Glenn Beck Rants Inspire Violence

This story made it's way to the papers earlier this month but for some reason wasn't readily reported on. For the life of me I don't know why CNN, or hell, even MSNBC didn't pick this one up but who knows. Perhaps I missed their coverage of the story. Anyways here's the major points care of the "Washington Post"


Late on a Saturday night two weeks ago, an unemployed carpenter packed his mother's Toyota Tundra with guns and set off for San Francisco with a plan to kill progressives.

When California Highway Patrol officers stopped him on an interstate in Oakland for driving erratically, Byron Williams, wearing body armor, fired at police with a 9mm handgun, a shotgun and a .308-caliber rifle with armor-piercing bullets, Oakland police say. Shot and captured after injuring two officers, Williams, on parole for bank robbery, told investigators that he wanted "to start a revolution" by "killing people of importance at the Tides Foundation and the ACLU," according to a police affidavit. His mother, Janice, told the San Francisco Chronicle that her son had been watching television news and was upset by "the way Congress was railroading through all these left-wing agenda items."


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/30/AR2010073003254.html


Now I know what you're thinking.... who could have possible been reporting on the Tides Foundation(http://www.tides.org/) in such a manner that this guy would packed up a car, and be ready to rain down a hail of bullets on innocent people? Hmmmm....




Thank you Media Matters. Great website. Do check them out.

Now... I'm not BLAMING Glenn Beck for the fact that this Byron Williams fellow going off on this excursion of sorts... but... he should shoulder some of the responsibility for being really the only person in the news spectrum talking about the Tides Foundation. To date he hasn't mentioned the shooter or the fact that he was partly responsible for inspiring these acts. Sure the press has the right to say, and report what they want to, and God knows Beck will say whatever the hell he wants, regardless of what other people think. But is it right?

Somewhere down the line I've come to realize that the news in our nation isn't about what matters. It's all entertainment. And while that sucks, I have to recognize these companies needs to sell commercial time to stay afloat. But when you let your hosts go on air and just spout utter nonsense to the general public, it's dangerous.

Very fucking dangerous.

And the result could have been loss of life in this instance.

Stop already Glenn. Before another one of your ignorant followers plans another act of terrorism.