When the crazy gets crazier; or, town-hall madness, assault rifles and all

By Michael J.W. Stickings

President Obama may have been "honored and humbled" to speak to veterans in Phoenix yesterday (at the VFW National Convention), but the right-wing mob outside the convention center was in no mood for such niceties. As TPM is reporting, "[a]bout 12 people were carrying guns, including at least one semi-automatic assault rifle." Just because something is legal, even if it shouldn't be, doesn't mean that it's a good idea, and this was no such thing. I understand that the guy carrying the rifle explained that he was only carrying it because he could, because it's one of his "freedoms," but come on, that's bullshit. Taking firearms to an Obama event isn't an expression of freedom, it's a threat. And it says a lot about the current state of conservatism in America -- for it is conservatives who are stoking this insanity, conservatives in politics and the media, and they, too, must be held accountable.