Domestic Terror

Two men have been arrested and federally charged in separate incidents for threatening Senator Patty Murray and a Representative Nancy Pelosi.

In Washington, 63 year old Charles Alan Wilson left threatening voicemails to Murray's office that included charming statements such as:

"I hope somebody puts a (expletive) bullet between your (expletive) eyes," and "I do believe that every one of you (expletive) socialist democratic progressive (expletive) need to be taken out." and "I do pack, and I will not blink when I'm confronted. ... It's not a threat, it's a guarantee."

Wilson, who lives in Selah, Washington (if I lived in Selah I'd probably be that angry too. It consists of apple trees, wheat fields, and...nothing), was the first to be charged in this recent string of threats against Democrats.

Selah, Washington. I don't know if I would be pushed to the brink of
making death threats to elected officials, but I would possibly harbor some resentment.

In California, Gregory Lee Giusti will soon be charged for making numerous threats against Nancy Pelosi. He made calls to her house and her office, apparently informing Pelosi that if she ever wanted to see her house again, she shouldn't vote yes for health care. He has a history of making criminal threats.

"Hello, Newman..." "Hello, Jerry..." Seinfeld anyone?

I would hope that this wave of violence would calm down sooner or later, as tensions should be fading a bit. Yet the poll numbers that Nona posted yesterday show that this bill still is not very popular at all. It has only been two weeks or so but I can't see this anger going away. There hasn't been a huge backlash against the violence in the media, and about half our country believes that Democrats brought the threats and violence onto themselves. That's like saying a girl was asking for rape. It just doesn't make sense.

If we could only treat domestic terrorism as fearfully as we do foreign terrorism. Just think for a moment if these two men were Muslim. I could only imagine the outcry. Yet because their names are Giusti and Wilson, it seems to not be a huge deal (it is to the FBI, of course, but I'm sure many Tea Party protesters aren't particularly upset).