This past weekend, for reasons none of us will ever truly understand, four different people scattered cross the nation and globe, went utterly insane. Obviously, their insanity didn't just happen overnight. Their minds, as Morrison once sang, "had been squirming like toads," for a long time. In Los Angeles, the crime appeared personal. In Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, it appears pure hatred and perhaps dreams of genocide played a part. Up in Providence, RI, on the Brown University campus--well, who the fuck knows?
At Brown, a short, portly man, described in his 30's walked into the engineering building on Saturday while students were studying for final exams. By the time he made his escape two students had been shot to death and nine were wounded. Within hours of the shooting, police said they had a, "person of interest," in custody. A few hours after the announcement the authorities released the man, saying he wasn't involved. The search continues as everyone in Providence keeps their heads on a swivel.
At Bondi Beach in the Sydney metro area, members of the Jewish community gathered the first night of Hanukkah, the traditional Festival of Lights. Sajid Akram, 50, and his son, Naveed, 24, also showed up. The elder Akram was described as a resident of Australia, while his son, who had been born there was a citizen.
While Australia has some of the strictest gun laws in the world--you can't buy a semi-automatic assault style weapon there under any circumstances--apparently there isn't a limit on how many guns a single person can own. The elder Akram legally owned six. Last month, he and his kid made what is now a suspicious trip to the Philippines where ISIS cells are known to operate. On Bondi Beach, by the time it was over, 15 celebrants, aged 10 to mid 80s were dead. Sajid Akram was killed in the shootout, his son, Naveed was wounded and now sits under guard in a Sydney hospital.
Then, on Sunday afternoon, actor/director/political activist Rob Reiner and his wife Michele were found dead in their Brentwood home. The causes of death for both was reported to be stabbing. Their son Nick, who has a history of mental and substance abuse issues, is being held in connection with the murders.
On Saturday, a scant few hours after the shooting at Brown, Donald Trump posted a message at 5:44 pm, "I have been briefed on the shooting that took place at Brown University in Rhode Island. The FBI is on the scene. The suspect is in custody. God bless the victims and the families of the victims." At 6:03pm he posted, "The Brown University Police reversed their previous statement--The suspect is NOT in custody."
While he blamed the mistake on campus cops, at least he admitted he got it wrong. However, our man in the gilded Oval Office wasn't done sending out social media posts to the nation and world.
After Rob Reiner and his wife were confirmed as the victims in LA, Donald John Trump, President of the United States of America, the Commander in Chief, posted a lengthy message to the stunned country. It began, "A sad thing happened last night in Hollywood. Rob Reiner, a tortured and struggling, but once very talented movie director and comedy star, has passed away together with his wife Michile, reportedly due to the anger he caused others through his massive, unyielding, and incurable mind crippling disease known as TRUMP DERANGMENT SYNDROME, sometimes known as TDS."
The President went on to write, "He was known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession of Donald J. Trump, with his obvious paranoia reaching new heights as the Trump Administration surpassed all goals and expectations of greatness and with the Golden Age of America upon us like perhaps like never before. May Rob and Michele rest in peace!"
How narcissistic and cruel do you have to be to write shit like that? How despicably vindictive and petty? How thoroughly rotten and evil? Sane and decent people will never know. The answers are simply beyond their comprehension.
However, after reading that grotesque post, one thing has become perfectly clear to some of us. If Donald J. Trump isn't the Anti-Christ, he'll do until the real one shows up.
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