THE CORROSIVE POLITICS OF THE NEW YORK TIMES EDITORIAL BOARD THAT LED TO THE ORLANDO SHOOTING

[Draggingtree]

:

6/15/2016

The Corrosive Politics of the New York Times Editorial Board That Led to the Orlando Shooting

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 11:59 am

The New York Times editorial board is blaming the Orlando shooting on Republicans:

 

While the precise motivation for the rampage remains unclear, it is evident that Mr. Mateen was driven by hatred toward gays and lesbians. Hate crimes don’t happen in a vacuum. They occur where bigotry is allowed to fester, where minorities are vilified and where people are scapegoated for political gain. Tragically, this is the state of American politics, driven too often by Republican politicians who see prejudice as something to exploit, not extinguish.

 

To the contrary: the precise motivation for the attack is quite clear, actually. John Sexton explains:

 

Omar Mateen told a 911 dispatcher what his motivations were. He killed 49 people in solidarity with ISIS and their extreme Islamic beliefs. ISIS, it must be noted, routinely murders gays (or people suspected of being gay) by throwing them off tall buildings. In other words, there is no reason to doubt his hatred of gays could stem from his religious leanings.

 

In addition, we know the FBI had twice investigated Mateen for possible Islamic radicalism. Every authority from the president on down has indicated this was an act of home grown terrorism, an apparent case of self-radicalization. How much more precise to do we need to get on the killer’s motivation?

[Valin]

@Draggingtree