The gunman was horrendously bullied at school.

It's one of the underrated and underreported factors at play in all of this. Though I bet nobody would be surprised if they hear this. But he was such a quiet man.

That he was registered republican and donated a small amount of money to a progressive group are less important features than than a nihilism and misanthropy developed over long periods of daily and constant humiliation.

This is something he has in common with almost all of the mass shooters and gunmen. Alt- right race warriors to British Muslim jihadists all share an alienation from the culture around them and a rejection of a world that has rejected them. A desire to make their life matter, some way some how..

I'm not condoning the violence but if we are serious about looking at the causes of this, then what we call politics is only part of the story. There is also the politics of atomised, individualistic and ultra competitive societies in which a minority of young men feel that they have no value.

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Northwest · M

In some other country, they may go to a soccer match and try to toss a beer at the opposing team.

In the US, all they have to do is pick up a semi-auto military rifle, from their parents collection, or buy one.

Gets weirder:

Investment giant BlackRock is pulling an ad that included Thomas Crooks, the gunman who shot at Donald Trump, injuring the former president and killing an attendee at a rally near Pittsburgh on Saturday.

“In 2022, we ran an ad featuring a teacher from Bethel Park High School, in which several unpaid students briefly appeared in the background, including Thomas Matthew Crooks,” a spokesperson for the company said Sunday. “We will make all video footage available to the appropriate authorities, and we have removed the video from circulation out of respect for the victims.”

The 30-second video focused on a teacher at the high school, with Crooks sitting in class. The video went viral on X and other social media platforms Sunday.

BlackRock said the assassination attempt on former President Trump was “abhorrent” and is “thankful” that he wasn’t seriously injured.

“As our leadership team communicated to colleagues last night, BlackRock strongly condemns political violence of any kind and will do our part to promote civility and unity in the country,” the company said.

BlackRock is a major investor in gun companies, including Sturm Ruger and American Outdoor Brand, the owner of Smith & Wesson.

In quarterly earnings reported Monday, the world’s largest money manager said its assets under management had swollen to a record $10.6 trillion.