Column By Mike Bibb
Having read columnist John Young’s articles for the past couple of years, I find his efforts amusing, though left of center.
Not surprising, since Young appears to be a devout Democrat follower. That’s fine. So are Joe, Kamala, and Tim.
However, his recent story in the Gila Herald, “Evasion For The Ages: Vance’s Damning Non-Answer,” Oct. 7, 2024, in which he writes “Trump incited a mob that ransacked the Capitol. Officers died.”, was a slight factual exaggeration of the event.
His failure to specifically cite how many police officers died, how they died, where on the Capitol grounds they died, and their names seem a little suspicious. If, as he insinuates, these officers perished in the line of duty as the result of some kind of altercation with protesters, then why didn’t Young include that information?
His statement isn’t an editorial opinion, but rather a direct assertion that “Officers died” (plural, meaning more than one.)
So, how many police deaths were there? Two, three, five, or more? A calamity of this magnitude would have been on every TV channel and newspaper in the country if it had happened.
As I recall, there was only a single death that afternoon, and it wasn’t a Capitol Police Officer.
To the contrary, a Capitol Police Officer caused the death of an unarmed woman by shooting her in the chest as she, and others, tried to enter a room through a broken window. The lady was an Air Force veteran. The police officer involved later received a commendation for his actions.
I’m not sure how common it is for a police officer to earn a meritorious citation for shooting and killing an individual in another room of a building, or the requirements mandated to qualify for such an award. But they must exist.
Even more bizarre, hundreds of protesters were openly welcomed into the Capitol when police lowered the barricades and escorted them inside. There’s ample film evidence of this little-discussed subject.
However, it wasn’t presented during the Jan. 6 special hearings.
Nevertheless, Young’s comment that police officers died during the melee is in direct opposition to the facts.
No police officers died that day. Period.
With this in mind, some might question the authenticity of the remainder of Young’s article. As they do — I’m sure — my submissions.
That’s the beauty of the 1st Amendment. At least we can still voice a vocal and written opinion, regardless if others agree or disagree.
However, when opinions are presented as facts, and those “facts” are shown to be non-facts, then a retraction/correction is in order.
I trust Mr. Young will shortly issue one.
The opinions expressed in this editorial are those of the author.
Editor’s Note: Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick died from a stroke he suffered from injuries during the riot. Four other officers, Howard Liebengood, Jeffrey Smith, Kyle DeFreytag, and Gunther Hashida, tragically took their own lives in the days and months following the Jan. 6 incident. A reported 140 police officers were injured in the Jan. 6 incident.
