Deny, Defend, Depose

Luigi Mangione look-alike contest in New York involving
lots of 'innocent' fun for contestants and audience alike.

A shocking shooting incident occurred in Manhattan a few days ago when a young man stalked, then shot, the CEO of United Healthcare, Brian Thompson, twice in the back and killed him. It was in daylight with no attempt to hide the public murder. So far, so shocking, though murders involving guns in America seem to the rest of the world, to be worryingly commonplace.

The blurred image of the assassination as Mangione takes aim

Brian Thompson, C.E.O United Healthcare; executed in a New York street.
Remembered by those who knew him as
one of 'the good guys'

Perhaps the most shocking aspect of this murder is the reaction of much of the rest of the American world. The 26- year-old-shooter, Luigi Mangione, is well-educated [high-end prep school and Ivy League degree] and from a prosperous, highly respected Baltimore family, perhaps the most respected in Baltimore’s Little Italy. Nicholas Mangione was born there into a poor immigrant family in 1925 and from these modest beginnings, including serving in the Navy in the Pacific in WW2, Nicholas built a series of successful business enterprises in and around Baltimore covering country clubs, golf courses, assisted living facilities. The family has donated one million dollars to the Baltimore General Hospital among other good causes and is famous for its philanthropy. Within the tight-knit Italian community, there is enduring loyalty to Nick Mangione who died in 2008 and who was proud of both the family name and generosity, and its acknowledged distance from any Mafia connection. Luigi is one of his 37 grandchildren and an heir to the Mangione vast family fortune.

Mangione carried this gun and multiple IDs

Luigi has made no attempt to obfuscate his motive for the killing. He seems to have a highly critical opinion of much of corporate America, especially of the highly expensive Health Insurance section of the business world. The bullets he used, easily retrieved by officials, had ‘Deny; Defend; Depose’ scratched on them. These words closely mirror the expressions used by the Health Insurance industry in response to rejected claims. When Luigi was arrested, he was carrying a hand-written note outlining his ill will towards the corporate elite and including the message, “These parasites had it coming.” Clearly, the murder, one might say, execution, was planned. His obvious ire against the Health Care industry and corporate elites in general, has definitely touched a public nerve and seems to portray a personal grudge carried to extremes. It may be that Luigi Msngione has some personal problems unassuaged by his privileged background.

Gorgeous Luigi appealed for his appearance, his 
social status and Ivy League background

Indeed, the most puzzling and frightening aspect of the Mangione/Thompson murder is the public reaction to it. It seems to have unleashed a torrent of abuse and vitriol against the Health Insurance community with approval of the Mangione murderous reaction and precious little sympathy with the Thompson family loss. Brian Thompson, 50 years old, married with two children, was killed in revenge for corporate, not personal, greed and misbehaviour. This is cause for anxiety in the entire Health Insurance industry. CNN describes the public feeling as “long-festering frustration at a health insurance system that is unique in the developed world as it squeezes profits for private companies from patients.” Apparently, a “sizable minority of Americans have reported being in medical debt.” In a Gallup Poll taken just before the murder, 62% of Americans think that it is the responsibility of the federal government to make sure all Americans have health care coverage. This new data shows a gradual reversal from eleven years ago during the roll-out of private health insurance created by the Affordable Care Act/ Obamacare. Then a 42% minority felt it was the responsibility of the federal government.

The photogenic Mangione charm, the second image taken
just before he murdered Thompson

The personal and strong support for the assassin, Luigi Mangione, is at least partially based on his good looks. Cultural critic Blake Thornton suggests that Americans are almost programmed to trust and empathise with young men who look like Mangione. He is being described as the ‘hot assassin’. Professor Tanya Horeck, an expert on digital culture and crime, from Anglia University, believes that social media have given those sentiments massive visibility and helped them to spread. She told the BBC that the Internet has caused a blurring of the lines between celebrity and criminality, adding that when people see an image of a good-looking person pop up, their first thoughts are of lust, not moral criticism.

In the U.K. the NHS [National Health Service] has the status of a quasi-religion while the population feels equally able to criticise its shortcomings.  However, it is unthinkable for the Brits to have to find affordable health insurance; we rightly expect the NHS, our old friend, to deal with our medical problems even though we increasingly must wait for appointments about which dereliction we
complain bitterly. I have recently been boasting of the unusual speed with which my necessary cataract problems have been dealt with. From initial appointment with ophthalmologist [Nov 13^th 2024] to second cataract removal [Jan 15^th 2025] demonstrates an amazing sprint achieved courtesy of NewMedica opening in Bury in late November. Had this not happened it would have been around a 34 week wait. A public conversation needs to happen in the UK with a view to perhaps changing the funding model for the NHS. However, a brave

NewMedica, Bury St Edmunds; opened Nov 2024

government or politician or popular public figure needs to be the figurehead and so far, there is no discernible Joan of Arc in view.