This is the second in a two-part series examining America’s reaction to the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Part 1 introduces the NYPD’s suspect and his alleged motives. Part 2 explores Americans‘ celebration of the violence.
Six days ago, a masked gunman shot UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson from behind, leaving him dead on a busy Manhattan street. Police believe the alleged killer, 26-year-old Luigi Mangione, viewed the murder as recompense for the corruption and abuse perpetrated by health insurance companies.
The killer could be dismissed as a lone terrorist if not for the public’s supportive reaction. A disturbing number of people have praised the murderer for his sense of humor, his looks, and the person he chose to target.
Taylor Lorenz, an ex-Washington Post journalist and known controversy magnet, has become the unofficial spokesperson for the shooter supporters. Immediately after the murder, she penned a piece titled, “Why ‘we’ want insurance executives dead.”
She elaborates:
I’ll admit, in my angriest moments, I have wished harm on my enemies. I have wished for aggressive drivers to get into fender benders. I have wished to kick a mean roommate or two. I dislike and repent of these thoughts, but acknowledge they occur.
But never have I ever wished for one of my enemies to die, watched them be executed in real time, and then celebrated their demise on the internet. If that’s normal, consign me to the loony bin.
And make no mistake, Lorenz and her compatriots are partying it up. Below is a short transcript of her interview with media personality Piers Morgan. She begins by describing her reaction to the murder:
Then Morgan asks the obvious question:
Lorenz looks taken aback before beginning to laugh. The interview continues:
She concludes:
Here, Lorenz assumes that everyone who experiences failures of the healthcare system experiences joy when insurance company CEOs die. In articulating this assumption, Lorenz not only presumes to speak on behalf of “millions of Americans,” but suggests they are comfortable with — and even support— the vigilante justice she half-heartedly denounces.
But that’s the problem with giving citizens the authority to take life as they see fit — it’s always “just” until you’re on the business end of the gun.
Lorenz and X users frequently cite “millions of people” Thompson wronged as justification for his execution. One user commented:
But the number of people who (allegedly) want someone dead doesn’t justify extra-judicial executions. That’s just vigilante justice cosigned by a mob — and mobs are notoriously bad at rendering justice.
America’s Founding Fathers sought to inoculate America against such capricious judgements. The Fifth Amendment reads, in part:
In his first inaugural address, President Thomas Jefferson expanded on “this sacred principle:”
Brian Thompson’s murder is a sobering example of what happens when the Fifth Amendment fails. It’s a miscarriage of justice that no one should celebrate — if not for moral reasons, then for sheer self-preservation.
Celebrating vigilante justice makes it more likely to occur. No one is safe from a jury, judge and executioner with their own definition of justice. Please consider praying for Thompson’s family and for justice to be done in his case.
Additional Articles and Resources
Luigi Mangione: Alleged Killer Apprehended with All-Too-Familiar Manifesto
A Year’s Slide into Antisemitism, Examined
Manhood is on Trial in the Daniel Penny Case
Indoctrination Station: New York State Education Department Pushes Critical Theory on Students