Luigi Mangione.
Like many on the internet, I can’t condone what he’s done in the shooting of a health insurance executive, but I understand it. I can’t say “I don’t blame him” because blame, and responsibility, are important. I DO wonder if you really call this “murder” or if you call it “terrorism”, except nowadays I think the concept that “terrorism” generally has political roots has been lost. Whether a crime committed for political reasons is “better” or “worse” than a crime committed in passion, or for profit, I’d have to think about that. But it’s certainly DIFFERENT.
But looking at The Internet’s response, pretending it’s a semi-coherent, responsive organism, something akin to The People or simply They… I understand a lot of what THEY’RE saying, but I can’t condone it. Hero-worship and horror. A home-printed firearm and slogans printed on his bullets. Ripped abs and fake IDs. He’s a Batman villain, or an anime hero and he’s of an age that’s been raised on both.
We’ve certainly seen time and time again how corporate negligence has led to death and injury, both physical and mental, in America (and elsewhere) over and over and over again. We do the math and determine when it’s cheaper to pay a fine, file a recall, or do a media blitz denying that a product is addictive or carcinogenic. We lobby for “free market forces” as corporations again and again and again tout the spirit of the law while toeing the line of the law while spending millions upon millions to undermine both of the above. Capitalism is BASED on “get what you can, when you can” and “don’t pay for it if you don’t have to”. Skimp, shrink. “Delay, deny, defend”. The insurance business model is absolutely based on the idea of accepting people’s money in the hopes that you’ll never had to actually deliver a service.
I’m AFRAID to use my insurance. Both my wife and I have certainly avoided getting care because we’re afraid of getting dumped by our insurance companies.
Fascist rob says these practices have caused injury and death and if corporations are people, they should be able to be found guilty of malicious injury, first-degree murder perpetrated for profit, and fraud. SO though I can’t condone the murder of Brian Thompson, I do think there’s a strong argument that he should’ve been charged with much of the above, found guilty, and potentially executed.
I’m not entirely sure which is “better” or “worse” morally, a murder committed in the heat of passion, or for vengeance, or for profit… but the former’s probably a pretty specific extenuating (“extenuating” does NOT equal “exusing”) circumstance, and the second you can only commit once – but killing for profit is something you do over and over and over again because you CAN and because you see the clear benefit of it. I certainly know which of those is a greater threat to society.
So, no… I can’t condone what Luigi Mangione did, but like a Batman villain, there was a clear and preventable course that brought him to where he is today.