Prophetic words

Last March, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords expressed dismay at the political tactics used by Sarah Palin and likeminded conservatives. She told MSNBC's Chuck Todd that "we effect change at the ballot box" and not through "outbursts of violence."

Continuing, Giffords said:

"We're on Sarah Palin's targeted list, but the thing is that the way she has it depicted has the crosshairs of a gun sight over our district. When people do that, they've got to realize there's consequences to that action. You know, I can't say, I'm not Sarah Palin. But what I can say is that in the years that some of my colleagues have served - 20, 30 years - they've never seen it like this. We have to work out our problems by negotiating, working together."

Palin is not responsible for the tragedy in Tucson and I’m certain she does not condone it. But she is a prominent enabler of the kind of angry rhetoric that is poisoning our political discourse. This is a final wake-up call for the half-term governor from Alaska. Whether or not she heeds it will speak volumes about her character or lack thereof.