The witching hour of April

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The month of April always makes me uneasy. While statistically speaking April may not be worse than any other month over the course of human history, there are certain anniversary dates in American history during the month of April that serve as inspiration to the mentally unstable and to certain fringe political groups in our society. These anniversaries can and have lead to further acts of violence. We are entering the witching hour of April:

April 12-13, 1861 Battle of Fort Sumter, SC that began the American Civil War.

April 14, 1865 President Abraham Lincoln assassinated by John Wilkes Booth at Ford's Theater days after the American Civil War ended at Appomattox Courthouse on April 9, 1865.

April 15 Tax Day. Anti-government types favorite "I hates guvmint" day of protest.

April 16, 2007 Virginia Tech massacre. The deadliest mass shooting in modern American history, in which a student gunman shoots 32 people to death and injures 23 others before committing suicide.

April 18, 1992 Following a fly-over by a helicopter for the Geraldo Rivera "Now It Can Be Told" TV show, US Marshal Service HQ received media reports that Randy Weaver at Ruby Ridge had fired on the helicopter. The unconfirmed media reports that Weaver had fired on the Rivera helicopter became part of the justification later cited by USMS Wayne "Duke" Smith and FBI HRT Commander Richard Rogers in drawing up the Ruby Ridge Rules of Engagement during the siege of Ruby Ridge on August 21-22, 1992.

April 19, 1993 The Branch Davidian compound of cult leader David Koresh outside of Waco, Texas was consumed by fire after a siege by ATF for weapons related charges. 76 people including 20 children died in the fire.

April 19, 1995 Truck bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City by militia movement sympathizer Timothy McVeigh. McVeigh cited Ruby Ridge and the anniversary date of Waco as justification for his terrorist act.

April 20, 1999 Columbine High School massacre. Two student gunmen at Columbine High School in Colorado killed twelve students and a teacher, and wounded 24 others before committing suicide.

April 20, 1889 Adolph Hitler's birthday. This date is celebrated by various white supremacist groups worldwide. Also believed to be the date in 1945 on which Hitler committed suicide.

What is showing up on the radar?

April 15. You guessed it… FreedomWorks' 2010 Tax Day Tea Party in Washington, D.C. FreedomWorks Tea Party Group – Continue the fight against big government!Count on FAUX News to give this wall-to-wall Astroturf coverage.

April 19. Second Amendment March in Washington, D.C. Second Amendment March. This group assures us that they are not in any way affiliated with the "Million Man Armed March" in Virginia on the same day. (The "million man" group tried this last year and almost no one showed up.) Second Amendment March says the date is to commemorate the anniversary date of the battle of Lexington and Concord at the start of the American Revolution. Forgive me if I doubt their sincerity.

It is what does not show up on the radar which concerns me. The reckless and irresponsible inflammatory rhetoric which pervades the conservative media echo chamber (Limbaugh and Beck are leading examples) is causing the mentally unstable in our society to become unhinged. The recent rash of death threats and threats of violence against members of Congress, and the resurgence of the Patriot Militias movement from the 1990s is a genuine cause for concern.

Of course, should a tragedy occur the conservative media will say that it was the act of a lone "mad man" who is solely responsible for his own actions. Their daily dose of poisonous bile polluting the American airwaves had nothing at all to do with it, "We're innocent we tell ya. It's just entertainment. Free speech!" And then they will blame "libruls."

Words have consequences. One cannot yell "fire!" in a crowded theater. Those who knowingly and intentionally infect the minds of the mentally unstable with their daily dose of poisonous bile and conspiratorial nonsense to stoke the fires of hatred and fear among their fellow citizens are accessories and accomplices to the crimes of the lone "mad man," perhaps not in a court of law, but certainly in the court of public opinion.