The temptation to try and turn the shooting of Gabrielle Giffords into a feel-good narrative appears to have won out. Rather then use the horrific event as an opportunity to honestly examine the consequences of our fatal attraction to firearms, the focus has already shifted to daily updates about the congresswoman's progress. Incremental signs of improvement are eagerly seized upon and presented as evidence of a "miraculous" recovery. And while some of that enthusiasm is tempered with reminders of just how difficult a journey lies ahead for Giffords, the desired story line has already been established.
The other 18 people shot have been effectively marginalized, for the most part. The living, and the dead, will recede from our collective memory, and the Tucson shooting will be reduced to the story of two individuals: the gunman and his primary target. Jared Lee Loughner will be portrayed as an aberration, rather then a particular type that is all too familiar to us. Gabby Gifford has already been reduced to a symbol of "healing", both literally and metaphorically, instead of the vibrant and intelligent human being that existed before a bullet tore through her brain.
