The internet continues to—god I hope this sentence ages well—lust for murder. It has truly brought almost all of us together. There does, however, seem to be a contingent of Op Ed contributors who value the life of an insurance CEO over… well, a lot of other people. I should start by saying that these are certainly real people who lead real lives and have real motivations for penning their articles, but aligning yourself against a man whom the unified proletariat has the absolute horn for seems… fake?
I don’t really have a conspiracy theory regarding this per se, but the relationship between media coverage and popular opinion on the matter is downright incongruous.
Furthermore, it’s harshing the vibe. Again, the vibe in question is murderlust, but still, read the room. If it is an attempt to cool the proverbial cockles it’s a sad and desperate one. I’d go so far as to say it reeks of fear.
Should the Wall Street Journal be publishing articles demanding the streets be filled with corporate blood? Probably not. Both because that is not the media’s job, but also because it would be pandering.
The issue is, what they are doing is begging sympathy for evil. We are to feel bad because the man had a family, but coming from people whose net worth has so many commas, it feels like an argument made in bad faith. While Elon Musk seems to be using his family as a more literal shield, the media at large is using the slain CEO’s family as a figurative one. I would argue that that’s worse than saying good riddance to a man who profited on the deaths of so many.
But then again, I don’t own enough shares to say what is and isn’t moral.