After Osama bin Laden (OBL) attacked the U.S. on September 11, 2001, no one attempted to explain away the terrorist act by suggesting his motivation stemmed from confusion over his religion. Clearly he was motivated by Islamism to murder more than 3,000 innocent Americans that day. But there was no confusion by OBL about the religion’s mandate that all non-Muslims submit to it or die. His motivation was to create as much carnage as possible and, by doing so, to further his own notoriety as a soldier in Prophet Muhammad’s army.
While some U.S. political activists, such as Noam Chomsky, promoted the idea that the attacks were unintended consequences of American foreign policy, there was no suggestion that religious confusion on OBL’s part had anything to do with the act.
Yet, in the aftermath of the recent August 27th shooting at a Catholic school in South Minneapolis by 23-year old “transgender” shooter, Robert (Robin) Westman, during morning Mass, killing at least two children and wounding 18 others before then committing suicide, we are seeing “gender confusion” offered as some kind of a rational understanding.
The shooting took months of planning, as revealed by Westman’s journal, which included detailed sketches of the school/church. He knew the layout well, having attended the facility as a child. His mother had worked in its business office for five years before retiring in 2021. He posted videos just hours before the shooting, after recently and legally purchasing three weapons—a rifle, shotgun and pistol, all of which were used in the assault, and all of which bore anti-Trump slogans. He took up a shooting position from outside the building, firing through windows into the room where Mass was being held. Police recovered more than one hundred shell casings from the area.
Westman had legally changed his name from Robert to Robin in 2019 as court documents stated he “identifies as a female.” An entry made in his journal while in the planning stages of the shooting read:
‘I don’t want to dress girly all the time but I guess sometimes I really like it. I know I am not a woman but I definitely don’t feel like a man. I really like my outfit. I look pretty, smart and modest. I think I want to wear something like this for my shooting.’
Just like OBL did, Westman sought to cause as much human carnage as possible. This was evidenced by his placement, just before the attack, of two-by-fours on the doors of the school to trap victims inside. He basically sought to create the human equivalent of “shooting fish in a barrel.” Such placement supports the claim by authorities that Westman was “obsessed with the idea of killing children.” They added he “appeared to hate all of us” and “wanted to watch children suffer.”
It was in March 2023 that another transgender, Audrey Hale, age 28, chose to shoot victims at her former Christian school in Nashville, killing three children and three adults. Like Westman, she too sought notoriety as per the findings of an investigative report concluded just four months ago. After inflicting 14 minutes of carnage upon those inside, she was shot and killed by police. It was that incident that prompted Westman’s school to request additional security assistance from Minnesota Governor Tim Walz—a request that seems to have been ignored.
Yet, despite the obvious violent and evil mindset of a disturbed Westman, when Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey first spoke about the attack, he outrageously put the victimization focus on a group other than the children, declaring: “Anybody who is using this as an opportunity to villainize our trans community or any other community out there has lost their sense of common humanity.”
Frey went on to belittle what the faithful always do in such tragic times stating:
These were American families, and the amount of pain that they are suffering right now is extraordinary. Don’t just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now. These kids were literally praying.
Ironically, in a four-page note Westman left his parents, he wrote for just an opposite approach by mourners, calling on them to “pray for the victims and their families.”
Westman went on in his note to apologize to his parents and family, acknowledging his actions would cause a “storm of chaos.” He urged them to move on and “change your names if you must.” Indicating he had been “severely depressed” and “suicidal for years (having) lost all hope recently,” he added, “I was corrupted by this world and have learned to hate what life is…I’m tired of the pain this world gives out.”
It is difficult to believe anyone close to Westman failed to grasp he was on the edge. As noted by Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara, “Everything we’ve seen so far is a classic pathway to an active shooter,” adding police have seen nothing “specific to trigger the amount of hate that occurred….”
There is a doctrine in tort law by which one who has the last clear chance to prevent a negligent action from occurring but fails to do so is liable for the consequences. The hatred embraced by Westman had to be obvious to his parents. Thus, it was they who had the last clear chance to take the appropriate steps to stop him by getting him the mental health assistance he so desperately needed.
But the truth of the matter is that Westman may well have been beyond getting help, based on the depth of the hatred he possessed. While it would be reasonable to think his parents should have acted, we should consider the fact progressives, like Frey, have for years been breeding an atmosphere of complicit complacency by which behaviors outside the social norm are encouraged. By doing so, these activists—by downplaying the threat to society—become complicit in the complacency of parents, like Westman’s. They so much wanted to believe their son’s behavior was socially acceptable in today’s world that he was allowed to become a threat to others. Tragically, in a case involving yet another transgender shooter, it was children who were targeted by these shooters who acted upon a senseless need to kill the most innocent members of our society.
Image: Free image, Pixabay license.