Let's be real honest, should we?
‘This is unfair! And an insult to the American people and to the lived experience...’. Why Luigi Mangione did it?
December 4th, 2024, New York City, New York. A boy only 23 years old, stealthily but inescapably, lies in wait for his intended target: Brian Thompson. C.E.O. of the largest insurance company in the United States of America. Which, by extension, is also the whole world (and yes, in this case, the simile between what happens in America and the rest of the planet is applicable). But don't panic, and don't start sharpening your criticism of me. This post does contain critical analysis but on interesting questions about how a young, handsome, beautiful billionaire ends up blinding another billionaire to life....
And no, this is not just a matter of zeros in the bank account. Or, at least, it's not the way you imagine it... Personally, I live in a country where healthcare is free and where the theory works wonders as opposed to the practice. What's more, most people where I'm from don't have private health insurance and are not able to pay premiums to ensure a higher quality of health than what is offered in the public sector... However, what Luigi Mangione did on that cold December morning is not only a current trend, and a reflection of America's profound injustices towards the vast majority of its citizens, but it is a very serious statement of intent.
What am I talking about? Is it a human right, is it a privilege; are we all human beings equal before the law; do our governments care equally about us? I don't intend to answer these questions (for now...) for the same reason that keeps me from being immaculate in what I am not entirely fluent in. However, you don't need to be a judge to be able to see the gigantic injustice of being a commercial subject of an insurance company. I mean, we are talking about human beings; about you and me. Of your children and mine, of everyone you love?
Do we all have a price? But not in the sense of acquiring us, but in the sense of valuing us, like a bargaining chip? I am thinking of Marx, for example, who parted the waters in his time by introducing the concept of ‘class struggle’ and ‘dictatorship of the proletariat’. Obviously, the young Mangione is not a seminary God, nor an enlightened sage... But neither is he a common delinquent or a heartless criminal.... The implications behind that event of December 4th will be the trigger for more similar acts. I hope I'm wrong, but if you are really sick, with a limiting condition and no help, and you receive the following three words ‘deny, depose, defend’ as a response, sooner or later you will get something like what happened.
Debate is heated, both sides maintain solid arguments. But, my Christian philosophy makes me question something very serious using Occam's principle ‘Is selling a pencil the same as trading in sensitive issues for Humanity such as health or home (a house or flat)? I am convinced that the answer is catastrophic. And it is that disappointing conclusion that makes me think of Luigi Mangione and his action in front of that C.E.O. I believe that evil can be done in very creative ways? Is Magione a murderer? Absolutely, is the C.E.O. of an insurance company innocent? Highly unlikely. So, is what Luigi did justifiable? No. The end does not justify the means. And no, one injustice cannot be covered by another... While he has lost his freedom, things remain (and will remain) the same... ‘This is unjust! And an insult to the American People and to the lived experience...’ Why Luigi Mangione did it?
#philosophy #trueevents #healthcare #thoughts #unfairness #death #lives #obscene #writing #unabomber