Texas Mall Shooter Likely Fascist-The Monday AM Quickie 5/8/23
I’ve been writing for this newsletter for a little over a month. In that time, there have been seven high-profile mass shootings. It seems like each shooting registers less and less in the public consciousness. This is insanity. - Robert
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THE BIG NEWS
Texas Mall Shooter Takes 8 Lives; Likely Held Fascist Beliefs
A gunman opened fire in a crowded shopping mall in Allen,Texas on Saturday, killing eight people, including a five year old child, and injuring at least seven before police shot and killed him, according to the New York Times.
According to the Washington Post, the shooter, 33-year-old Mauricio Garcia, likely held far right beliefs. A patch on his chest read RWDS, which is an acronym of Right Wing Death Squad, a phrase popular among fascists. Proud Boys have worn RWDS patches during protests. NBC News reports that a law enforcement review of Garcia's media revealed hundreds of racist posts including "racially or ethnically motivated violent extremist rhetoric, including neo-Nazi material and material espousing white supremacy."
The shooter wore tactical gear and was armed with an AR-15 style rifle and a handgun during the attack, according to WaPo and NBC News. Another five firearms were found in his nearby car.
Last week was particularly bad in an already record-setting year of 199 mass shootings. The public is adapting to this increasingly common occurrence. Here’s a bleak quote from a shopper quoted by the Times:
“It was just kind of chaotic for a second. Then when someone said, ‘shooter,’ we all ran to the back of the store…As Americans, we’re used to this, because everyone knew exactly what to do.”
Of course, no leadership will come from Texas Republicans about gun control. Keith Self, the Congressman representing Allen, Texas said anyone who says "thoughts and prayers" aren't enough, "don't believe in almighty God, who is absolutely in control of our lives." Sounds like you're blaming God for not doing your job Keith.
The Post notes that Texas had the highest number of gun-related mass killings in the country last year, and with three already this year, it's on pace to beat that record.
MORE STORIES TO WATCH
Serbian President Responds to Mass Shootings by Pledging ‘Total Disarmament’
On the opposite end of the gun control spectrum from Texas Republicans, Serbian president Aleksandar Vucic is pledging “almost total disarmament” of the populace after two mass shootings last week, Vox reports. This will be difficult given that Serbia is tied for the 3rd highest level of gun ownership per 100 residents (high, but still less than a third of America's level of gun ownership). Vucic is calling for an amnesty program to turn in illegal firearms and a two-year ban on new licenses. But according to Maja Bjelos, a senior researcher at the Belgrade Center for Security Policy interviewed by Vox, actual changes to gun policy are likely to be cosmetic. She warned authoritarian Vucic could use the shootings as cover to push through a law that “allow[s] for the use of general facial recognition technology to monitor public spaces as well as other biometric mass surveillance.” Yikes!
Protections for Migrant Children Blocked by GOP
The feds expect the number of migrant crossings to double after Title 42 expires Thursday. With immigration again rising in political salience, any policy making the situation for migrants, even children, slightly more humane will be a non-starter. Such is the case for Democratic legislation cracking down on companies’ use of child labor, according to the New York Times. A Times investigation discovered the rampant illegal employment of migrant children in dangerous occupations across the U.S. Republicans, for their part, are using this crisis to demand easier deportation of these children and tougher vetting for sponsor families. Better vetting is warranted, and it’s hard to overstate how badly HHS failed these children, but it’s clear from GOP reluctance to hold child-exploiting employers accountable that Republicans never had any intention of doing right by these kids. Instead, they’re weakening child labor protections at the state level to make these crimes easier.
QUICKEST QUICKIES
- California Reparations Panel Calls for Billions to Black Residents The panel’s reports have a number of estimated values; one to address the history of red-lining would give each eligible Black Californians up to $148,099. via the New York Times.
- Russia Evacuates Families Around Nuclear Plant The Russian military is relocating families away from near the Zaporizhzhia power plant in occupied south-eastern Ukraine in expectation of a Ukrainian counter-offensive. via FT.
- Arab League Readmits Assad Normalization comes after 12 years of conflict sparked by Assad’s repressive regime. The Civil War claimed half-a-million lives and displaced half the country’s population. via NBC News.
- Five Women Lawmakers are Preventing a Total Abortion Ban in South Carolina Three of the lawmakers are Republicans. via the New York Times.
- NYT Publishes Bizarrely Sympathetic Feature of Elizabeth Holmes It reads like a PR rebranding, and the author’s self-conscious acknowledgment of that kind of makes it worse. via the New York Times.
SOME NUMBER
$1 million
That’s how much pseudonymous twitter micro-celebrity James Medlock won in a bet against tech entrepreneur Balaji Srinivasan. Srinivasan took the bone-headed bet that Bitcoin would reach $1 million because of “hyperinflation.” via Left Anchor.
ON THE SHOW TODAY
5/8: Happy Monday! Sam and Emma host Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of the University of California, Berkeley Law School, to discuss his recent book Worse Than Nothing: The Dangerous Fallacy of Originalism.
DON'T MISS MR CLIPS
Biden Appointee Reads The Riot Act To Union-Busting Restaurant Owners At Their Own Conference
Jennifer Abruzzo is GOATed.
DNC Giving Clue Biden Will Be Replaced?
Is the Pritzker Khanate a real possibility?
PARTING WORDS
“There are simply no good options.”
-- Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on alternative strategies if Congress doesn't raise the debt ceiling. She’s probably right, but also one of those strategies involves suing her. via Politico.
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