A Dozen Thoughts on the Washington Hilton Shooter (April 2026)
SHOOTING THE SHIT ON THE SHOOTIST
I have a dozen things to share about the incident-shooting-assassin-controversy from this past weekend. So, let’s get right to it:
1. Forgive me for being both weary and irritated by the tiresome avalanche of attention given to the shooting incident last Saturday night in Washington. While panicked elites were spilling their champagne flutes and doing Pete Rose head-first dive slides taking cover under ballroom tables….and while the billionaire class power brokers were being whisked away to the exits into the magic carpets of idling limousines by heavily-armed, flak-jacketed government-badged security personnel — fact is, much of the world continues to burn in misery. And many of the people who are *directly and indirectly responsible* for the burning fires and the misery and the suffering were happily celebrating inside that ballroom at the White House Association Correspondent’s Dinner. Pardon me, but I’ll reserve my compassion and empathy for those who deserve it.
2. Since then, we’ve been bombarded with an eye-rolling number of “eyewitness” accounts of an assassination attempt. Yet, the armed assailant never once stepped a toe, let alone a foot, let alone a gun barrel inside the main ballroom (and yeah–I’ve been inside the Washington Hilton ballroom numerous times, and even attended a number of political speeches there–it’s huge and it would have taken a special forces assault team to reach anywhere close to the main stage–the fact is, the President nor any of his cabinet were ever in any serious danger). Moreover, the assailant was subdued on the next floor up from the entrance. Translation: This isn’t quite the Washingtexas School Book Depository we’re talking about here. The grassy knoll might as well have been in suburban Maryland. Most of the widespread chaos was the result of — mass panic. Much of the hysteria was due to — incertitude and anxiety, amplified by the contemptuous times we live in. The vast majority of those interviewed and crying on TV and spewing about thinking of their kids while the shirtless assailant was (“What You Gonna’ Do Bad Boys”-style) tackled by law enforcement and eating carpet fibers out in the upper lobby were never targets at all, nor were they threatened in any way. So, you attended the correspondent’s dinner and you feared for your life? Grow up! Hell, taking the D.C. metro late at night is a more dangerous place. I’m talking to you, Mr. Mentalist (by the way–why didn’t you see this coming?….how about putting your talent to use!). I’m talking to you, pimping propaganda puppets sitting at the “Fox and Friends” table. I’m talking to you, Wolf Blitzer! Quit being attention-starved drama queens. When JFK was shot, I was two miles away shitting into a full diaper. You don’t see me pontificating about Lee Harvey Oswald doing interviews.
3. Security worked. So, be done with it. This is a 6-hour news story, if that. Quit second-guessing the protocols. The system worked. Perfectly. That’s a good thing. No, we don’t need body-cavity searches for everyone entering the District of Columbia or wand-scanning every visitor flying into National Airport, though agents may want to check anyone heading to Lindsey Graham’s home, and be prepared for some shocking surprise toys. Security goons have already made the federal District into a de-facto banana-republican militarized zone, and the last thing a our fragile democracy needs right now is more guns out in the open, and more uniformed officers, and more barbed wire, and more fences, and more security lines, and taking our shoes off, and more metal detectors, and complete strangers padding us down —- though to be perfectly honest the last time I got hand-jobbed at the airport I did enjoy the freebie quickie. First time I’ve ever been turned on by a TSA agent.
4. There needs to be a new “witness testimony” default app one everybody’s smartphone so every so-called victim of a traumatic event can click on and recite the same old tired script. It always goes like this: “At first, I thought it was fireworks! It sounded like someone dropped a tray of dishes! Everyone started running! We didn’t know what was happening! I was so scared! I’ve never gone through anything like this before! It was like a movie! Yabba-dabba-doo!” Get me outta’ here. Tell you what — here’s some perspective for your rich and sheltered privileged asses. Hang out in war-ravaged Beirut for a couple of days where 1,300,000 Lebanese citizens just in the last two months were bombed into homelessness and starvation — much of the destruction with American weapons — and due directly to many of the people inside that room. Where’s their protection? Where’s the sympathy for them? Where’s the interview about their suffering? They didn’t have the best security detail in the world on stand-by to keep them safe and and limousines waiting out in the parking lot. Please, spare me your faux victimization. It’s nauseating.
5. I’m typically a supporter of the media — and that includes all media outlets, including those I don’t like. In a functioning democracy, there should be a place for everyone on the airwaves and on the internet. But the fact that this perversion of a charade was even held in the first place made me sick. Hey journalists :::::: Where’s the backbone? Where’s the self-respect? Where’s the legitimacy? A disgraced President who swore to uphold the U.S. Constitution who constantly shits all over the First Amendment…. <get this> isn’t someone to socialize with. A President who has repeatedly called the media “the enemy of the people”….isn’t someone to socialize with. A President who files costly lawsuits against media outlets who criticize his policies and behavior….isn’t someone to socialize with. A President who constantly defames, denigrates, and diminishes professional journalists doing their jobs with insulting personal attacks….isn’t someone to socialize with. A President who intimidates journalists and also screens and bans several outlets from the White House…isn’t someone to socialize with. No, it’s not funny. This crisis isn’t open for negotiation, nor a topic for cocktail party discussion. Pretending Trump is anything other than a horror show is both dishonest and despicable–and anyone who showed up for this circle jerk of a circus defames their profession. Yes, every single one of them. They should be embarrassed for themselves. Sure, the media can and should celebrate freedom of the press and always do what’s necessary to promote the critical importance of transparency, including holding the most powerful people in the country as accountable for their actions. However, the very idea of participating in a closed, tightly-controlled propaganda stunt like was supposed to take place on Saturday night was obscene. [less than 24-hours later, in an interview on “60 Minutes,” Trump again showed his contempt for a free press]
6. I’ve said this before and I’ll write it here again. Security worked. Flawlessly. Good job, security people. So–what’s the issue? There’s nothing to evaluate here. Guy was stopped. Everything worked out fine. Still, what irritates me is the constant, ceaseless, tiresome praise for all the hundreds if not thousands of security people who are fawned over, declared as “heroes,” and get heaps of public praise. Umm. Hey, THAT’S YOUR JOB! You got ONE JOB. So, do it. Got it? Most of the time, in fact 99.9 percent of their shift, they’re standing around like $80,000-a-year mall cops. Great gig, if you can get hired. So, one pissed and angry would-be assassin dashes through the velvet ropes and runs through a security checkpoint, and (reports vary) may have even tripped or fell on his own. Then, he’s tackled and swamped like a third-string New York Jets quarterback and hauled away by enough security detail to invade Cuba. Nice job, security heroes! You saved Wold Blitzer’s 77-year-old ass! Democracy lives! The real story would have been if you DIDN’T catch the guy.
7. Weird huh? All these terrible instances of political violence in the United States. Almost always and only IN THE UNITED STATES. By one count, there’s been a dozen major incidents of American elected officials being targeted (and in some cases murdered) in just the last decade. Hmm. Strange that this shit doesn’t happen in most other parts of the world, especially in advanced democracies. I guess there’s no social media over there. No mental illness elsewhere. Only in America does this madness happen — over and over and over and over and over. It can’t be the guns? 400,000,000 guns. Easy access to guns. Plus gutting mental health services. Right? That’s not it. That can’t be it.
8. Notice these high-profile shootings are always committed by angry lonesome young males? Again, something to seriously ponder. It’s usually young White males, though this appears to be a rare exception. Almost never is it a woman. Almost never gays, or trans people. Almost never immigrants. American-born young men are the most dangerous demographic of political violence in America. Question–how do you think the MAGAganda media would have reacted to the shooter if he was an immigrant? Or a Muslim? Or whatever? Gasp! Here’s your reminder that MAGA morons and Trump sycophants would have all lost their fucking shit if this guy was one of their favorite convenient demographic punching bags, because that’s all their rage and hate is built on — easy punching bags. Always punching down on poor, lesser, struggling victims. I’m sure they were crushed this shooter wasn’t an easy poster boy for their next slew of slander. That sucks. Guess they have to wait for the next red meat hate bait.
9. Here’s my critical response to many on the political Left, including my fellow progressives. Stop with the conspiracy bullshit. No, it wasn’t staged. Wild speculation hurts our cause and diminishes our credibility. Asking questions is acceptable. Re-posting fabrications and baseless speculation is both dishonest and destructive. If you have legitimate questions and concerns about something that’s not being reported, then by all means do share it. But regurgitating crackpot theories without evidence is deeply troubling. Stop doing that. Being a crackpot goes with Q-Anon right-wing extremism. Do not let that infect our movement.
10. That said, on the subject of baseless conspiracy theories — an extremist counter-reaction is precisely what happens when a reckless President, his corrupt regime, and his gutless media sycophants constantly spew lies and knowingly report disinformation. The public’s trust is destroyed. So, we doubt everything. We even doubt moments of clarity. Even an event that should be non-partisan and apolitical (such as an assassination attempt) becomes fodder for skepticism. Trump has shown he’s capable of ANY transgression (I would put nothing past him at this point). It doesn’t help Trump’s cause that he repeatedly goes after any and all critical media outlets, inquisitive journalists, and bona fide investigations (which have often caught him in crimes and lies).
11. I find it annoying, and frankly a bit amusing that everyone is so appalled that there was an attack on the life of the President (and that might be a reach, since the assailant reportedly was going after cabinet officials, but no one in particular). Oh, the horror! Wait, two months ago — didn’t the United States MURDER the leader of a sovereign nation? Whatever your opinion of the late leader of Iran, he was the legitimate head-of state. And, international rule of law makes the targeted assassination or killing of another leader, without a declaration of war, to be a crime. I just think it’s pretty damned ridiculous to hear all the sanctimonious preaching about how bad “political violence” is, when this country deliberately killed the leader of another nation recently. Yes, THIS COUNTRY willfully MURDERED another country’s leader. And then, they bragged about it. So, puhleeeeeze spare me the righteous indignation.
12. Finally, in yet another pathetic and predictable spectacle of performative distortion, the White House disinformation press secretary blondie-with-the-cross-around-her-neck today in a press CONference blamed Democrats, Leftists, and Trump critics and imaginary devils trapped in the cookie jar for the shooting. She spewed nonsense about the President’s critics allegedly advocating violence and the constant cycle of criticism of Trump inflaming mass rage and sparking violent acts like we saw at the Washington Hilton. Sure blondie, it’s all a Leftist thing! No mention whatsoever was made of the THOUSANDS of Trump insults, name-calling tirades, personal threats, vile denigrations, sexist remarks, racism, lies, and hate which has been consistent and constant ever since he disgraced the nation with his toxic political arrival. So, don’t lecture us on “toning it down.” No, we will NOT tone down anything. We aren’t toning down our criticism. We shall continue to call him out precisely for what he is, so long as Trump behaves like Trump. In fact, we’ll now even pump it up. Tone it down? Fuck no. Not happening. Not now. Not ever.
Since you already read this far, thank you! Here’s a nice picture of a capybara.
