I am NOT in favor of murder. That said

[Jilly_in_VA]

I am not sorry one bit, not even one little iota, for Brian Thompson. Those people (the executives and all others who run healthcare insurance companies) are the true DEATH COMMITTEES the RepubliKKKans like to talk about when they're "warning" us about universal healthcare. He was part of it.

Call me what you will. I can take it.

[Dennis Donovan]

1. I feel nothing for his death.

I didn't know him.

I don't think people should be murdered.

[TheProle]

5. Well put

[Silent Type]

2. Will call you nothing bad. However, unless I hear something new, this sounds like an incel rationalizing shooting someon

in the back hoping to bolster their self esteem, kind of like guy who tried to shoot trump.

[sarisataka]

21. I think this is the first time I have seen the shooter referred to as an "incel"

Odd, that is normally a first go to when it is a young white male shooter.

[Silent Type]

22. Yeah. Until today he was considered a hero like DB Cooper or somebody, though Cooper didn't shoot anyone in the back.

[sarisataka]

24. It does seem there is a shift in attitudes happening

I wonder how far it will go?

[LeftInTX]

27. Cooper wasn't a hero..LOL... He's mostly the stuff of "Unsolved Mysteries"

[rictofen]

43. It's also the first time I've ever seen requests for evidence of it

Like gosh, just LOOK at those luscious eyebrows. He probably had to hire a bouncer to guard his bedroom door!!11!

The Rolling Stone should do a glamor cover of him like they did for the Boston Marathon bomber.

[TommyT139]

37. "Incel"? How so?

Does he look like a guy who would be an "involuntary celibate"??

On the contrary, from photos and what we know so far, he would fit more the "Chad" stereotype despised by incels. He's good looking by convention standards, with bonus points for the sixpack abs (shown in an image from an earlier DU thread); he comes from a wealthy family; has a tech degree and then some, and probably could have gone far if he had chosen another path in life.

I may have missed a news item with evidence of misogyny, but even so - incels are literally getting surgery* to look like this guy.


* https://www.thecut.com/2019/05/incel-plastic-surgery.html

[Silent Type]

48. Not much on judging his appeal, but he doesn't look so good to me in his mug shot.

[TommyT139]

50. If you haven't seen other pics

...then we're clearly not having the same conversation.

[Silent Type]

52. I have seen the photos with his makeup on. His eyebrows got him caught.

[TheProle]

3. I don't mourn Brian Thompson

I mourn the rule of law at a time when our institutions are under attack from the Right.

The notion that condemning extrajudicial execution is the same as supporting the unfairness of the US healthcare system is a strawman argument.

[claudette]

6. I mourn

The loss of common decency

[magicarpet]

8. I mourn,...

The normalization of lawlessness and the green light of approval by:

Mr. Trump,..

The United States Supreme Court,..

The both Houses of Congress,...

The US Media,...

The MAGA Meatheads.

[thomski64]

30. ..this killing was unacceptable..

..it wasn't on 5th Avenue and he wasn't a presidential candidate, in which case arresting him would be election interference..

[ColinC]

45. The "unfairness of the US healthcare system" IS extrajudicial mass murder

What's driving me crazy is the idea that what he did is somehow in any way worse than what Thompson -not too different from a genocidal maniac, did.

[claudette]

4. Yes

Last edited Tue Dec 10, 2024, 02:33 AM - Edit history (1)

Sounds to me like You are in favor of murder or you would speak out against vigilante justice.

[ck4829]

9. .. and claim denials that lead to death

[Scrivener7]

19. You know, I don't recall ever seeing you speak out against matricide. By your logic,

that must mean you are in favor of it.

[bucolic_frolic]

7. "Death Panels" were to project the blame onto Democrats

for what they GOP knew was coming ... the rising cost of health care, particularly end of life care. We spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on it, but most of us end up in hospital with tubes, feeders, and IVs, and in the short or intermediate term no one comes out alive.

Many seek more humane treatment. Hospice is not a popular subject.

But there is no excuse for not trying expensive treatments on younger people. That loss of life is tragic. Dying of old age is simply the end of life span.

[Meowmee]

10. You're wrong some people do come out alive and no one deserves to be murdered whatever their age

The way the elderly are taken advantage of in the system is purely criminal, and disgusting.

[bucolic_frolic]

14. Some people come out of end of life care alive?

Do tell. Many would like to know.

[Meowmee]

17. I was referring to older people who come in with life-threatening conditions, who or who are killed by the hospitals, et

Which frequently happens. end of life care in this country is a big joke. You pay them a fortune and they do absolutely nothing. Hospice is a goddamn joke!

In many cases, the end of life situation was caused by crappy healthcare and often negligence in the first place. It also happens to younger people and middle-aged people, but not as frequently.

[Meowmee]

11. I could feel sorry for his children that's probably about it and maybe his parents, etc.

He was not an angel. That is a fact. Which people seem to be forgetting. He was being investigated for fraud and insider trading. And what he was doing denying valid claims is fraud itself, and in my opinion murder of another kind. I still do not approve murdering him. Each case is different for me.

* Edited to add that if he had been shot by a random vagrant by chance or as a robbery etc. which was not connected to healthcare injustice in any way my guess is that almost no one would care very much, here or elsewhere. Not for very long. Some might then say the one that shot him was pushed to it by misfortune, maltreatment and injustice. etc and would maybe defend in some way the attacker/murderer. The rw would of course say stuff about excessive crime etc. and it's the dems/liberal's fault.

[Jilly_in_VA]

12. If his children are of legal age

they probably knew, in some sense at least, what he was up to. I wouldn't feel sorry for them in that case, even. Younger children, maybe.

[LeftInTX]

13. The killer was just as wealthy as the guy he killed.

Last edited Mon Dec 9, 2024, 04:45 PM - Edit history (3)

Exclusive private schools his entire life. Spoiled rich kid.

Mangione hails from a prominent Maryland area family with ties to real estate and state politics. The Baltimore Banner reports that his family owns two Maryland recreational properties and a group of nursing and assisted living facilities in the state they founded, and where Mangione’s LinkedIn profile said he previously worked as a volunteer. Nino Mangione, a Republican Maryland delegate, told local NBC affiliate WBAL that he is Luigi’s cousin. Mangione attended the Gilman School, a private all-boys high school in Baltimore where tuition exceeds $30,000 per year.

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/luigi-mangione-unitedhealthcare-ceo-shooting.html

One of the recreational facilities is Turf Valley Resort https://www.turfvalley.com/

Luigi Mangione, person of interest in UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting, is related to prominent Maryland family
The Mangiones own several country clubs, including Haysfield Country Club in Hunt Valley, as well as healthcare facilities and real estate companies in the Baltimore area.

Luigi is the cousin of Maryland Republican Delegate Nino Mangione, who represents parts of Baltimore County.

According to our media partner at The Baltimore Banner, Luigi's late grandfather, Nicholas Mangione Sr., was a self-made real estate developer who owned country clubs, nursing homes and a radio station. His grandmother Mary, who died in 2023 from Parkinson's disease, was described in an obituary as a hospital benefactor and a music patron.

The Banner reports the Mangione family purchased Turf Valley Country Club in 1978, establishing it as a golf course resort and residential community. According to the Banner, family businesses also include the Lorien Health Services nursing homes and radio station WCBM-AM.
https://www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/news/unitedhealthcare-luigi-mangione-family-maryland-brian-thompson/

[Scrivener7]

25. You know he's rich. How do you know he's spoiled? Do you likewise assume all poor people are virtuous?

Because that would be just as idiotic.

[Bonx]

15. Ok, I'll bite

I don't respect the opinons of people who are indifferent to an innocent person being murdered.

[Scrivener7]

26. Which innocent person are we talking about?

Because there are thousands to choose from.

[ForgedCrank]

16. Qualifying the

statement with "I don't support murder" followed by "I'm not sorry he was murdered".
Yea, that doesn't work, it is condoning first degree murder.
There are a whole lot of people doing things I disagree with and don't like, but stalking them in the street and shooting them in the back is just as, of not more evil.
It's sick, and it should be shameful.

[sarisataka]

23. It is very much like when people proclaim

I am against the death penalty but,...

If there is a "but" a person is not really against what they say they are.

[Jilly_in_VA]

46. I didn't say

I'm not sorry he was murdered, I said I wasn't sorry for him. And I'm not. I don't mourn for him. I never knew him, but I know United Healthcare all too well. It's evil.

[ShazzieB]

51. I don't condone nurder, either.

I don't condone murder, and I don't think gunning someone down in the street is an appropriatenb solution to any problem

That said, my emotional reaction to a specific murder is a completely separate thing. I don't condone THIS murder, but I don't feel any strong emotions about this particular person's death. There's no reason I should. I didn't know the man, never even heard of him when he was alive. This is not my personal loss, and nothing I've learned about him has endeared him to me. Nobody has the right to judge me for that.

Furthermore, NONE of us has the right to tell others how to feel or judge anyone else for having the "wrong" emotions about something. There's been way too much of that here at DU this past week, and in my not so humble opinion, it needs to stop.

[Bonx]

18. I saw many similar sentiments about the events of Oct. 7

[Autumn]

20. Absolutely no disagreement from me.

[elleng]

28. Ditto. They brought it upon themselves, they're killing 'us.'

People who make $7,000 an hour have convinced people who make $25 an hour
that the people who make $7.50 an hour are the problem.

This GROSS unfairness is killing us.

[LeftInTX]

31. The guy who killed him came from privilege and wealth himself. Is rich on rich crime "brought on by themselves"?

His family owns country clubs, nursing homes and a conversative AM talk radio. He certainly wasn't no minimum wage guy.

He also admired the unabomber.

[elleng]

33. I suspect we'll learn he UNDERSTOOD the workings of the system

which has aggrieved SO MANY, HENCE maga.

He didnt need others' $, but he was sympathetic. (MY assumption.)

AHA!!!

Suspect in C.E.O. Killing Withdrew From a Life of Privilege and Promise
The suspect, Luigi Mangione, was an Ivy League tech graduate from a prominent Maryland family who in recent months had suffered physical and psychological pain.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/09/nyregion/united-healthcare-ceo-shooting-luigi-mangione.html

[LeftInTX]

34. I doubt it....Sounds like he had a mental health break and his mom reported him missing in November.

He didn't attend his friend's wedding this summer. His friend was looking for him. People were looking for him for several months. He was only 26. He was living in Hawaii in a surfing community and then disappeared around the beginning of 2024.

He peed his pants after getting arrested today. The pee shows up in his holding cell image.

[elleng]

35. *"To save you a lengthy investigation, I state plainly that I wasn't working with anyone,"

the writer wrote. The note condemns companies that “continue to abuse our country for immense profit because the American public has allowed them to get away with it.”'

[LeftInTX]

38. He admired the unabomber. I do not find this young man's actions admirable.

He murdered someone. Vigilantism is right wing stuff. He even made his own gun with a 3d printer. Is this something to be admired? Now anyone can be a mass shooter without purchasing a gun?

And he had the money for health care. His health insurance wasn't the problem. Why kill an insurance CEO when insurance isn't the problem?

Heck there are all sorts of corporate scoundrels in the US. Should we murder every single one of them? Because that sounds like that is what is being advocating here!!!

Maybe this is no longer Democratic Underground but Russian Revolution Underground. Because that is what is being advocated!

[elleng]

40. insurance IS the problem for MANY.

[LeftInTX]

41. But not the killer. However are you advocating for murdering every greedy scoundrel in the US????

[elleng]

42. I've said or suggested no such thing.

I am suggesting I may understand his motive.

UNregulated capitalism cannot thrive.

[Trellastic]

29. If it starts a revolution, fine, whatever.

It would have been good if this issue of terrible health insurance was dealt with by legislation, voting or another nonviolent method before Brian Thompson was eliminated, but it wasn't.

I mourn that enough people haven't been able to unify and solve societal problems that have caused suffering to many. Now a young guy has murdered some guy- possibly a rich asshole given his position in a company that denied so many claims-and basically martyred his own life to bring attention to a very important issue.

[elleng]

36. I think thart's what did happen.

[LeftInTX]

32. Do you admire the unabomber? Because this guy admired him.

[Cirsium]

53. That's a stretch

The OP says they are not mourning the CEO's death, and you imply that they therefore admire the unabomber?

[misanthrope]

39. My reflexive response the first time I heard

Sarah Palin mention the "death panels" supposedly on the way with health care reform was much the same.

"We already have death panels. They are called insurance companies."

[John1956PA]

44. Another term is "AI Algorithms." n/t

[alarimer]

47. Just another example of our broken system

Meanwhile, people all over the place are taking the law into their own hands. The cops don't really care if the victim is brown or homeless or having a mental breakdown.

(I'm particularly incensed at liberals who think rousting homeless people is just fine, actually).

Nobody seems to care about anyone but themselves anymore. We are no longer a society. If we were, we would all get that a functional health care system in the form of Medicare of All (or similar, whatever you want to call it) would ease the financial burdens of millions, let people leave sucky jobs and basically remove insurance companies from the equation. Seems like a no-brainer, murder or no murder.

[lark]

49. I feel the same. He FAFO, in other words karma worked here.

Too bad it doesn't work to stop the other oligarchs from killing us for profit.

[Macrophylla]

54. Its nothing more than...

Choices and consequences.
The history of human fuckery, exploitation and violent rebellion is long and detailed if you care to see it.
For every action there is a reaction....also...nobody expects the Spanish inquisition.

[yaesu]

55. Being egged instead of shot would have been a much better option. It would have made the news and possibly started

a trend. It's a shame the young shooter ruined his own life to make a statement.

[Bluethroughu]

56. Why are they not being prosecuted for murder in the second degree??

Corporations are people my friends, according to Mitt Romney and the not so Supreme Court...

Yet again, the Supreme Cpurt failed to recognize the words of "ALL people to be enumerated every ten years", since 1790!

NOT CITIZENS, NOT CORPORATIONS..."ALL PEOPLE".

Corporations are not enumerated through the Decennial Census, because they are not people!

Take away their personhood, and start enforcing the "Promote the General Welfare" in the Constitution, along with anti-trust laws!