Jan 13, 2011 Blame

Why are rush limbaugh and sarah palin being targeted for blame for the arizona tragedy?
Of course they can't be blamed for this tragedy, even the angry vicious rhetoric they spew can't be blamed for this tragedy.
We can't blame them for the actions of one mentally ill individual.
We may blame them for being stupid, or callous, or insensitive, or selfish, or inconsiderate, or insincere, or foolish, or dishonest; but they or their words or actions should not be blamed for these tragic events.

Our entire political and cultural system has failed us.
It failed 20 people in Tuscon, it failed the shooter, it failed his family; but it also failed us all. Our system is to be blamed. Our political system that has become a giant media circus driven only by money and power, a political system that is totally focused on defeating its adversaries, and enriching its masters, and could care less about the lives of the American people, much less the lives of 21 people in Tucson Arizona.
Our financial system that has become so focused on maximizing corporate profit and executive salaries, that it has lurched our ecomonic system to the brink of disaster, and it has sacrificed our state and local services to protect the profits of the financial giants. Our news media which has become nothing but an entertainment network, and no longer reports news or facts but just spins everything to create "stories" where none exist but to fan the flames of public opinion, and excite and agitate their audience to increase ratings and profits; or news media doesn't care about truth, or honesty, or facts, they only care about profit.
Many if not all of our religious systems have failed us, they have become so driven with legalistic arguments about who's right and who's wrong, who's good and who's evil, whats allowed and whats not; and like our political system they have become focused on attacking anyone who opposes them or even thinks differently; and in the process they have moved away from the teachings of their faiths.
Our systems have failed us so badly, that we have become obsessed with freedom from government, small government, less government, lower taxes; to the point that many basic human services are becoming non-existent or non-functional; failed us so badly that our health care system is obsessed and driven by corporate profits rather than making people healthier, or curing the sick.
It wasn't Sarah Palin or Rush Limbaugh who drove Laughner to do what he did, but it is all of our systems and all of those who drive and control and influence our systems, and all of us who are part of our systems who are to be blamed for the tragedy last Saturday.
But most critically is was a failure of our health care system, failures to detect Laughner's problems, failures to provide his schools or family resources to detect and address his problems, but most of all a failure by each and everyone of us to remove the stigma that is still attached to mental illness.