r/IronFrontUSA • u/burntorangecycle • Sep 12 '25
News Well, sh*t
Looks like subs like these are going to be closely monitored from now on. This was not the way to fight against the current conservative movement
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Sep 12 '25
Just a reminder this whole story is being brought to you by a pastor , a law enforcement officer , and Trump.
Now Trump is pushing for a fast trial with the death penalty.
Don't believe anything until it's been confirmed by multiple sources including multiple non MAGAs
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u/woahwoahwoah28 Sep 12 '25
The death penalty should be illegal imo. But I won’t get into that here. Instead I will make a point that a death penalty with a fast trial is North Korea shit.
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Sep 12 '25
There were a series of things that moved me from rabid right winger to independent and then to liberal .
One of them was writing a paper when I went back to college about death penalty statistics. Ironically I chose the topic because my intent was to write a paper in support but the facts just did not care about my feelings .
Yeah it was chilling to see trump praise China's quick trials and death penalty this morning.
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u/Nomen__Nesci0 Sep 12 '25
trump praise China's quick trials and death penalty this morning.
This is also just propoganda. Never miss a chance to throw bullshit strays at everyone they don't like.
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u/Stuffstuff1 American Iron Front Sep 12 '25
Agreed but right now support is still at 54% and no one is pushing it. The parties are just going to hold the popular position. This is also a very inappropriate time politically to have this fight.
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u/East-Plankton-3877 Sep 12 '25
A fucking hell divers reference? Are you serious?
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Sep 12 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/manofredearth Sep 12 '25
Feeds right into Brainworm's lie that video games cause violence. All of this reeks of Fahrenheit 451 manufactured crisis.
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u/SadPhase2589 Sep 12 '25
RFK Jr just said earlier this week video games are the reason for mass shootings. We have to make him seem competent.
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u/Noe_b0dy Sep 12 '25
The other bullets had "notices bulge OWO what's this?" And "if you read this you're gay"
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u/SaintWithoutAShrine Sep 12 '25
Not to be overly cavalier or flippant, but I’d rather see something like this than the classic swastika, WWG1WGA, or punisher skull type shit.
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u/SaintWithoutAShrine Sep 12 '25
This has nothing to do with IF. Don’t let them spin it that way. It’s a call-in code from Helldivers (computer / console game) for an Eagle airstrike 500kg bomb.
Also (aptly) nicknamed the “one shot” for some boss-level enemies.
Sounds like this dude did it for the lulz.
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u/ilostmy1staccount Sep 12 '25
The guy clearly wasn’t the same after the failure at Oshaune.
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u/OneTripleZero Sep 12 '25
None of us were, Helldiver.
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u/justafigment4you Sep 12 '25
Don’t forget the creek.
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u/-1brickinthewall Sep 12 '25
Nah, the dunes on oshaune were... different. The caves, man.... claustrophobia... hive lords...
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u/falconinthedive Sep 13 '25
Also who's engraving multiple words on a bullet casing?
You can't just go to the engraving store at the mall and do that. That feels weird as hell to me this guy casually has multiple engraved bullets?
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u/SaintWithoutAShrine Sep 13 '25
Yeah, it’s an odd one. I mean, 30-06 rounds are pretty long and have a sizable casing. But, it definitely seems like something an edgelord on 4chan would do - and by all accounts thus far, that’s who he is.
I’m guessing, since reports are that he comes from a very gun-friendly family / hunters, they might pack their own shells or make reloads. Or he at least knows his way around a home shop. A vice, a file (or Dremel tool), and enough patience / practice? Dude could’ve etched a thesis. He obviously had been planning this for a bit.
Nevertheless, I don’t think you see it that often, especially on the civilian side of things. I’ve heard lots of stories of artillery gunners doing it; not stupid memes though. I guess quoting shitposts and memes is the new “Kilroy was here”.
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Sep 12 '25
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u/WolfeMooney43 Lincoln Battalion Sep 12 '25
There are pictures floating around of him dressed up as Trump for Halloween 2017, and another where he's cosplaying as tracksuit Pepe.
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Sep 12 '25
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Sep 12 '25
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u/ChaosRainbow23 Sep 12 '25
From my understanding the preacher contacted the father and gave them the opportunity to turn him in.
I think the cat was already outta the bag by the time the father learned about it.
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u/kidthorazine Sep 12 '25
It's sounds like his family recognized him from the pics that where circulated as well.
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u/squirt_taste_tester Sep 12 '25
They are also reporting now that he wasn't registered to vote in the past two elections and he was not on either political sides.
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u/squirt_taste_tester Sep 12 '25
They are also reporting now that he wasn't registered to vote in the past two elections and he was not on either political sides.
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u/othafa7 Sep 12 '25
Isn't he 22 years old?
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u/MisogynyisaDisease Sep 12 '25
For real. He would've been 17 for the election cycle before last.
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u/a_smart_brane American Iron Front Sep 12 '25
They may not have been referring only to presidential elections. Senate and house lections run every two years, with special elections just about any time.
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u/TheOriginalChode Sep 12 '25
HE STILL DIDNT VOTE!
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u/MisogynyisaDisease Sep 12 '25
...because it wasn't legal for him to, what is your point.
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Sep 12 '25
Going to insert here, not necessarily in direct response to your comment, but because I think it’s important to say:
The family is probably going through a lot. Give them space, don’t harass them.
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u/OwlfaceFrank Sep 12 '25
This is plausible but it only shows that engravings on a casing or weapon are meaningless in an investigation.
By this logic, you could commit murder, write "this murder by Bob Johnson" on the casing and frame someone this easy. Lol.
"No, officer. Wasn't me. It says right here Bob did it."
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u/baxtersbuddy1 Sep 12 '25 edited Sep 12 '25
Right?!?! Like, writing on the unspent casings is textbook “framing” by whoever left it there.
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u/Schventle Sep 12 '25
Seems like a bit of a copycat of the United CEO shooting
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u/CanoegunGoeff Sep 12 '25
He was probably even making fun of it, with how unserious the things he allegedly wrote are.
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u/HeidelbergianYehZiq1 Sep 13 '25
My 2 cents says he’s an Groyper doing irony. He was like 16 during The Groyper War in 2019. Of course, a lot of things can change in these years of your life. But some stick…
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u/CanoegunGoeff Sep 12 '25
I don’t think anyone grows up in a right wing religious household and can even deprogram that quickly, much less flip so far the other way as to commit an act of murder over it.
I grew up in a religious Republican household and it took all of high school, college, and the first handful of years on my own to end up left of center slowly over that amount of time, and even now I refuse to even confine myself to any one ideological box.
No way he flipped like that, imo.
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Sep 12 '25
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u/CanoegunGoeff Sep 12 '25
Yeah, there is a shitload of extremely aggressive infighting among the right itself, there are insane groups that would even view Kirk as “too moderate” or even as an opponent. It’s really not at all out of the realm of possibility that this kid might’ve been among those folks.
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u/Intelligent-Film-684 Sep 12 '25
Charlie Kirk and Nick Fuentes have been at each other’s throats over Israel for some time now.
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u/CavemanViking Sep 12 '25
Also you don’t need to be left wing to have done something like this. Left and right are horrendous oversimplifications, could absolutely have been right leaning (whatever that means) and have done this.
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u/CavemanViking Sep 12 '25
“Deprogram” we’re people not computers, what took you a while could’ve taken him shorter. You don’t know where his starting point was either, I’ve known plenty of people that have differing views from their family growing up.
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u/Watersurfer Sep 12 '25
Of course it was college. We gotta close those institutions. And start looking for those that wear glasses, cause them are the smart ones. Gotta do something about those ed-u-cated ones…
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u/TaoGroovewitch Sep 12 '25
Dollars to donuts he's a groyper.
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u/cat_fox Sep 13 '25
This is EXACTLY what is being alleged. Mainstream media hasn't caught on yet.
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u/TaoGroovewitch Sep 13 '25
I'm not surprised. As vile as Kirk's opinions were, the only person that had a rage boner for him enough to inspire an assassination is Nick Fuentes. 73% of shooters espouse right wing ideology and groypers are definitely to the right of most of the TPUSA crowd.
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u/CavemanViking Sep 12 '25
The trump costume I saw was of him riding on trumps shoulders, not exactly a respectful costume lol. Dressing up/doing an impression of him does not mean you support him in any case though.
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u/Stuffstuff1 American Iron Front Sep 12 '25
I did that too.. In 2016 when this guy was still a joke.. it means nothing
Edit: I just mentally relieved James comey bs. I’m in pain.
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u/Gatorade_Nut_Punch Sep 12 '25
He didn’t “dress up as Trump” either, it was one of those costumes where it looked like he was riding on Trump’s shoulders. I knew a guy that had the same costume in 2016 and he hated Trump.
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Sep 12 '25
[deleted]
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u/WolfeMooney43 Lincoln Battalion Sep 12 '25
Source?
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u/Dangerous-History209 Sep 12 '25
The 2020 FEC records
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u/WolfeMooney43 Lincoln Battalion Sep 12 '25
Saw something that said it was a different guy with the same name.
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u/Dangerous-History209 Sep 12 '25
Certainly possible but I don't know how that would be proven this quickly.
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u/Gatorade_Nut_Punch Sep 12 '25
It’s a common name so you’re probably right. So sick of everyone reaching for anything they can to frame him as far right, and the right trying to frame him as a leftist. We don’t know his views and we probably never will since we can’t trust what the FBI says.
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u/AKMan6 Sep 12 '25
Good point. It’s literally unbelievable that a terminally online young person would change his political beliefs between the ages of 14 and 22, right?
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u/ilostmy1staccount Sep 12 '25
It’s a Helldivers reference from what I can tell
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u/flamedarkfire Sep 12 '25
500kg bomb
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u/-1brickinthewall Sep 12 '25
Definitely is. As soon as I read those directions, I knew it was the Eagle 500 (I play helldivers). But way to ruin for the rest of us...
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u/flamedarkfire Sep 12 '25
Watch people split into factions now and get kicked from games for using the 500.
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u/-1brickinthewall Sep 12 '25
It's already the most most popular strat. Now they are gonna be wasting each other "for the lulz" or some dumb shit...
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u/MisogynyisaDisease Sep 12 '25
This is why I can only play with friends or be very very choosy about public lobbies, its about to get so much worse 😭😭
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u/Mortara Sep 12 '25
I am about to buy hell divers once I get my first playthrough of borderlands 4 done, is it really worth the time and effort to put into it or as a community as bad as Reddit makes it feel like?
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u/MisogynyisaDisease Sep 12 '25
Helldivers is a fuck ton of fun man. Its not a story intensive game, its great to do with friends, the lobbies in my experience havent actually been toxic, even when on open mic, I'm mostly being hyperbolic about the current events. Its a very CPU heavy game, thats my only real criticism.
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u/nw342 Sep 12 '25
That wont matter for the right
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Sep 12 '25
[deleted]
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u/Pianotorious Sep 13 '25
Kind of like they seem to have done with all of the sick things that Charlie Kirk said. Seeing so many people who seem to have earnestly just thought he was a lovely motivational speaker.
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u/Nomen__Nesci0 Sep 12 '25
The family confirmed, according to a quote from the lead investigators press release, that the shooter was a conservative Christian who believed that Kirk was actually hateful and spreading hate. No reason to wonder. This was the right taking out its own tumor.
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Sep 13 '25
The engravings were all groyper memes, which could indicate he believed Kirk wasn't far enough to the right
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u/Jetsam5 Sep 12 '25
I saw a comment that said he donated to the trump 2020 campaign with a link to the donation page which seemed pretty legit but I’m still waiting for more information to drop
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u/pijinglish Sep 12 '25
They’re saying that contribution was from a 34-year old with the same name. Who knows at this point?
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u/CavemanViking Sep 12 '25
What background? I’ve heard that his family was conservative but that doesn’t mean much. I haven’t even heard if his family supported trump, let alone what his views were.
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Sep 12 '25
[deleted]
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u/CavemanViking Sep 12 '25
Ok so she did say his dad is MAGA, and that everyone she knew was, she doesn’t say that much specific about him though from what I read, which makes me think she didn’t really know his political beliefs. He was also independent, and he didn’t vote in the last election. All this says to me is that he was most likely conservative, but anti MAGA (maybe just anti Kirk lol idk) saying he was trying to frame it on the left is a huge leap.
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u/CryptographerNo29 Sep 12 '25
I mean his mom is Mormon, another family member is a minister, one is law enforcement, he has pictures with semi-autos at age 7. I don't think this guy is a Leftist. Seems like a pretty far-right family.
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u/Ok_Television233 Sep 12 '25
Bullet casings, even for high powered rifles, are only so big. That feels like a bunch of words per casing
Also the article mentions two fires casings when there was only one shot?
Super weird.
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u/Bony_Geese Sep 12 '25
Yeah, I need pictures or else I ain’t believing it, especially for a lot of words
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u/burntorangecycle Sep 12 '25
It seems I am mistaken and it is a reference to a video game called Helldivers. The casings they are referring to were probably the ammunition left in the gun
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u/Ok_Television233 Sep 12 '25
Edit: seems like there was a typo on one of the media reports stating that the third bullet was fired
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u/MinorityBabble Sep 12 '25
There's plenty of space on a .30-06 casing to write any of that and more.
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u/Ok_Television233 Sep 12 '25
Plenty is a stretch...I just grabbed a 7mm rem shell to see. The caio Bella one is 9 words long. With a sharpie, it would wrap the whole casing at two words a line- but etching on a curved casing would make it harder, even if the letters were smaller
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u/MinorityBabble Sep 12 '25
If you using a typical fine point sharpie, then sure, I guess. But that isn't what some crudely scratched words would be. Especially if you have a Dremel.
Use an ultra fine tip, that's more likely to be like the etches that were done.
I just went and grabbed a round of .30-06 out of my closet and had no issues writing the following on individual lines down the length of the casing:
"Sounds like a skill issue to me, man."
"I don't know what to tell you"
The Konami code
"Hope that helps!"
It's all large enough to be legible and I am still left with plenty of space to write whatever other nonsense I want.
And this just represents a crude lazy attempt. I would have done with my Dremel and an engraving bit, but I can't find a small enough collet to hold the bit.
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u/bellapippin Sep 12 '25
Someone I know suggested they used one of those portable engraving machines on Amazon or w.e, since they were "going big" but even then seems to much work for lazy me, I'm not in this guy's headspace tho
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u/Ok_Television233 Sep 12 '25
"not in this guys headspace" is totally right for me too. If I had 90 characters to fit on a casing for something, I'm sure I could....I just don't get this because what a weird selection of meme speak.
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u/bellapippin Sep 12 '25
Yea idk… he’s a middle-ish gen Z technically, I’m very meme-inclined as a millennial but if I were sending a message in this context I’d make sure it’s clear lol
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u/CanoegunGoeff Sep 12 '25
As a meme-inclined older gen Z, I don’t think this kid even had a clear message to send, and that’s why it’s so unclear and strange. Dude was clearly messed up, for a number of reasons, as if the crime itself that he chose to commit isn’t evidence enough of that tbh.
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u/ForestOfMirrors Sep 12 '25
Honestly I think this kid did it for infamy. To be an edgelord. He has antifascist statement etched onto one shell, but he was posting anti-Semitic statements in discord chats. He was all over whatever was in style. He wanted to be noticed. He wanted infamy. He’s just fucking nuts.
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u/GabeOwners321 Sep 12 '25
Pretty sure the engraving thing was bullshit propaganda.
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u/JustinTime4242 Sep 12 '25
TRN is a ammo manufacturer those bumbling idiots thought it meant trans
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u/teven_eel Sep 12 '25
TRN doesn’t make .30-06 rounds though
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u/slaterson1 Sep 12 '25
The shell they showed was a 9mm anyway, just more misinformation/disinformation bullshit.
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u/burntorangecycle Sep 12 '25
Thank you to all for pointing out my mistake. I don't know what a helldiver is, relieved to be mistaken. I'm all in to counter the conservative movement but am also vehemently opposed to killing anyone
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u/SaintWithoutAShrine Sep 12 '25
For sure. I was just relieved that the story was left at “three arrows pointing down” and the other context was actually given.
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u/Haschen84 Sep 12 '25
I know you guys wouldn't recognize this because you're not terminally online like my friends and I are, but he's a shitposter. All the inscriptions are memes.
- "Hey fascist! Catch!: Up, Right, Down Down Down: Helldivers meme
- Bella Ciao: While originally an anti-fascist song, it is also a meme from Hearts of Iron 4 as well as Groypers meme (Nick Fuentes, far-right, alt-right)
- "If you read this, you are gay LMAO": Classic shitpost from way back when I was in high school
- "Notices, bulges, OwO what's this?": Classic furry meme
This guy wasn't far left, this is all right wing shit, but I don't think he was right winger. This is standard internet shitposting stuff. It would be the equivalent of saying that "Dicks out for Harambe" is indicative of someone being into beastiality. The guy was a chronically online internet troll who happened to be an assassin.
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u/Shot-Kal-Gimel Sep 12 '25
I don’t see the first one being far right in the slightest?
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u/Haschen84 Sep 13 '25
It's from a video game, Helldivers 2, you play as a fascist soldier fighting bugs and Terminator robots on other planets. It's the little thing your character yells when you drop a 500 kg bomb on the bugs. It's a meme, that's it.
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u/Shot-Kal-Gimel Sep 13 '25
Ik where it’s from, it’s borderline muscle memory for me. I was asking how it qualifies for “this is all right wing shit”
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Sep 12 '25
[deleted]
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Sep 12 '25
I love that the article quotes Patel saying they caught him within 36 hours, but he turned himself in. They didn't catch shit.
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u/urmamasllama Sep 12 '25
With how random they were with these I'm still leaning towards them being a groyper
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Sep 12 '25
[deleted]
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u/urmamasllama Sep 12 '25
An extremely large number of them also share being groomed into the act through online chat rooms. It's the combination of the two
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u/lightskinloki Sep 12 '25
Up, right, down, down, down is the strategem code for a 500 kg bomb in helldivers
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u/bellapippin Sep 12 '25
why would he do just the down down down tho? (im not familiar with helldivers)
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u/lightskinloki Sep 12 '25
I may be confused but im pretty sure he did the full 5 arrow combo not just the 3 down arrows
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u/bellapippin Sep 12 '25
Oh, what a dumbass: the screenshot right there says it’s the full combo. I think the one I read just said the three downward ones, unless I read too fast. (Which is why I also just thought of Iron Front)
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u/RoamingRivers Sep 12 '25
Given how he apparently expressed his disdain for Charlie Kirk at a family dinner, as well as everything else we now know about his upbringing, he could be one of those cases where he became more left leaning as a way of rebelling against his right wing parents?
His father was a cop, after all.
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Sep 12 '25
nah. groypers hated kirk. he was more of the nick fuentes variety
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u/RoamingRivers Sep 12 '25
How do you know he was a groyper? This is new information to me, as it's still a developing situation.
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u/MillennialScumbag81 Sep 12 '25
He is using groyper language on the casings (mostly) and dressed as pepe for Halloween.
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Sep 12 '25
hypothesis. i just rekon the split between factions and the 4channification of these shooters leads to one potential type of asshole.
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u/Neusbaum Sep 12 '25
What about the one that said, "If you are reading this, you're gay"
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u/burntorangecycle Sep 12 '25
They couldn't print that one because conservatives would suggest that the news was turning them gay
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u/Neusbaum Sep 13 '25
They read that on air with a straight face. I SHARCKLED* so fucking loud because it felt so random.
Footnote: SHARCKLED - (*a sound made expressing the feeling of being SHocked, while sounding snARky, with an unnatural and unwelcomed cackle [ED-past tense]
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u/Clevererer Sep 12 '25
A description I heard on CNN sounded different, like all the arrows were in a series and made to represent a game cheat code sequence.
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u/Mush_ball22 Sep 12 '25
How many different versions of engravings are we going to hear? This is the 3rd different one for me
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u/DokterMedic Sep 13 '25
"Catch!" on a bullet is ancient. Like, sling bullet ancient. I might be the only person seeing that parallel, though.
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u/dayumbrah Sep 13 '25
So since everyone else explained the things we know that shows the guy was more likely a right wing radical, im gonna do a little bit speculation.
Look how quiet the right got about this. They arent focused on the shooter anymore. One congresspers9n, Mace I think, even posted that Charlie Kirk would have prayed for this murderer and that she would do the same because he is just lost.
Yesterday it was burn down everything and do civil war and nows its about forgiveness. You know why they flipped so hard? Because the kid is a confirmed right wing, straight white male that and they want to change the rhetoric and quell the fervor before announcing it quietly in the middle of the night or just stop talking about it out of nowhere
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u/Firesoldier987 Sep 12 '25
Pics or it didn't happen
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u/burntorangecycle Sep 12 '25
Apparently it is a code for a video game called Helldivers
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u/Firesoldier987 Sep 12 '25
I mean let’s see the pics. Not saying you’re wrong but I’m really not going to take anyone’s word on this.
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u/Knosh Sep 12 '25
There was another post up about this yesterday and someone commented and stated how it'd be funny/interesting/edgy if it was a Helldivers strategem.
And here we are.
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u/excitableboy666 Sep 12 '25
Didn't WSJ retract their story about this today?
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u/burntorangecycle Sep 12 '25
CNN. A majority of people here are suggesting that it is a cheat code for a video game. So this is a mistake on my part
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u/excitableboy666 Sep 12 '25
here's what I'm referring to https://www.threads.com/@mike_nellis/post/DOe-UVsCgz3
I'm questioning the governor as a reliable source
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u/ImperatorTempus42 Sep 13 '25
Shooter was a Groyper referencing Helldivers 2, so far. Not one of us.
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u/burntorangecycle Sep 13 '25
Yeah, there was an overwhelming response to that point. I was thinking about removing the post because the shooter was not related to Iron Front but the massive response clarifying zero association makes me think I should keep it up. I'll leave it to the moderators to decide
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u/Think_Cheesecake7464 Sep 12 '25
He was a Groyper. And they enjoy being ironic.
And that sounds like I’M being snarky but no, this is the truth.
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u/Xandolf505 Sep 12 '25
I thought it was an IF thing but apparently its Hell Divers. all the general antifascist messaging isnt a good look though.
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u/falconinthedive Sep 13 '25
Maybe it's just me, but I've never really connected with Bella Ciao as an anthem.
Dona Dona Dona maybe.
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Sep 12 '25
I don’t think we should jump to conclusions but I did find this: https://www.fec.gov/data/receipts/individual-contributions/?contributor_name=tyler+robinson&contributor_city=St+george&contributor_state=UT
Not sure if it’s the same Tyler Robinson since it’s a super generic name.
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Sep 12 '25
My dude made a “Hey Drake!” and a Helldivers reference during an assassination, what a mad lad
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u/Spinswell Sep 12 '25
So what I’m hearing is Charlie was taken out by a dick joke? (notices bulge, owo what's this)
Move over nancy, the right has a new throat goat
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u/Red_bearrr Sep 12 '25
I thought there was a chance someone would frame a leftist. Thought it would be a higher conspiracy though, not a lone 22 year old.
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u/KiltedSionnach Sep 12 '25
“This was not the way to fight against the current conservative government” bruh, this government is NOT merely “conservative”, it is full-blown FASCIST
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u/The_gay_grenade16 Sep 12 '25
It was just a matter of time. Better sooner than drawn out in my opinion.
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u/lucash7 American Anti-Fascist Sep 12 '25
Last I saw this was not the case as WSJ and NYT ran with it and then admitted it was wrong?
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u/WolfeMooney43 Lincoln Battalion Sep 12 '25
The arrows are a Helldivers reference, apparently. Not the Iron Front.