Tiller Murder: 'The Final Act in An Ongoing Campaign of Intimidation and Harrassment'
By Susie Madrak Monday Jun 01, 2009 12:00pmEzra Klein sees the Tiller assassination in its political context:
As The American Prospect's Ann Friedman writes, this has to be understood in context. It is the final, decisive act in "an ongoing campaign of intimidation and harassment against someone who was providing completely legal health-care services." That campaign stretched over decades of protests, lawsuits, violence, and, finally, murder. The different elements were not always orchestrated. But the intent remained constant: To counter the absence of a statute that would make Tiller's work illegal with enough intimidation to render it impossible.
This was, in other words, a political act. Tiller was murdered so that those in his line of work would be intimidated. In conversations with folks yesterday, I heard well-meaning variants on the idea that it would be unseemly to push legislation in the emotional aftermath of Tiller's execution. I disagree. Roeder was acting in direct competition with the United States Congress. And it's quite likely that he changed the status quo. Legislative language and judicial rulings had made abortive procedures legal and thus accessible. Yesterday's killing was meant to render abortive procedures unsafe for doctors to conduct and thus inaccessible.
If a woman cannot get an abortion because no nearby providers are willing to assume the risk of performing it, the actual outcome is precisely the same as if the procedure were illegal. Roeder has, in all likelihood, made abortion less accessible. It would be, in my view, a perfectly appropriate response for the Congress to decisively prove his action not only ineffectual, but, in a broad sense, counterproductive.
That's not to suggest fast-tracking legislation that radically transforms the county's uneasy consensus. But there are plenty of remedies that speak to the question of access alone: Bills that make abortion centers safer and help poor women afford treatment, for instance. We can't stop Scott Roeder from killing George Tiller. But we can stop him from having his intended effect on a woman's ability to choose.
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I couldn't agree more that this is a political act and I sincerely hope the Justice Department and all it's enforcement branches treat it for what it is: Terrorism.
I would love to hear the ladies on The View discuss it
Barbara Walter's would probably pronounce it tewwowism.
leave the apostrophe out of her name.
it's an act of domestic terror.
if it had been a muslim who offed a famous rebbi, in his synagogue, the FBI'd be tearing up the entire US Islamic community, arresting folks, detaining, torturing and deporting folks so fast even Alan Dershowitz wouldn't have time to name his favorite suspects...
Shouldn'a that read rabbi
As in silly rabbi, Twix is for kids?"
That's why they had to invent email.
Terrorism: The radical right hates us for our freedoms.
Republicani jihad.
They walk among us. They speak in code.
NOW Identifies Murder of Dr. George Tiller As Domestic Terrorism, Calls for Action from Justice Department and Homeland Security
... also investigate hate speakers like O'Reilly, Rush, etc., for their part in inciting Roeder to terrorize-murder, as part of a RICO conspiracy, or whatever seems to be the most logical legal way to go. This type of mentality persists because right-wing media types are very irresponsible in their rants.
Thanks to NOW for the public call, and to MountainMan23 for posting.
"The unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a Government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives"
Terrorism....Check.
copy.
If this guy had been hanging with three or four other guys and planned to drive a pizza truck up to the church before shooting the doctor, you know damned well it would be considered a terrorist cell.
They speak in code. Ask Glenn beck.
This is a great idea for an article -- expose the code words they use; make it in table format so it's easy to read. Give it wide publicity...
But you won't see the corporate-owned mainstream media calling it that.
Here's a fun game: Tonight, put on your favorite news channel, and count the times they say "isolated incident." You'll probably hear it 10x more if you can bear to watch FauxNoise.
I am eager to see what the more liberal-leaning shows like Countdown and Rachel Maddows have to say. I hope they tell it like it is.
Fox News Anchor: This just in. Terrorist Threat Level raised to ORANGE after a member of the al-qaeda network assassinated an innocent Christian in a Church early Sunday morning. The religious extremist Taliban recently issued a fatwa on the renowned citizen. With the terrorist now in custody and facing extraordinary interrogation to reveal the other members….
Fox News Producer: Pstt. It was an abortionist.
Fox New Anchor: This just in – Blond girl missing.
These terrorists are not isolated from the TV jihadists on FOX news. Call it a distributed franchise as opposed to a system of cells. The MSM provides a powerful tool for the rightist extremists to control the messages and edicts, and activate their widely distributed followers.
more than 4,000 in the last decade.
No, not killings. But attacks on doctors, staff, clinics, and patients.
Nope, nuthin happ'nin here folks. Just move along...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDOq_HY_rnU
I always want to ask these anti abortion people how many unwanted babies and children are the willing to adopt and care for. Do they care what happens after the child is born into a home where it was never wanted? Are they as active in seeing that that child is not injured or abused?
Do they also want the mother to be just as dead as the Dr. for her role in the "murder?" I wonder.
I don't know but it wouldn't surprise me if they did.
Today here in Florida a baby was found in a box on the side of the road. From what I understand the baby was still alive. Here in Florida it is legal for a mother to drop off her unwanted infant at places like fire stations and no questions are asked.
Euphemisms just give the killers and their friend cover...
why the politicians don't do everything we progressives would like to see them get done. Of all the politicians that have mysteriously died in some accident, they have all been Democraats.
what would you call what successive governments have done to the american public for the last 40 years and continue to do?
On Bill O'Reilly's FOX News website, the Right-Wing Terrorist Spokesman (Billo that is) said the following: Line of the Night from the O'Reilly Factor: “One of the most fundamental rights that we have in this country is to speak freely without fear of reprisal.”— Bill O'Reilly
Yes, Billo, long as you do not incite violence and stop stalking and harassing people, which to me are crimes. Yes, Billo, as long as you are not violating the RICO laws and not acting as a Domestic Terrorist, then I say fine that you may “speak freely without fear of reprisal.”
O'Reilly despises and condemns what he calls “gender and racial politics,” yet, cannot see how much of a sexist and racist he is. O'Reilly claims the left is most responsible for this. He is a definite bigot and hater. O’Reilly is a very sick man. He needs help and perhaps even locked up in an insane asylum. O’Reilly says there is “far left fascism,” in this country and that he must protect his viewers from not just the left, but, the "far left." He just wants to make sure his hatred and bigotry are never questioned or that he can act without impunity. He refers to those who call him on his racism as “left-wing loons.” O’Reilly is a racist and then he has goons go out and stalk/harass people.
In my opinion, Bill O'Reilly is an accomplice in the murder of Dr. Tiller and should be charged under the RICO Laws. Billo can have all the free speech he wants in prison.
I am so tired of these "free speech" arguments as these people incite mob intimidation and murder and engage in daily threats, intimidation, harassment, and stalking.
It is time to call these people out for who they are and what they do and force them to take that "personal responsibility" for such actions, as well. It is time to call these people criminals and terrorists and to start standing up to their dangerous verbal assaults and not let the corrupt Catholic clergy skate away from their own crimes as well.
In sum, these "Christians" are nothing but terrorists and need to be called their proper name. Their continued attacks on the left are laced with coded words and messages that says violence against gays, lesbians, and in this case, an abortion provider are justifiable acts. People like this need to be committed to the nearest insane asylum.
This implies they are not responsible for their actions, as people are generally not responsible for becoming ill. O'Reilly and his ilk are evil. Let's call it what it is. Rupert Murdoch and Roger Ailes should be drawn into this, too. They are also culpable. They not only allow this obscene behavior to air, but they profit from it.
Will Senator Pat Roberts demand that Kansas cannot hold this terrorist within Kansas? After all, he has a long criminal record, can blend in, has friends on the outside, and knows his way around the state.
Ouch!
This despicable act was murder, terrorism and a hate crime.
Prosecute the (alleged) bastard and put him away for life. How's that
for Pro-Life! Of course, the court should have a choice to give him the Death Penalty and there's your Pro-Choice option. Does Kansas have a Death Penalty? Probably not but three consecutive life terms, one each for murder, murder in the commission of a felony (terrorism) and the hate crime ought to keep him in the big house until he dies and gets to burn in Hell. Works for me and I'm an atheist.
I bet like most zealots, he'll claim to be uber-religious. It's all a farce and it's shameful.
a reborn Christian in prison.
with the post's title. Unfortunately, this isn't the 'the Final Act in An Ongoing Campaign of Intimidation and Harassment,' it's only the most recent.
Billo said Tiller slaughtered 60,000 babies at $5,000 each. O'Reilly labeled the doctor a mass murderer for hire. After such a smear campaign his execution was inevitable.
and FOX News is an accomplice in it. FOX and Bill O'Reilly put all the crap out there and their audience is too stupid to know better. Something needs to be done about FOX before they get more people killed.
It ended the life of one of three, THREE, Dr.s in the US who will do late term abortions. THREE, now TWO. Remember that Kansas law requires certification (sworn testimony) by two doctors, neither of which can be a doctor doing the procedure, that it is medically necessary for the health of the mother or that the life of the child will be so compromised (pain, suffering, lack of development) that the procedure is the most humane action.
Any time I'm around a TV showing Fox, I request that the channel be changed; airport, dentist office, car dealership, even at my father-in-law's house, etc.
Hate to admit I live in Oklahoma, where Fox is prevalent.
I do the same thing. I tell 'em either lose the Tali-Born Again's "Redneck Al-Jazeera" or lose my business. People can also order one of these if they got the cash ...
http://www.tvbgone.com/cfe_tvbg_main.php
It's a universal remote with one button: POWER! You press it at an offending TV in a public place and within 30 seconds to 2 minutes, it'll shut it off.
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