A man arrested for killing a health insurance boss had ‘ill will’ for corporations, it seems.
We should not be surprised by this – if he is convicted of murdering Brian Thompson.
Apparently Sergio Mangione was arrested in a McDonalds in Altoona, Pennsylvania after a customer recognised him. He was found in possession of a gun and a handwritten document that expressed “ill will” towards corporate America, according to police.
People who knew him have told media in the United States that Mangione had become withdrawn in recent months. He suffered with a painful back injury – is this the reason UnitedHealth CEO Brian Thompson was shot in the back last Wednesday (December 4, 2024)?
Buy Cruel Britannia in print here. Buy the Cruel Britannia ebook here. Or just click on the image!
According to the BBC,
The three-page document found in his possession said: “These parasites had it coming” and “I do apologise for any strife and trauma, but it had to be done”, a senior law enforcement official told the New York Times.
Investigators say the words “deny”, “defend” and “depose” were written on shell casings found at the scene of Mr Thompson’s murder.
Officials believe this could be a reference to what critics call the “three Ds of insurance” – tactics used by insurance companies to reject payment claims by patients in America’s complicated healthcare system.
The BBC also reported that a search of Mangione’s backpack uncovered what police called a “ghost gun” – which could have been 3D-printed – and a loaded magazine with six rounds of 9mm ammunition. Prosecutors said he was also carrying a US passport and $10,000 (£7,840) cash, $2,000 of it in foreign currency, though Mangione disputed the amount in court.
We can’t really discuss what this suggests about the suspect – but the implications for the godawful US health and health insurance system and a different matter.
This is exactly the kind of system that people like Nigel Farage, many Tories and even a few powerful Labour politicians want to introduce into the UK – a system in which insurance firms become rich by acting as gatekeepers for what may best be described as a health protection racket.
In such a system, these suited businesspeople decide who receives treatment for injury and illness – according to the state of their firm’s balance books – or patients are given emergency treatment only to discover that the health insurance they have taken out may be read in a way that means the company does not have to pay their bill.
In a system like that, it should be no surprise if people take the law into their own hands to deal with the perpetrators of their misfortune.
It is clearly a system that should never be brought to the UK. Here, the best health treatment should be a right – not a privilege determined by the quality of our lawyers.
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Be among the first to know what’s going on! Here are the ways to manage it:
1) Register with us by clicking on ‘Subscribe’ (bottom right of the home page). You can then receive notifications of every new article that is posted here.
2) Follow VP on Twitter @VoxPolitical
3) Like the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/VoxPolitical/
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
4) You could even make Vox Political your homepage at http://voxpoliticalonline.com
5) Follow Vox Political writer Mike Sivier on BlueSky
6) Join the MeWe page at https://mewe.com/p-front/voxpolitical
7) Feel free to comment!
And do share with your family and friends – so they don’t miss out!
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
Cruel Britannia is available
in either print or eBook format here:
The Livingstone Presumption is available
in either print or eBook format here:
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
Man arrested for killing a health insurance boss had ‘ill will’ for corporations
A man arrested for killing a health insurance boss had ‘ill will’ for corporations, it seems.
We should not be surprised by this – if he is convicted of murdering Brian Thompson.
Apparently Sergio Mangione was arrested in a McDonalds in Altoona, Pennsylvania after a customer recognised him. He was found in possession of a gun and a handwritten document that expressed “ill will” towards corporate America, according to police.
People who knew him have told media in the United States that Mangione had become withdrawn in recent months. He suffered with a painful back injury – is this the reason UnitedHealth CEO Brian Thompson was shot in the back last Wednesday (December 4, 2024)?
Buy Cruel Britannia in print here. Buy the Cruel Britannia ebook here. Or just click on the image!
According to the BBC,
The BBC also reported that a search of Mangione’s backpack uncovered what police called a “ghost gun” – which could have been 3D-printed – and a loaded magazine with six rounds of 9mm ammunition. Prosecutors said he was also carrying a US passport and $10,000 (£7,840) cash, $2,000 of it in foreign currency, though Mangione disputed the amount in court.
We can’t really discuss what this suggests about the suspect – but the implications for the godawful US health and health insurance system and a different matter.
This is exactly the kind of system that people like Nigel Farage, many Tories and even a few powerful Labour politicians want to introduce into the UK – a system in which insurance firms become rich by acting as gatekeepers for what may best be described as a health protection racket.
In such a system, these suited businesspeople decide who receives treatment for injury and illness – according to the state of their firm’s balance books – or patients are given emergency treatment only to discover that the health insurance they have taken out may be read in a way that means the company does not have to pay their bill.
In a system like that, it should be no surprise if people take the law into their own hands to deal with the perpetrators of their misfortune.
It is clearly a system that should never be brought to the UK. Here, the best health treatment should be a right – not a privilege determined by the quality of our lawyers.
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Be among the first to know what’s going on! Here are the ways to manage it:
1) Register with us by clicking on ‘Subscribe’ (bottom right of the home page). You can then receive notifications of every new article that is posted here.
2) Follow VP on Twitter @VoxPolitical
3) Like the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/VoxPolitical/
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
4) You could even make Vox Political your homepage at http://voxpoliticalonline.com
5) Follow Vox Political writer Mike Sivier on BlueSky
6) Join the MeWe page at https://mewe.com/p-front/voxpolitical
7) Feel free to comment!
And do share with your family and friends – so they don’t miss out!
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
Cruel Britannia is available
in either print or eBook format here:
The Livingstone Presumption is available
in either print or eBook format here:
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
you might also like
Let’s start the New Year with some hopeful news
Three letters: F-O-X
How much can YOU pay? A&E charges would speed NHS privatisation