isn't it ironic

some people on my dreamroll are angry because they see others describe the death of george tiller as ironic.

umm. i don't want to say this in response in their journals, but i don't quite understand. how is it _not_ ironic? a self-defined christian shot another christian at a christian place of worship. that's extremely ironic: an event in relevant and incisive contradiction to what one might normally expect. me, i don't think that christians go around murdering one another in this society, and especially not in church, so it comes as a bit of a shock. is this usage of the term uncommon?

yes, the incident is also a hate crime, and an act of terrorism, and no, of course christianity as a whole shouldn't be blamed for an extremist act of a few whose reading of the bible is apparently limited to leviticus, while disregarding matthew. ("an eye for an eye".)

those are not mutually exclusive with irony, are they?