but not everyone does. Sometimes, some troubled person just needs a little nudge to go over the edge and do something like what happened yesterday in Arizona.
There’s plenty good stuff out there to share. While we’re at it, we might share a prayer for the injured and for the grieving friends and families of those unfortunate Americans in Tucson.
All the best to all in 2011,
Donna
