Texas has more than its share of kooks

We arrived in Texas City just in time for one of my sister's great old fashioned breakfast. My brother-in- law doesn't realize how lucky he is. After the usual greeting, hugs and handshakes, we all sat down to eat. As we were eating, my brother-in-law said “did you know that shooting in Tucson  was a hoax?" A lot was going through my mind, as I was preparing to answer. I knew my brother-in-law didn't drink anymore, so he had to be kidding or off his meds. This is what happens when my wife and I decided to unplug our cell phones and computers, and have an old fashioned family get- together. We got completely out of touch. My brother-in- law read about the conspiracy theory in Sunday's Houston Chronicle. We talked about it for a little while, laughed at the idiocy, and went to the next topic. It wasn't until were driving home  and cleared Highway 6 , when I asked my wife if she wouldn't mind driving the rest of the way home because I couldn't stand not being informed anymore. She agreed, and as I turned to page A 4 of the Houston Chronicle, where I found the story “Conspiracy buffs alarm victims of Tucson shooting “by Marc Lacey of the New York Times.

It didn't surprise me when I learned that one of the leading forces behind the conspiracy is being led by a Texan, named Ed Chiarini. We have more than our share of kooks. Mr. Chiarini claims to be an inventor and a web entrepreneur. The site does solicit donations for further investigations.

Despite the fact that, it's downright disrespectful to the family members, first responders, medical staff and especially to the memory of the  9- year old girl who was killed; these conspiracy buffs are going the extra mile to be obnoxious. Some so-called investigators went to some of the homes of the victims, saying they were investigators who are trying to determine whether the shooting was a hoax. In order for this conspiracy to have 1 ounce of credibility, these skeptics would have to prove these thousands of people will have to be in on this conspiracy. Did a 9- year old girl get killed or did she  rejoin her classmates in the fall? What would be the motive and what would be the gain? The conspiracy sites have the most to gain with their quest for publicity and donations?

Some conspiracy sites are contending the shooting that nearly killed U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords,killed a Federal judge, a 9- year old girl, and four others was manufactured by the Department of Homeland Security. The conspirators show pictures of all those involved in the shooting, including Jared Loughner-and claims, they resemble photographs of Tucson -area actors, found on the Internet.

Richard Kastigar, investigative chief of the Pima County sheriff's department said he passed information about the website to his intelligence unit. The FBI said that they were aware of the site but would not comment on whether they are investigating.