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Culture War Roundup for the week of September 22, 2025

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Haven't seen anyone else link it (not too surprised), but the same blogger who leaked the Mangione manifesto (unrefuted) and dug up some Discourse screenshots for the Kirk shooter has also released a blog post interviewing some of the "Anti-ICE" shooter's associates.

https://www.kenklippenstein.com/p/the-ice-shooters-motive

Based on what I've learned in this blog post (and not from hysterical Xhit posts from what should be the most measured and deliberate people among us, the US VP and director of the FBI) - this looks and feels like a school shooting to me: no apparent motive beyond causing mass hysteria, which judging by this thread, was very much achieved. Maybe we've moved beyond a point where our disaffected 20-somethings commit acts of terrorism against children, and are now committing acts of terrorism against those in power. All, of course, powered by a mass media machine that causes something to click in the heads of these disaffected and nihilistic 20-somethings.

School shootings don't even make headlines anymore. But I'm sure everyone here is keenly aware of what caused everyone to go absolutely bonkers in the past couple of weeks.

Finally, as someone who moves through leftist circles, which are mostly extremely disorganized and very dedicated to specific issues (climate change, homelessness, worker empowerment), the foaming at the mouth here that there's some grand leftist move towards violence is hilarious. I would encourage you to attend some leftist meetings and be absolutely floored by how ineffective and leaderless they feel, especially in comparison to something like the Whitmer plot.

Edit: Reviewing this thread and FoxNews over the past few days has made me realize that the red tribe has gone full retard and will believe anything the retards and losers in the White House say. Guess I'm just going to become a normie and hypernormalize like the rest of the people in my life. Been nice commenting here. Your boos have always meant nothing to me, because I've seen what makes you cheer.

  • -22

So your evidence that the "Anti-ICE" shooter feeling like a school shooter and having no apparent motive is an interview with old friends of his that haven't had contact with him for likely at least 5-6 years? If anything, considering he withdrew from social life and got seeped more and more into the dark trenches of the internet, this story to me provides some evidence that he likely became more and more political and radical. Combine this with other evidence that had come out, and it paints the picture of someone radicalized by far left and anti-trump ideology.

It's easy to conveniently ignore evidence to the contrary and put zero effort into even explaining why that evidence might be flawed or invalid, but not even attempting that will do nothing to convince people on the other side that you may have a point, and makes you come off as intellectually dishonest.

as someone who moves through leftist circles, which are mostly extremely disorganized and very dedicated to specific issues (climate change, homelessness, worker empowerment)

You know, your experiences of moving through leftist circles could something really interesting to read about if you actually provided some details.

That being said, you're attacking a straw man. Who's claiming every leftwing organization/group is actively encouraging violence? Have you gone through a randomly selected sample of leftists groups (hint, you haven't) to be able to determine they are all in fact, actively disavowing political violence and banning people who do show any support for political violence?

How do you reconcile your personal experiences with the data indicating that 24% of very liberal individuals that say it's okay to be happy with the death of a public figure they oppose, or 25% of very liberal individuals that thing political violence can be justified? When prompted specifically with figures like Elon Musk or Donald Trump, that number rises to over 50% of people left of center. Is it possible that you are in fact, not really engaging with this segment of the population?

How about you provide some examples of people here "foaming at the mouth of some grand leftist move towards violence" instead of attacking an uncharitable strawman? If you are unable to summarize your opponent's position in a manner they find charitable, I don't think you actually understand what their argument or reasoning is. Or you're being intellectual dishonest.

Edit: Reviewing this thread and FoxNews over the past few days has made me realize that the red tribe has gone full retard and will believe anything the retards and losers in the White House say. Guess I'm just going to become a normie and hypernormalize like the rest of the people in my life. Been nice commenting here. Your boos have always meant nothing to me, because I've seen what makes you cheer.

This is a statement that says nothing. Here, let me replace some words

Edit: Reviewing Reddit, BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, TikTok, (Insert your whatever social media/political space you want here) and MSNBC, CNN, (Insert your whatever news media you want here) over the past few days has made me realize that the blue tribe has gone full retard and will believe anything the retards and losers opposing those in the White House say. Guess I'm just going to become a normie and hypernormalize like the rest of the people in my life. Been nice commenting here. Your boos have always meant nothing to me, because I've seen what makes you cheer.

See how this did nothing to move your thoughts and position?

this looks and feels like a school shooting to me: no apparent motive beyond causing mass hysteria, which judging by this thread, was very much achieved.

Do you know what would cause even more mass hysteria? Probably gunning down normal people or alternatively important people who are popular. But instead he chose to try to gun down Satan's goons, the empire's stormtroopers, the left's greatest boogeyman and people nearly every leftist hates and despises.

Somehow I am not convinced that the guy just wanted to cause hysteria and had no political motive.

Based on what I've learned in this blog post (and not from hysterical Xhit posts from what should be the most measured and deliberate people among us, the US VP and director of the FBI) - this looks and feels like a school shooting to me: no apparent motive beyond causing mass hysteria, which judging by this thread, was very much achieved.

https://x.com/CurtisHouck/status/1971290451807179180

Acting U.S. Attorney for Northern Texas Nancy Larson on notes left behind by the Dallas ICE shooter...

  • One said “yes, it was just me”
  • Another included what she described as “a game plan of the attack and target areas at the facility.”
  • One called ICE agents “showing up to collect a dirty paycheck.”
  • “He also hoped his actions would give ICE agents ‘real terror’ of being gunned down
  • “And he did this to induce constant stress in their lives. He hoped his actions would terrorize ICE employees and interfere with their work, which he called human trafficking.”
  • “He wrote that he intended to maximize lethality against ICE personnel and to maximize property damage at the facility. He hoped to minimize any collateral damage or injury to the detainees and any other innocent people.
  • “It seems that he did not intend to kill the detainees or harm them. It's clear from these notes that he was targeting ICE agents and ICE personnel.”

Deciding he had no apparent ideological motive despite his actions, his bullet casings, and now his notes pointing to a straightforward motive, based on a journalist interviewing some people who knew him years ago and trying to spin their statements as both more in conflict with an ideological motive than they are and more definitive than his own actions and statements, in not actually more "measured and deliberate". Maybe it seems that way to you because it is contrary to views you associate with people you consider "hysterical", but that is not actually a reliable way to come to conclusions about the world.

Besides being antagonistic, you are obviously having a moment. One day timeout.