The Governor Shapiro arsonist and other political violence
Police have the man in custody who is suspected of firebombing the residence of Governor Shapiro of Pennsylvania. The bombing – accomplished through Molotov cocktails, and which occurred while the governor and his family were in the home – did quite a bit of damage. As for the man who is reported to have confessed – well, he fits a relatively familiar “crazy” profile combining aspects of right and left in an idiosyncratic manner:
Cory Balmer’s mother Christie Balmer told CBS: “So he was mentally ill, went off his meds, and this is what happened.”
That’s the “crazy” part. As for the political part:
Balmer appears to have expressed far-left beliefs on social media in recent years and attacked both President Trump and former President Joe Biden. …
“Biden supporters shouldn’t exist,” he wrote in a Facebook post in January 2021. “Where were you his first run? Well aware of the trash he is. As for the second, still knew what scum he is. Now why did y’all forget? What, because he did?” …
Balmer also shared a Facebook post supporting mask mandates during the COVID pandemic as well as rants slamming “toxic femininity,” and other posts complaining about gas prices and supporting Kanye West’s presidential run.
Kanye West has become rabidly anti-Semitic in recent years, and of course because Governor Shapiro is Jewish and the crime happened during Passover, Jew-hatred may have entered the mix.
It’s also possible that Balmer thought this crime would endear him to the ladies a la Luigi Mangione. Looking at Balmer’s creepy mugshot, I very much doubt it. But there’s a subset of women who are indeed attracted to homicidal lunatics.
Speaking of the more photographic Mangione, CNN seems to be giving his supporters a platform.
And speaking of other homicidal political lunatics, Ace describes two recent wannabee Trump-killers. The first is a Wisconsin 17-year-old who apparently murdered his parents in order to get funds and the wherewithal to assassinate Trump. This guy seems to have been a white supremacist who – get this – hated Trump.
Not to mention the Butler Pennsylvania resident who planned to assassinate both Trump and Musk as part of a leftist revolution.
There’s political assassination in the air, and a lot of people think they’ll be considered heroes for it.
And a question regarding the Shapiro arsonist is: what’s up with security at the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion? How did Balmer get so far?
Well, I’m glad it wasn’t a straight-up Jew-hating crime, at least. But with all the assassination chic flying around the internet, it’s not a big surprise that a mentally ill person off his meds went violent. Thanks be to God no one was hurt.
I’ve seen posts from lots of conservatives, politicians and commentators, decrying this violence even before the profile of the arsonist appeared. It would be good if we saw lots of posts from Democrat politicians and commentators decrying the arsons and vandalism aimed at Tesla.
Well, Josh Shapiro himself did say the following:
Now, I think he’s perhaps equivocating a bit here by speaking in broad terms about “violence in our society” without acknowledgement that the vast majority of this recent violence has been excused, encourged, and even praised by one particular side rather than the other. I think it’s fairly obvious to all but the most blinkered observers that the tenor and pitch of those on the Left all over social media as well as some public comments made by certain high profile Democrats has likely only emboldened these mentally derranged actor’s violent behavior.
The governor’s mansion is 28k square feet, its grounds take up an entire block. It’s fenced, but that’s a lot of area for a few State Troopers to cover 24/7. Balmer knew the area well, and was efficient getting in and out. Stuff happens…
Please no. I am 78, lived through the assassination and attempts. Please, no more.
About the Kennedys
1.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
And always in the head.
Click, and we’re watching TV:
The Plane, the Widow, the Mass.
We drive with our lights on.
2.
I wanted to write a poem,
Personal, about these men,
Public, I never knew–
A poem real as newsprint
Or the gates of Arlington.
3.
I told my next-to-last friend
About this poem, and he said,
“I’m tired of the Kennedys
And their getting themselves killed.”
This poem is for my last friend.
–Henri Coulette, “Collected Poems” (1990)
_______________________
Henri Coulette was a childhood friend of my father. I met him once. He was kind to me.
A house divided against itself cannot stand.
As has been pointed out here, the democrats have been promoting violence and vandalism for years. Did they think they were safe and would not become targets?