Manhunt tweet apology: Arkansas Lawmaker's apology too little too late, Arkansas Republican Rep. Nate Bell issued a manhunt tweet apology, according to an April 20 Epoch Times report. At a time when most of America came together during a huge time of crises for Boston, some people used it as a time to make political statements about gun control. Most Americans thought this was strange and inappropriate.
Friday, Republican Rep. Nate Bell tweeted,
"I wonder how many Boston liberals spent the night cowering in their homes wishing they had an AR-15 with a hi-capacity magazine?"
How incredibly inappropriate. Ultimately, Nate Bell issued his manhunt tweet apology, but he apologized for the timing and not the content. Bell said,
"I don't regret the content as much as I regret the timing. I really didn't think about it going to Boston and was generally expressing my personal view of how I would have felt in that situation myself."
How could he not realize that something he posted on Twitter would not be visible to people everywhere, including those in Boston who were still waiting for the Boston bombing suspect manhunt to be over?
Obviously everybody has an opinion about guns and even about the manhunt. However, when residents are literally told to stay inside as police search door-to-door is NOT the time to tweet about gun control issues. It is time to stand in solidarity with the citizens of Boston and the authorities tracking the suspect.
In the wake of the thoughtless tweet, Arkansas House Speaker Davy Carter issued an apology too. He said,
"I can assure the people of Boston and the people of Massachusetts that Arkansans have them in their thoughts and prayers during this tragic time."
While Republican Rep. Nate Bell is obviously serving his state, he needs to realize that his remarks are available to the world, and he should think before posting something like this at such a time. In 2011 he also stirred controversy by discussing comparing Democrats to Nazis on Facebook. You would think he would eventually learn.
While the gun control issue is certainly not over in the U.S., it was strange to see people posting about it while police were still searching for the suspect and Boston was shut down. Nate Bell is not the only person who talked about it either, but his comments were higher profile because of his public office.
Friday, Republican Rep. Nate Bell tweeted,
"I wonder how many Boston liberals spent the night cowering in their homes wishing they had an AR-15 with a hi-capacity magazine?"
How incredibly inappropriate. Ultimately, Nate Bell issued his manhunt tweet apology, but he apologized for the timing and not the content. Bell said,
"I don't regret the content as much as I regret the timing. I really didn't think about it going to Boston and was generally expressing my personal view of how I would have felt in that situation myself."
How could he not realize that something he posted on Twitter would not be visible to people everywhere, including those in Boston who were still waiting for the Boston bombing suspect manhunt to be over?
Obviously everybody has an opinion about guns and even about the manhunt. However, when residents are literally told to stay inside as police search door-to-door is NOT the time to tweet about gun control issues. It is time to stand in solidarity with the citizens of Boston and the authorities tracking the suspect.
In the wake of the thoughtless tweet, Arkansas House Speaker Davy Carter issued an apology too. He said,
"I can assure the people of Boston and the people of Massachusetts that Arkansans have them in their thoughts and prayers during this tragic time."
While Republican Rep. Nate Bell is obviously serving his state, he needs to realize that his remarks are available to the world, and he should think before posting something like this at such a time. In 2011 he also stirred controversy by discussing comparing Democrats to Nazis on Facebook. You would think he would eventually learn.
While the gun control issue is certainly not over in the U.S., it was strange to see people posting about it while police were still searching for the suspect and Boston was shut down. Nate Bell is not the only person who talked about it either, but his comments were higher profile because of his public office.
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