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The political cartoon above was drawn by Sack at Star Tribune in Minneapolis. Let the image sink in.
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The problems mentioned above is what many apologists for gun violence and domestic terrorism and (yes the U.S. has and still deals with domestic terrorism) use to explain away the mass shootings and terrorism in the United States. On August 3rd, a young terrorist Patrick Crusius again opened fire on a crowd of people many men, women and children in a Walmart during family shopping for back to school supplies as schools are about to open back up in the United States in a few weeks. 22 innoncent people were killed inside the Walmart at the Cielo Vista mall in El Paso. The terrorist 21 year old Patrick Crusius who drove some 10 hours from Allen, Tx near Dallas, was captured alive and is currently being interrogated by El Paso police, Texas rangers and FBI. The FBI rightfully named the mass shooting as a domestic terrorist attack and are investigating it as such. The El Paso shooting came less than a week after the Gilroy Garlic festival shooting in California that killed a six year old Steven Romero, a teenager and a college student sadly representing the stages of life that were cut short. This is the first time that a shooting had taken place at the famed Gilroy Garlic Festival as violence of this magnitude at most local festivals are non existent. Gilroy itself is a small town to the South of San Jose, the unofficial "capital" of the Silicon Valley known more for its IT and technology hubs than its crime and violence. The trinity was completed (apologies to the allegory) by a late night mass shooting at a bar in Dayton, Ohio less than 24 hours after the attack in El Paso. The Dayton gunman was killed instantly leaving 9 people dead. Keep in mind that all three cities are relatively peaceful. Crusius followed in the footsteps of white supremacist terrorist Bryant Tarrant and published his own manifesto in which he paraphrases Trump and sees immigration as a threat and invasion. Sound familiar?
El Paso is one of the largest border cities in Texas. It is geographically closer to Albuqerque, New Mexico than to Dallas or Austin, TX. It relies on border trade between the United States and Mexico as it does with internal state trade. Many residents of Cuidad Juarez, join over 20, 000 people on a daily commute into El Paso from the Mexican city and vice versa commuters, family members, school children and tourists go to Cuidad Juarez and other cities in Mexico from El Paso. There are many Mexican children who go to school through educational exchanges, visas and sister city arrangements in El Paso since both cities as often treated as one megapolois or city. El Paso is also part of Texas' culture of Tex-Mex similiar to Mexican influence on California in food, culture, politics, language and history. Texas used to be part of Mexico similiar to California, New Mexico and the rest of the Southwest until it briefly became its own country in 1829 and was later annexed to the U.S. in 1845. Since than Texas acts as an autonomous region of the United States even more so than most of the other states. Every few years Texans demand to be an independent country and could in theory survive as its own soverign nation. But the U.S. government normally waves it away as a Texan dream that might not happen. Most of the U.S. states wouldn't be suprised if Texas were to one day be granted self determination. For now, Texas is a U.S. state con mucho dolor. Texans have long been known for being fiercly independent and portrayed as gutsy, gunho cowboys who do not fear any kind of danger violence included. But El Paso shooting, Sante Fe school shooting earlier this year and the Sutherland Springs Church massacre in 2017 has finally broken the stereotype of the tough Texans. The residents of El Paso mourning for their families and loved ones had mixed feelings about President Trump's just ended visit to El Paso and Dayton. They didn't want him to come no matter if he is there to consuel them. Even Mayor Dee Margo groaned that he would recieve Trump as "his duty commands" as a city official. Contrary to the popular stereotype of the conservative, "Merica hell yeah" Texan, Trump is not popular and is not welcome with open arms in most cities and border towns in Texas. The president didn't help the unwelcomeness in El Paso he felt by making his official hospital visit by focusing on himself while trying to sympathetic.
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| The NRA, its CEO Wayne La Pierre, its supporters and financiers who are usually on good terms with congressmen (feed their pockets with cash) have long fed the paranoa of gun owners no longer being protected by the 2nd Amendment of U.S. Constitution. Cartoon by Pat Bagley. |
Mexican foreign Minister condemend the act of terror against Mexicans. Mexican government equally condemned the xenophobic attacks and have warned
Mexican citizens after six nationals were murdered to be cautious when traveling through the U.S. Three other countries Japan, Venezuela and Uruguay warned their citizens about traveling to the United States. International human rights group Amnesty International also issued a travel warning to the United States.
Now it is coming to light that Crusius' mom had called the police concerned about her son possessing an AK 47. As it has been said again, the FBI, Homeland Security and Justice Department have been well aware of the lone wolf American terrorists plotting, planning and preparing to turn their weapons on their own countrymen. For all the money spent and justifiable noise made by the media, journalists and pundits over the threat of ISIS, Al Qaeda and the stereotyped foreign terrorists, the U.S. is slowly looking in the mirror at its own racist terrorists right in its backyard. The domestic terrorists use the same tactics as any terrorist groups, paranoa and fear reign supreme, so does the familiar apocoplytic view of the world's end due to immigration, liberalism, fading patriotism, America's falling superpower status which follows the same patterns of previous hegemonic powers ie Ancient Rome, British Empire and Soviet Union, the need for revenge for a cause or grievances against the government. The American public tend to downplay threats from domestic terrorists perhaps due to the groups being smaller, more splintered, often times confined to rural areas. Also being decentralized as most undeground terrorist groups are. Like their foreign counterparts, the American terror groups spread their messages and ideologies online via social media, forums, video platforms, university campus, and word of mouth. They are quick to disavow lone wolf terrorists as was the case with Dylan Roof and Nicholas Cruz. Local police and FBI have been doing cartwheels to keep up with the proliferation of hateful violence, speech, neo nazi aficiandos who think of turning their once controlable rage into violence through small acts of terror. Patrick Cruisis was said to publish his manifesto and other writings online at 8chan, the popular social media site that has been used more frequently by white supremacists, neo nazis, anti left wing, racist and anti globalization groups and their members. The cofounder of 8chan, Frederick Brennan who suffers from brittle bone syndome, has condemned the attacks in El Paso. He had long distanced himself from 8chan after it gained popularity with white supremacists, far right nationalists, misoygnist promoting itself as a safe haven for free speech. This was in response to Youtube, Facebook and other social media giants banning and censoring conservative and extreme far right video creators for videos and messages ranging from paranoid conspiracy theories, racism and hiding behind the veil of nationalism. The software security company Cloudflare will be terminating their security with 8chan in response to the El Paso shooting. Threat of right wing terrorism is not confined to the United States, Canada, Australia and Germany among other Western countries are also facing rising threats. As the three cities mourn across the country, the fear and anxiety has not ebbed.
Now it is coming to light that Crusius' mom had called the police concerned about her son possessing an AK 47. As it has been said again, the FBI, Homeland Security and Justice Department have been well aware of the lone wolf American terrorists plotting, planning and preparing to turn their weapons on their own countrymen. For all the money spent and justifiable noise made by the media, journalists and pundits over the threat of ISIS, Al Qaeda and the stereotyped foreign terrorists, the U.S. is slowly looking in the mirror at its own racist terrorists right in its backyard. The domestic terrorists use the same tactics as any terrorist groups, paranoa and fear reign supreme, so does the familiar apocoplytic view of the world's end due to immigration, liberalism, fading patriotism, America's falling superpower status which follows the same patterns of previous hegemonic powers ie Ancient Rome, British Empire and Soviet Union, the need for revenge for a cause or grievances against the government. The American public tend to downplay threats from domestic terrorists perhaps due to the groups being smaller, more splintered, often times confined to rural areas. Also being decentralized as most undeground terrorist groups are. Like their foreign counterparts, the American terror groups spread their messages and ideologies online via social media, forums, video platforms, university campus, and word of mouth. They are quick to disavow lone wolf terrorists as was the case with Dylan Roof and Nicholas Cruz. Local police and FBI have been doing cartwheels to keep up with the proliferation of hateful violence, speech, neo nazi aficiandos who think of turning their once controlable rage into violence through small acts of terror. Patrick Cruisis was said to publish his manifesto and other writings online at 8chan, the popular social media site that has been used more frequently by white supremacists, neo nazis, anti left wing, racist and anti globalization groups and their members. The cofounder of 8chan, Frederick Brennan who suffers from brittle bone syndome, has condemned the attacks in El Paso. He had long distanced himself from 8chan after it gained popularity with white supremacists, far right nationalists, misoygnist promoting itself as a safe haven for free speech. This was in response to Youtube, Facebook and other social media giants banning and censoring conservative and extreme far right video creators for videos and messages ranging from paranoid conspiracy theories, racism and hiding behind the veil of nationalism. The software security company Cloudflare will be terminating their security with 8chan in response to the El Paso shooting. Threat of right wing terrorism is not confined to the United States, Canada, Australia and Germany among other Western countries are also facing rising threats. As the three cities mourn across the country, the fear and anxiety has not ebbed.
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