Bowers May Die…But His Creators?

I read in the paper this morning that Robert Bowers, the man who allegedly killed 11 people in a synagogue in Pittsburgh, may face the death penalty. I suppose that is inevitable. I am not a supporter of capital punishment. I don’t think it should be employed by a civilized nation. But, in this case, and with a crime this heinous, it is more or less certain that the DA will ask for it.

But, there’s the rub. Bowers is, well, out of his mind. I don’t know if “insane” is the precise technical description that should be employed. But he was hardly rational. His strange little mind is crowded with hate and bias and fear. And where did all that come from? Right wing media, hate radio, bigoted websites…and the whole network of dark money and sinister people who fund such things.

In other words, I argue that Bowers was simply a tool…a weapon…a hollow creature carefully filled with vitriol and napalm…and then unleashed upon the world. (You’ll recall the term, Stochastic Terrorism.)

Which means…

Yes, Bowers himself may die. But it will be merely a symbolic gesture. It will be akin to melting down the murder weapon, or pounding it into shards…

But the hand which pulled the trigger?

That is another matter.

And one which awaits genuine justice…