Obama names court after Judge John Roll who died in Arizona massacre (click title to entry - thank you)
Last updated at 12:01 PM on 17th February 2011
President Barack Obama was signing a bill in the Oval Office today naming a new federal courthouse after Arizona federal Judge John M Roll who was gunned down last month
The 63-year-old judge was among six people who died in a shooting spree last month at an event in Tucson hosted by his friend U.S. Republican Gabrielle Giffords, who was critically wounded in the attack. She is undergoing rehabilitation in Houston, Texas....
It is just as well she doesn't remember. She is making remarkable progress.
Aide: Gabrielle Giffords doesn't know details of shootings (click here)
The Associated Press
Wednesday, February 16, 2011; 11:01 AM
Wednesday, February 16, 2011; 11:01 AM
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords has not yet been given details of the Jan. 8 shootings in Tucson, Ariz., that wounded her and 12 others and killed six people, including a staff member, according to her chief of staff.
Pia Carusone said Wednesday on CBS's "The Early Show" that the Arizona congresswoman, who can carry on simple conversations, knows there was a traumatic event but has not been told about the severity of the wounds to others. That will happen in time when she's "at a higher level of communication," Carusone said....
Does Governor Brewer have First Response to ALL emergencies under control or are the people of Arizona allowed to 'decide' which 'political' emergencies they respond to including those of ethnic differences? Like, what the heck is going on in Arizona?
Arizona Daily Star
Posted: Thursday, February 17, 2011 12:45 pm
A veteran city firefighter's refusal to respond to the Jan. 8 shooting spree, citing "political bantering," may have slowed his Tucson Fire Department unit's response to the incident that left six dead and 13 wounded, city memos show.
The firefighter, Mark Ekstrum, retired from his 28-year career two days later, while his supervisors were still considering how to discipline him, internal memos obtained by the Arizona Daily Star in a public-records request show.
In a Jan. 9 report on Ekstrum's actions, fire Capt. Ben Williams wrote that when Ekstrum first told him he would not go out on the call, "he mentioned something about 'political bantering' and he did not want to be part of it." He said he was acting "for the good of the crew."
Williams said he told Ekstrum he could not refuse a call for that reason, and then talked to the firefighter privately in his office. He said Ekstrum "started to say something about how he had a much different political viewpoint than the rest of the crew and he was concerned." Despite being told that was not acceptable, Williams said Ekstrum informed him he was going home "sick," so they answered the call without him....
Her family is expected to throw out the first pitch when the season begins April 1.
Pima County, where Tucson is located, will also name a county park after Christina....
And the beat goes on. The political aspirations of US House Representative Gifford is intact !
WASHINGTON — Congressional friends of Representative Gabrielle Giffords, the Arizona congresswoman shot in January, are holding a fund-raiser next month for her 2012 election campaign.
Concealed weapon laws in the USA do not work. They simply DO NOT meld into the 'fabric of life' in the USA in a way that can be beneficial. Sometimes people find out this mess the hard way. I wish the people of the USA stopped opting to find out what is best for the country through 'trial and error.'
Truly.
It is getting increasingly difficult to keep police alive to do their jobs.
Enough already. Between the political monkey shines of the House and the lack of response in Arizona, the political theater is as out of control as the 'guns on the street.' Literally.
...South Carolina (click here) created a concealed weapons permit in 1995. Since then, the law has been amended several times, but on Thursday, some lawmakers said it's still a wildly inconsistent patchwork that needs to be scrapped.
A month after the shooting of Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, in which six people were killed, the issue of gun control has again taken center stage.
A month earlier, an armed man walked into a school board meeting in Florida and opened fire.
Some South Carolina lawmakers told Eyewitness News that the best way to respond to those crimes is to allow law-abiding citizens to better protect themselves. Republican Rep. Gary Simrill of Rock Hill pointed to several flaws in the current weapons law.
"If you were a concealed weapons permit holder and you were in your car and pulled onto school property to drop off your child off in the morning, you were in violation of the law," Simrill said.
Simrill said a bill to end permits for concealed weapons has more than 30 co-sponsors and has a good chance of passing the state House of Representatives this year....
Arizona Daily Star
Posted: Thursday, February 17, 2011 1:27 pm
A dozen victims of Tucson's shooting spree were honored today at a ceremony.
The 2011 A Hero In All of Us ceremony cited their bravery and selfless acts.
More than 500 people the luncheon at the Westin La Paloma Resort & Spa, to honor the heroes who attempted to save lives in the minutes after a gunman's attack outside a grocery store during a community event being hosted by U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who is in a Houston hospital recovering from a gunshot wound to the head....
Civility is a wonderful word. Civility is exactly what the GOP is lacking in huge measure. The GOP consents to the incivility of their media and openly thanks them for it at every turn. Amazing.
Feb 16, 2011 12:39 ET
All-Star Line-Up Comes Together for March 10 Concert to Benefit the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona's Fund for Civility, Respect, and Understanding (click here) The Fund Was Established by the Family of Ron Barber, District Director for Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords
Does Governor Brewer have First Response to ALL emergencies under control or are the people of Arizona allowed to 'decide' which 'political' emergencies they respond to including those of ethnic differences? Like, what the heck is going on in Arizona?
Firefighter refused call to Tucson shooting spree scene (click here)
Arizona Daily Star
Posted: Thursday, February 17, 2011 12:45 pm
A veteran city firefighter's refusal to respond to the Jan. 8 shooting spree, citing "political bantering," may have slowed his Tucson Fire Department unit's response to the incident that left six dead and 13 wounded, city memos show.
The firefighter, Mark Ekstrum, retired from his 28-year career two days later, while his supervisors were still considering how to discipline him, internal memos obtained by the Arizona Daily Star in a public-records request show.
In a Jan. 9 report on Ekstrum's actions, fire Capt. Ben Williams wrote that when Ekstrum first told him he would not go out on the call, "he mentioned something about 'political bantering' and he did not want to be part of it." He said he was acting "for the good of the crew."
Williams said he told Ekstrum he could not refuse a call for that reason, and then talked to the firefighter privately in his office. He said Ekstrum "started to say something about how he had a much different political viewpoint than the rest of the crew and he was concerned." Despite being told that was not acceptable, Williams said Ekstrum informed him he was going home "sick," so they answered the call without him....
Ball field named for young shooting victim (click here)
...Nine-year-old Christina-Taylor Green will have a baseball field named after her where she played second base for her Little League team.Her family is expected to throw out the first pitch when the season begins April 1.
Pima County, where Tucson is located, will also name a county park after Christina....
And the beat goes on. The political aspirations of US House Representative Gifford is intact !
Friends of Giffords plan fund-raiser for ’12 (click here)
February 17, 2011WASHINGTON — Congressional friends of Representative Gabrielle Giffords, the Arizona congresswoman shot in January, are holding a fund-raiser next month for her 2012 election campaign.
Three Democrats — Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Representative Adam Smith of Washington, and Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida — are chairs of the March 15 reception being held in Washington for the congresswoman.
“We are so proud of her as she continues to make incredible strides in her recovery,’’ the lawmakers wrote in a letter included with the invitation. “We look forward to seeing her again soon and to the day that she will rejoin us in the halls of Congress.’’
The lawmakers wrote that they were seeking support for the event so that Giffords could focus on the “important work of her recovery.’’...
Concealed weapon laws in the USA do not work. They simply DO NOT meld into the 'fabric of life' in the USA in a way that can be beneficial. Sometimes people find out this mess the hard way. I wish the people of the USA stopped opting to find out what is best for the country through 'trial and error.'
Truly.
It is getting increasingly difficult to keep police alive to do their jobs.
Enough already. Between the political monkey shines of the House and the lack of response in Arizona, the political theater is as out of control as the 'guns on the street.' Literally.
...South Carolina (click here) created a concealed weapons permit in 1995. Since then, the law has been amended several times, but on Thursday, some lawmakers said it's still a wildly inconsistent patchwork that needs to be scrapped.
A month after the shooting of Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, in which six people were killed, the issue of gun control has again taken center stage.
A month earlier, an armed man walked into a school board meeting in Florida and opened fire.
Some South Carolina lawmakers told Eyewitness News that the best way to respond to those crimes is to allow law-abiding citizens to better protect themselves. Republican Rep. Gary Simrill of Rock Hill pointed to several flaws in the current weapons law.
"If you were a concealed weapons permit holder and you were in your car and pulled onto school property to drop off your child off in the morning, you were in violation of the law," Simrill said.
Simrill said a bill to end permits for concealed weapons has more than 30 co-sponsors and has a good chance of passing the state House of Representatives this year....
Greg Bryan/Arizona Daily Star Patricia Maisch, who helped keep accused gunman Jared Lee Loughner from reloading during a Jan. 8 shooting spree in which six people were slain and 13 were wounded, reunites with shooting victim Ron Barber. He is a staffer for U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who is recovering from a gunshot to her head.
Tucson shooting spree survivors honored at Red Cross event (click here)
Arizona Daily Star
Posted: Thursday, February 17, 2011 1:27 pm
A dozen victims of Tucson's shooting spree were honored today at a ceremony.
The 2011 A Hero In All of Us ceremony cited their bravery and selfless acts.
More than 500 people the luncheon at the Westin La Paloma Resort & Spa, to honor the heroes who attempted to save lives in the minutes after a gunman's attack outside a grocery store during a community event being hosted by U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who is in a Houston hospital recovering from a gunshot wound to the head....
Civility is a wonderful word. Civility is exactly what the GOP is lacking in huge measure. The GOP consents to the incivility of their media and openly thanks them for it at every turn. Amazing.
Feb 16, 2011 12:39 ET
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Jackson Browne and Alice Cooper, in partnership with Danny Zelisko have put together an all-star line-up of musicians for a benefit concert to take place at the Tucson Convention Center, (who have donated the building), on Thursday, March 10, 6 p.m. The event is a fundraiser for the non-profit Community Foundation for Southern Arizona, benefiting the newly established Fund for Civility, Respect, and Understanding. The Fund will support individuals and families affected by the January 8th shooting in Tucson, and will promote civility and respect in public discourse, schools, and the community. The fund will also work to increase awareness of mental health symptoms, prevention and treatment services....
