I, for one, was not surprised in the least when word came down that a judge had dropped the terror charges against Luigi Mangione. I was not taken aback by the fact that his supporters went wild with joy at the news.
There is an energy in reckless rebellion, and it comes with a confirmation of identity. That identity, of course, is that the rebel in question is not just stunning and brave, but a reformer and a pioneer.They latch on to those identities because they have none of their own. And there is the fact that all the “cool kids” and celebrities, both current and has-beens, are all for destruction.The irony is that those celebrities and power brokers will avoid the worst of the revolution.
In school, we were taught again and again about the glorious French Revolution. Never a word was uttered about the Reign of Terror which followed. It was a time of such chaos that no one was safe, not even the people who had previously bought popcorn, peanuts, and programs while they watched nobility being marched to the guillotine.The same scenario was played out in Stalin’s Russia, Mao’s China, and Pol Pot’s Cambodia. The young “revolutionaries” of today do not have the slightest idea of what they are hurtling toward. Rebellion and destruction are fun. Building things can be fun, but it is more sweat than anything else.
Contrary to what one may believe, when someone starts a small business, the local chamber of commerce does not show up with a dump truck brimming with $100 bills. Far from it. There is equipment and products to buy, marketing to be done, and fees and taxes to be paid. Oh, lord, the taxes. I had no idea that purchasing a piece of equipment that depreciated so significantly would result in over a thousand dollars in property taxes. But the county wanted its taxes, and who was I to argue? Actually, I did argue and lost.
And there is no guarantee that once you hang out your “OPEN” sign, customers and clients will beat the proverbial path to your door. It may take a while for the word to circulate, and you are subject to the same whims of the economy as anyone else. And if money is tight, the customers may stop coming. There are a number of variables that could wreck your dreams and plans within a week or less.
Some say that owning your own business is an exhilarating adventure. The truth is that it’s a bit like riding a rollercoaster without any safety restraints. Sometimes, you just hang on for dear life and hope like hell you don’t fly out of the car on the next hill. And I suppose that is exhilarating, in its own, terrifying way.
But while you build a business or create a product or service to make a living, you also do it because you think you can make or do something better than anyone else. There is a sense of innovation and contribution, along with the idea that the world may be a better place for your efforts. And if you’re lucky, you may break even. If you’re really lucky, you might make a profit.
There is no doubt that the medical system, from the insurance companies to the hospital corporations, is broken. It is unnecessarily expensive, convoluted, unnavigable, and frustrating. Ask any patient or any nurse, and probably a host of doctors. Two years ago, I wrote a Substack about the nursing crisis. Every nurse I spoke to told me the same thing: problems with cost and care stemmed from the greed of corporate executives.
Luigi Mangione was the scion of a family of means. He had access to money and to connections. He and his compatriots might have decided to build something better than what the corporations have to offer. It is not an easy proposition, and arguably a quixotic one. But they have chosen the endorphin rush and cheap rewards of blood, fire, bullets, and riots.
But building something better is possible.
That idea of building something better against all odds is an indicator of faith, not merely faith in the country or “American ideals,” but faith in oneself and in the idea that people are still capable of inventing and innovating, even against the odds. Great things are achieved by those who seek to defy those odds and risk everything, as Kipling said, “on one turn of pitch-and-toss.”
Besides, tilting bravely at windmills to make a dream come true beats the alternative. Just ask the unnamed victims of Stalin, Mao, and Pol Pot.
