Tucson, My Tucson

The President said everything that needed to be said, and said it well. His visit helps to begin the healing processs for Tucson. But one inescapable legacy of Saturday is that my city's name has become a synonym for this event. it will always be the first thing people think of when they hear the word - just like Oklahoma City. Just like Oklahoma City, Tucson hasn't distinguished itself in any other way - unlike, say, New Orleans.

But it's not Tucson that has a toxic political culture, ludicrously permissive gun laws, slashed budgets for the care of the mentally ill, and irresponsible lunatics in elected offices. That would be Arizona, whose every mention in our national discourse is one embarrassment after another.

There may be nothing we can do about it, since secession is not a viable option. All we can do going forward is to try to make our city a better place to live in - to try, as the President put it, to be worthy of the faith the fallen had in us. That is no small task.