The Power of an Open Mind

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We’ve entered a new season of gun violence of late. Each time a mass shooting takes place, we now rush to read the tea leaves for evidence of the shooter being from the Left or Right. And each time a shooter is found to have been politically motivated in some way, those on the other side stand ready with narratives prepared. And, oh, how the disingenuous self-righteousness then oozes forth!

In fact, violence is committed by individuals all along the political spectrum. It serves no productive purpose to pretend otherwise. However, it’s also a fact that the majority of politically motivated murders committed in the U.S. are perpetrated by right-wing idealogues. It’s not even close. There are five right-wing motivated murders to every left-wing one. And, no, that’s not coming from some left-wing source. Those statistics were compiled by the right-leaning Cato Institute. Regardless, it doesn’t do any of us any good to dive into our respective narrative thickets each time a shooting takes place. We’re all better served by remaining patient and appropriately silent as any investigation methodically proceeds.


Bullets allegedly found at the scene of the Dallas ICE shooting.


I was prompted to reflect on this issue after seeing an image released by the FBI showing evidence found at the scene of the recent deadly attack on an ICE facility in Dallas. More precisely, the image was of bullets found with “ANTI-ICE” written on one of them with some sort of blue ink, perhaps. On the face of it, such a sentiment appears to indicate radical left thinking on the part of the shooter. Can there be a more unequivocal message than this that physical violence is what ICE agents can expect? On the other hand, at least a few other possible scenarios quickly came to mind: 

  1. The anti-ICE message might have been written by someone attempting to capitalize on the narrative promoted by this administration that the radical left is responsible for most political violence. After all, why were immigrants the only casualties? Was the allegedly left-leaning shooter really that inept, or were immigrants, in fact, the only ones being targeted?
  2. Might the shooter have been an agent of chaos? There are people who simply want to see the world burn. Such instigators slipped into Black Lives Matter protests in order to precipitate violence and mayhem. Did the shooter want to check out of this world knowing that social chaos followed in the wake of his demise?
  3. What if the attack targeted immigrants, but corrupt law enforcement agents planted the evidence to make it appear to be an anti-ICE shooting? Police have long been accused of planting evidence in order to secure convictions. Who would be in a position to call foul given that the shooter is now deceased?
  4. Or what if the shootings were a false flag operation from start to finish? I tend not to engage in conspiratorial thinking, but ICE is an agency that now operates anonymously and with very little, if any, constitutional oversight. Is it outside the realm of possibility that ICE itself could have staged the entire attack? After all, their use of masked and unidentifiable agents has been predicated on the specious claim that they are the ones in danger. Might they be trying to create cover for their position?

Of course, the realization soon followed that, while I hadn’t rushed off into the thicket of my own favorite narrative, I had certainly rushed into a thicket of speculation. I wasn’t going to solve this crime by sifting through evidence found on the internet. Why not simply wait for more information to come forth?

Yes, it behooves us all to conserve our brainpower and maintain our peace instead of getting lost in endless and fruitless speculation. It allows us to have the energy and clarity to respond in a way that might actually make a difference for the better when the time is more appropriate. Deferring judgment also keeps our minds open and flexible, which fosters deeper and more productive thought rather than the reflexive and conditioned responses that result when we fall back on our “favorite narrative.” Deep and authentic conversation is what we need right now. Shallow speculation and the parroting of views will only keep us stuck in our respective silos.

As I write this, no information appears to have come forth pointing to this shooting being anything other than the anti-ICE shooting it first appeared to be. However, statements from acquaintances of the shooter do seem to indicate that he may have been of the “chaos agent” ilk. Let’s watch our thoughts and watch our words. And let’s remain mindful of the lives lost and families torn apart by the violent actions and violent policies our nation is becoming known for.   

 

Peace,


    Mark

 

 

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 This post is in the Power, Practice, and Peace series.

Find a running list of all posts in this series by clicking here


Images


Photo of bullets courtesy of the FBI via:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckge9d26z1ro

 


Copyright 2025 by Mark Robert Frank

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