I saw a phrase – Schizo-Politics – that makes a weird sort of sense. The guy using the term was looking at left-wing violence and right-wing conspiracy theories. Now, if we actually have two parties, each led by the corresponding tail of the bell curve, it’s probably to be expected. We’re really used to leadership from the center of the curve – where 68 percent of the population hangs out.
Unfortunately, conspiracy theories provide explanations. Interesting explanations. Thought out explanations. If you were to ask me to explain Luigi Mangione shooting Brian Thompson, or Tyler Robertson shooting Charlie Kirk, I would probably just say “He’s nuts.” or “He’s crazy.” On the other hand, a good conspiracy theorist can come up with a more complicated and entertaining explanation.
The problem with assassinations is that it’s easy to murder someone who doesn’t expect crazies. It’s unlikely that Brian Thompson knew he shared the same planet with Luigi Mangione – the descriptor that comes to mind is “soft target.” From what I read, Charlie Kirk recognized the fact that he was annoying some people – but he didn’t have Trump-level security.
So you annoy that last guy, and he decides to shoot you. In general, you’re not even aware that the last guy exists – and even if he were pointed out, the thought would be “He’s the last guy. He’s probably just running his mouth.” Both Tyler Robinson and Luigi Mangione succeeded in the hit, but failed to get away. About half of our nation’s homicides are unsolved (back when I took my first crim class, it was only one out of six – statistics do age out).
I don’t know about schizo-politics – but we do seem to have some crazy bastards show up every time you kick over the politics can. Conspiracy theories are just people trying to make sense out of senseless acts.
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