Sunday, August 3, 2008

Liberalism, Conservatism, and Heroism

Last night, while monitoring the Neal Boortz radio show in hopes of hearing some rant-worthy blogging fodder, he talked about the recent shootings at the Unitarian Universalist church in Knoxville.

At first his comments were confined to his objections to the attention and criticism that right-wing talk radio hosts have been subject to since the shooting. This was only to be expected, as Boortz is a right-wing talk radio host. These comments did not set me off, as there are valid points to be made on both sides of this issue.

But then he went on to talk about the fact that after the initial shock, church members rushed the gunman and stopped him from killing any more people. (Two people died).

He was of the opinion that, for at least the length of time it took to subdue the gunman, there were no liberals in that church. That is, those men suddenly became temporary conservatives in order to protect the others.

Excuse me?

Does Boortz equate liberalism with cowardice? Does he believe that only conservatives can have courage or be heroes?

One of the men who rushed the gunman, Greg McKendry, gave his life to protect others. I'm quite certain he wasn't thinking about politics as he acted to protect others from further harm.

Boortz' comments insult the heroism of McKendry and that of those who ultimately stopped the deranged gunman.

Shame on Neal Boortz for trying to turn a tragedy into a political opportunity.

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