When the mainstream media responded to the Tucson massacre of January 2011 by attempting to incite a moral panic over "incivility," probably the grossest contribution came from Newsweek's Jonathan Alter, who, as we noted that Jan. 12, thought it appropriate to offer some career advice to the gravely wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords:

Sad to say, if Giffords had died, she would have been mourned and soon the conversation would have moved on. But Giffords lives, thank God, which offers other possibilities. We won't know for weeks or months whether she can function in public. If she can, she will prove a powerful...