# Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords shot in the head? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 8, 2011, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904 "2011-01-08T18:36:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 12
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/221 "2011-01-09T01:17:34Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > He tried to enlist, [but was rejected](http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/08/live-blog-representative-giffords-shot/). > [@GIGObuster](#): > > That actually leads to more questions. > > like: why did the military allow a clear nut to get into the service? They didn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/222 "2011-01-09T01:18:45Z")
Some asshole on my facebook page keeps trying to make it sound like an immigrant or a liberal did this. His latest post: > [@](#): > > Hard to believe it’s not [political]. She’s been a target several times of vandalism and other things. She used to be a Republican. And still fought for border security. Still sad regardless. Is it even true that she used to be a Republican? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/223 "2011-01-09T01:18:59Z")
> [@](#): > > “The Army has confirmed that the suspect was never in the Army. He attempted to enlist in the Army but was rejected for service. In accordance with the Privacy Act, we will not discuss why he was rejected.” Not that any explanation is required at this point. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/224 "2011-01-09T01:19:08Z")
at the press conference the sheriff said there was no exchange of gunfire. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/225 "2011-01-09T01:19:58Z")
Whatever this thread might be, it is not a debate. I’m going to try for MPSIMS, first. [/Modding] ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/226 "2011-01-09T01:24:43Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > SIs it even true that she used to be a Republican? I read that she was, although I’ve read so many articles now that I don’t remember which one it was. I had the idea that it was before she ever held elected office, though. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/227 "2011-01-09T01:35:01Z")
it seems that the 2 people that tackled the shooter did save lives. the shooter did not use up all the bullets in the gun. i would imagine there is quite a bit of cc cameras in and around a shopping centre that will shed quite a bit of light on the shootings. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/228 "2011-01-09T01:35:26Z")
> [@Peeta\_Mellark](#): > > That’s what I’m curious about. They were fairly cagey about it and said the second gunman was a suspect and that there were pictures of “him.” This would explain the simultaneous reports that they had the gunman in custody and they were still looking for a suspect, but it makes me wonder why none of the eyewitnesses mentioned a second gunman (though I’m fully aware that this could easily happen, it’s just something interesting to think about). ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/229 "2011-01-09T01:43:05Z")
> [@Palo\_Verde](#): > > H > "He lists among his favorite books “Mein Kampf” … Giffords is Arizona’s first Jewish representative. ---
**Author:** ![Peeta\_Mellark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bc8723/32.png) [@Peeta\_Mellark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peeta_Mellark)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/230 "2011-01-09T01:44:27Z")
So the press conference recap is: 19 victims, 5 died at scene, the 9 year old girl died at the hospital, Giffords is still critical, there’s a suspicious package at Giffords’ office that’s going to be detonated by the bomb squad, and there’s another person of interest whose name is unknown but they have his picture. ETA: Very good point, **Sampiro**. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/231 "2011-01-09T01:45:03Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > He was never in the service. Glad to hear that, though the videos do indicate a real familiarity with military testing and procedure. Folks with that level of knowledge about the military probably don’t have any trouble getting a common handgun in the United States. There’s not even a permit required to purchase a pistol in Arizona. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/232 "2011-01-09T01:45:30Z")
The New York Times has an update that as of 8:25 Eastern, the police are looking for a second suspect. Based on the last couple of posts here, I am not sure if that’s already out of date. Or maybe it could refer to someone who helped Loughner get the gun. ---
**Author:** ![godix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/278dde/32.png) [@godix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/godix)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/233 "2011-01-09T01:47:31Z")
> [@Nunzio\_Tavulari](#): > > I just feel that the division among Americans is escalating and it worries me. I blame Keith Olbermann just as much as Glenn Beck. I see a lot of hateful comments on the web every day. While I’d agree we are divided and there are a whole lot of people spewing hate from all sides, I’m kinda optimistic about it. In the past, division among Americans lead to a civil war. Later it lead to race riots and people actively attempting to incite a race war. These days it is, largely, people calling each other nazis. While it’s still bad, it is an improvement of sorts. Or to put it another way, John Wilkes Booth was widely viewed as a hero in the South. Almost no one will view the asshole who shot Giffords as a hero. ---
**Author:** ![Generally\_Giap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85f322/32.png) [@Generally\_Giap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Generally_Giap)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/234 "2011-01-09T01:48:39Z")
If one is counting former congress people, the previous one shot and killed was **Allard Kenneth Lowenstein** , (January 16, 1929 – March 14, 1980), a liberal one term congressman from Long Island, NY. Killed by a “criminally insane” [trial result] liberal. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/235 "2011-01-09T01:59:33Z")
[Latest report:](http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-gabrielle-giffords-20110109,0,961233.story) > [@](#): > > About 15 to 20 shots were fired in rapid succession, witnesses told news agencies at the scene. A federal source identified the suspect as Jared Lee Loughner, 22, who reportedly fired a pistol with an “extended magazine,” the source said. > > There was no immediate indication that additional suspects were involved. > > The youngest woman ever elected to the House when she joined Congress in 2006, Giffords recently survived a tough reelection campaign for her third term, defeating “tea party” candidate Jesse Kelly by just 4,000 votes. > > There were no immediate signs that Loughner had overt political connections. A rambling series of YouTube videos posted as “my final thoughts” by someone with that name talked of “a mind controller … able to control every belief and religion.” So, he might be a Christian, or not, conservative, or not, but, as with John Hinckley, Jr., his conduct can be adequately explained by things having nothing to do with his religion or his politics, and probably more interesting than either. All, of course, subject to revision as the story develops. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/236 "2011-01-09T02:00:26Z")
cnn is reporting that congress is suspending pending legislation including the repeal healthcare vote. they are encouraging members of congress to tell local law enforcement about any events they are having or attending. it seems they will be dealing with the issues from the shooting and what to do about safety of members of congress for this week. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/237 "2011-01-09T02:05:34Z")
> [@Baal\_Houtham](#): > > The only real ideology I saw was that he wouldn’t accept currency not backed by gold and silver. You’ll find almost anyone who says that **will** “accept” it if payment is offered in no other form, and spend it, too. I doubt he paid for his guns in gold. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/238 "2011-01-09T02:14:26Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > > [@Palo\_Verde](#): > > > > "He lists among his favorite books “Mein Kampf” and “The Communist Manifesto”. > > I hate Arizona Commie Nazis. Huh. Really. Seems like the person in question is all over the place over _whatever, whoever_ says that the system/establishment is oppressive or illegitimate – like he’s into overthrowing for overthrow’s own sake. The House has apparently decreed a legislative recess for the week. I’d worry if this incident would lead to calls for tighter security of elected officials in public - we cocoon the President because there is only one at a time and there’s a history of them making big fat targets, but legislators (federal or state) should be able to walk freely among their constituents. Putting them in a bubble would only breed even more resentment that _“they’re not really representing us”_. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/239 "2011-01-09T02:26:48Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > The New York Times has an update that as of 8:25 Eastern, the police are looking for a second suspect. Based on the last couple of posts here, I am not sure if that’s already out of date. Or maybe it could refer to someone who helped Loughner get the gun. It would be remarkably strange for a psychotic like this to have an accomplice. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2011, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904/240 "2011-01-09T02:29:34Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > Huh. Really. Seems like the person in question is all over the place over _whatever, whoever_ says that the system/establishment is oppressive or illegitimate – like he’s into overthrowing for overthrow’s own sake. Best I could tell, he thinks he knows what’s really going on and other people just can’t see it. “Wake up people!” is mostly used as a parody these days but it’s a reminder that people who use that kind of phrasing seriously really are nuts a lot of the time. He has that scary ‘I’ve figured _everything_ out!’ tone there. People with mental illnesses can definitely sound that way. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904.md?page=11) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congresswoman-gabrielle-giffords-shot-in-the-head/566904.md?page=13)