On the New Zealand Killings

Note- I have erased the names of terrorists.

Cartoon by Tom Toles

(SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.) - On March 15, 2019, B***** T*******, an Australian, attacked two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, killing 50 and wounding several others. He posted links on Facebook that connected to a live video of the massacre from a camera mounted on his body.

The video showed unspeakable slaughter as a gunman moved through the houses of worship, saying nothing, shooting as many people as he could.

He also left behind a 74-page “manifesto" declaring himself a “ racist” and “ethno-nationalist eco-fascist" and various diatribes against immigrants, Muslims, Jews and religious converts.

He wanted to defend “our lands” from “invaders,” to reduce immigration rates” and to deepen division and start a civil war in the United States. Calling immigrants invaders is right out of Trump’s playbook.

T****** further stated in his “manifesto” that he was inspired by mass murderer A*** B*****, who killed 77 people in Norway in 2011.

He also mentions Finsbury Park terrorist D**** O*****, and then goes on to rail against mass immigration and said he views Donald Trump a “symbol of renewed white identity.” Think about that for a moment — Tarrant links Trump with two mass murderers.

President Trump expressed sympathy for the victims, but played down the threat of white nationalism across the world, saying he didn’t consider it a rising threat despite data suggesting otherwise.

Yet, Trump keeps encouraging both violence and white nationalism, and white-nationalist violence is rising. The cartoon (right) by Tim Toles says it plainly, in one nutshell.

David Leonhardt of The New York Times put it nicely, “While Trump doesn’t deserve blame for any specific attack; he does deserve blame for using the world’s biggest bully pulpit to corrode our democracy and public safety.”