Former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle "Gabby" Giffords, who was critically injured in a shooting two years ago, on Friday was named this year's recipient of the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage award for her work to reduce gun violence.
Giffords, a Democrat from Arizona, has been undergoing rehabilitation after being shot in the head during a public appearance in Tuscon on Jan. 8, 2011. Six people died, including District Judge John Roll; Gabe Zimmerman, one of Giffords' staffers; and the 9-year-old granddaughter of former Philadelphia Phillies manager and Chicago Cubs general manager Dallas Green.
“Gabby Giffords has inspired the world with her bravery and her dedication to making change through the political process,” Caroline Kennedy said in a statement. “Instead of retreating following the tragic shooting that ended her Congressional career, she has recommitted herself to fighting for a more peaceful society free from hate and violence.”
I am thrilled to be able to post this uplifting story about such an incredible female role model, after spending the morning talking about Sarah Palin and Elizabeth Hasselbeck.
You know I see Gabby Giffords as the very antithesis of a Sarah Palin. In many ways Giffords has demonstrated the bravery, ability to overcome incredible obstacles, and tenacity that Palin ascribes to herself but has never really demonstrated.
When I think of Gabby I feel inspired, and a little ashamed of not working harder to move past the much less imposing obstacles in my life, but when I think of Palin I just feel sad that she is seen as any kind of female role model at all.
Popular sports reporter turned big game sports hunter shot in jealous rage. Even people comfortable with guns, or more especially, are victims of this product and culture.
ReplyDeletehttp://bigstory.ap.org/article/outpouring-follows-death-sportsman-channel-host
You know that saying that the NRA loves to use "Guns don't kill people" it should be "People With Guns Kill People." When is this going to stop???
DeleteDoubt Sarah will show up for funeral photo ops for the mouthy NRA gunnin for funnin' Rodriguez, a TV killing machine hero of genitally enhanced gun folk as she did for the Marine sniper shot dead at a gun range recently.
DeleteAs for Rodriguez the spewing anti-gun law NRA trophy hunter & editor of Guns & Ammo magazine....it all rather seems to be the animal afterlife cordite karma since trophy hunters get stuffed & mounted on the beasties feasting hall
..."a glass eye for a glass eye" so sayeth the holy tomes.
Rodriguez' rifleman tv show web site has a link at the top that says "Where is Greg now?" Irony spoiler alert: the link is dead.
This lady is a 'wonderful' example to women across our nation. She was elected, served in the U.S. Congress, lived through a horrible, horrible situation (Palin involved with it!) and has struggled to make a strong and dedicated come back! She brings to my eyes when I see her labor with her speech.
ReplyDeleteSarah Palin is the 'worst' example for women to follow throughout our nation. She is a liar and fraud!
I know, it brings tears to my eyes as well but even with her labored speech she makes more sense than Sarah Palin ever will. History will look kindly on Gabby but not so with Sarah.
DeleteGabby is remarkable, no doubt, and I am delighted to learn of this public acknowledgement coming her way, but never underestimate having a 'partner' in encouragement, love, support, patience, commitment, to accelerate any process of healing and growth.
ReplyDeleteGoing it alone is much harder to stay motivated and easier to procrastinate or make excuses, since you're really only answering to yourself and it's easy to feel sorry for yourself when you're in pain/recovery.
It makes a huge difference when two or more people, united in love, are working towards something. It speeds the healing, exponentially. Whether that's a husband, a sister, a brother, a treasured friend, a grandparent, a mother or father...whoever provides that function of care and support and belief in their eventual healing.
Recovering alone or with minimal support is deeply difficult, lonely, painful and lengthy. We all need encouragement when we are in our weakest times in our lives. Gabby has had the prayers and good wishes of millions, with positive and loving thoughts from the entire globe that have come her way. She's had the best of medical care, speech therapists, recovery experts. All of this has made a difference.
This in NO WAY dismisses Gabby's ferocious courage, her unquenchable spirit, her abiding commitment to life and living. Those also have carried her through.
Bless her for how she has touched us all.
Gabby is a miracle and her dedication and commitment shine through her and radiates outwardly. She is someone easy to love and admire while Sarah is someone easy to despise. She exudes darkness and ugliness.
DeleteWhile I'm sure I have little disagreement with you regarding Sarah Palin......I'm not certain that I could point to any bravery on Gifford's part either.
ReplyDeleteShe's recovered well, and I'm happy for that. But she's now the poster child for the gun control lobby. Perhaps, unlike most of society these days.....I have far different standards for bravery and hero's.
really?
Deletegabby puts herself out there every day to fight for the peace of mind of amereicans not to be shot like she was.
she exposes her now physical and mental limitations to public scrutiny in order to do the right thing.
you are blind.
I'm not begrudging who you hold up as a 'hero' or role model, that's your personal choice.
DeleteRecovering from a near mortal wound and becoming an 'activist' by "dedication to making change through the political process", doesn't [to me] rise to the level of a profile in courage. Especially when she is fighting for "piece of mind".
What are your standards for bravery and hero's? The art of deception and lying because that in a nutshell is Sarah Palin.
DeleteGabby worked hard to get to where she is today. She is no slacker nor a grifter. As a Congresswoman she took her job seriously and was accessible to her constituents. She never quit her job to make easy money. If it wasn't for her injury she'd still be a Congresswoman for her state.
As for bravery, she's got more bravery in her little pinkie than Sarah will ever have. She doesn't play the part of a victim. She is doing all she can to prevent others from suffering the grief and loss that she was a part of that horrible day. She said words have consequences and asked that Sarah Palin take down the map with crosshairs on it. I think she had a premonition of could and did happen.
And who are you to judge her on bravery? Have you been shot at and survived or are you someone who admires the shooters?
You are a goddamn troll and you know it. Do you know how hard it is to "recover" from traumatic brain injury? You think she's all better?
DeleteYou don't recover, you've lost a part of yourself, your identity, your wholeness. You come back, little by little, relearning how to walk, talk, go to the bathroom, read and write. A victim or a weaker person would despair and give-in to the limitations, a strong person, a courageous person bites down on the trauma and does all this. A weak person hides in embarrassment and shame, no matter how not at fault they are.
A brave, courageous person make a heroic effort to turn such a vile, murderous act into a turning point on such violence. Her survival and advocacy against the threat to public health, guns, is heroic.
A thin skinned pussy on the other hand, produces a Blood Libel video and asks people to feel sorry for her.
I see......I'm "a troll...and I know it"...because I disagree with you.
DeleteWhat a profoundly mature assessment. That has the value and impact as if I had said the very same to you...so I'm not quite sure why you felt the need to resort to vulgarity, unless that's the only manner in which you can feel better about yourself.
If this were a simple comparison between Gifford's and Palin, I would likely agree with you more, Gifford's gun control advocacy aside. But not only do I not see the need for comparing Palin and Giffords, but I don't view recovering from traumatic injury as rating the award. That's my opinion, as you have yours. Perhaps this opinion stems from my disdain for malleable criteria. Gifford's qualifies for the award based on the criteria, but political courage is hardly an objective metric.
You said that Gabby has recovered well, but that is not true at all. She has not recovered "well".
DeleteShe's come a long way from near death, but her life as she knew it is shattered from the insanity of letting any nutcase idiot with a history of mental problems walk into a gun shop and buy firearms.
She can NEVER run for Congress again, and probably can't even hold a simple job, or function at a high enough level to live up to her own high standards.
Serving her country, being shot, and losing her position in Congress is a big deal. It's not trivial, and it takes guts, determination, and a deep will to survive to come out of an experience like that.
If you've never been shot, or been in a terrible accident, or had a life and death illness, you might not understand how that can affect your mental acuity, physical health, and how incredibly hard it is to come back from.
So what if she's a poster child for what you call gun control, but some of us call common sense? I own firearms myself, and I have no problem with background checks and limiting round counts in magazines. Only killers or criminals need more that 10 rounds.
The hard, cold facts are that Gabby Giffords was interviewed on camera after one of her campaign offices was vandalized back in 2008
Did you know there is video of her warning about possible consequences of Palin's gunsite graphics, two years before she was shot?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tTDiZZYCAs
Although it's true that Palin had no direct connection with the shooter, there is plenty of evidence that the violent rhetoric and imagery that some politicians use has influenced killers.
Witness a deranged killer who probably thought a Sikh temple was full of Muslim terrorists
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/comment/2012/08/the-real-terrorist-threat-in-america.html
Your opinion of what's brave doesn't seem very well reasoned. My last word on this is that Gabby and Mark Gifford also know that by speaking out publicly for sensible background checks they are again risking their lives.
They are painting a target on their own back, figuratively speaking, and we can only hope some NRA fanatic doesn't kill both of them for being courageous about their beliefs
Constitutional Insurgent, I agree with you, and i believe we are not alone here.
DeleteCheck out her legislative record before she was shot. She did what she had to do to keep her seat, and no more or less.
She should be recongnised for her strength in recovery.
But she would not be doing what she is today if she had not been victimised.
She got shot, and now she is a crusader against what happened to her. I do not see great heaping amounts of courage here.
The comeback that Gabby Giffords has made from that kind of devastating injury, particularly in that short a period of time, is truly remarkable.
DeleteA TBI of that magnitude requires the person to relearn EVERYTHING they do from the moment they wake up to the moment that fall asleep at night, assuming the pain even allows them to rest. The healthy parts of the brain must be slowly and painstakingly taught to take over the functions of the portions which were destroyed. Emotions can resemble a roller coaster, with dramatic euphoria alternating with crushing lows and deep anger at the constant frustration of being unable to accomplish the simplest tasks the rest of us take for granted.
For a woman of her former stature, accustomed to easily debating opponents, addressing crowds and making important decisions, to appear in public despite the difficulties in walking and speaking that she constantly struggles with, is certainly evidence of courage.
@AJ - "You said that Gabby has recovered well, but that is not true at all. She has not recovered "well"."
DeleteOf course she has. She's survived a near mortal wound with a surprising amount of her faculties intact.
"It's not trivial, and it takes guts, determination, and a deep will to survive to come out of an experience like that."
Yet, I haven't trivialized it. I simply don't support awarding people a JFK Profile in Courage recognition for surviving an injury.
"If you've never been shot, or been in a terrible accident, or had a life and death illness, you might not understand how that can affect your mental acuity, physical health, and how incredibly hard it is to come back from.":
But I have. I've given half of my life in the uniformed service of my country, and have been shot, blown up, and generally not quite the same as when I entered service. Should all of my Brothers who fared even worse than I, be bequeathed this award as well?
"Only killers or criminals need more that 10 rounds."
Words only uttered by one who's never fired a shot in defense.
@ Insurgent
DeleteI hope you realize (and I should have clarified) that MILITARY and POLICE DO need more than 10 rounds clips. That's so obvious it probably didn't need mentioning
Citizens face the same criminal threat that law enforcement does.
DeleteNot to worry Palin, you will be getting the Profile in Stupidity Award soon enough, you dumb ass BITCH.
ReplyDeleteJust think how Gabby would have fared with her recovery, if her husband was a low life PIMP. Instead, she is blessed with a loving, caring, and supportive spouse.
ReplyDeleteDon't feel "sad," for $arah, Gryph, you've said this from the get-go and look what she did to this country. My hat is OFF to you, Malia, and others that have kept on this from day one.
ReplyDeleteYOU guys are the patriots! Her and her ilk? Not so much....
LOVE you, Gabby!
I'm thrilled that she's getting this well deserved recognition. She fights hard everyday to maintain things we all take for granted, and still she finds the time to think of and fight for others.
ReplyDeleteIf that's not a Profile in Courage, I don't know what is. b
Congratulations, Gabby!!
Truer words were never spoken. You don't.
Delete