Like most people, I have dealt with friends and family members who have psychological and psychiatric issues. That's one big reason I try to avoid comment on mass shootings in the US because the reasons behind the shootings are never easy and they are rarely clear.
The two shootings over this horrific weekend are a case in point. The first shooter, who is variously described as 19 or 22, left behind an electronic manifesto that pointed to Trump as an exigent factor in his actions. He is still alive so there is reason to believe that we will learn more about why he says that but that alone does not outline his reasons for driving diagonally 600 miles across Texas to shoot indiscriminately at people at a WalMart. It is way too easy to blame Trump for the divisiveness in the country and claim that and only that is why anyone can kill a 6 year old and a 70 year old.
The Dayton case is different in that the shooter killed his own sister and only fired for 1 minute before being killed himself. It is hard for me to believe that was an unfortunate coincidence but the information is not available as yet.
Does Trump incite violence, hatred, and fear? I don't think anyone who listens to him from any part of the political spectrum could say no. He performs as a reality TV personality where every action and every statement is larger than life and intended to get a reaction. Does his rhetoric target minorities leaving them as the butt of his jibes? Not exclusively as he certainly uses the Bush family, the McCain family, and other white opponents as targets.
But what is clear to any reasonable observer is that Trump speaks to divide, he speaks to inflame, he speaks to demonize as if the only point of any action is to demean or insult the opponent. Having the bigger bully pulpit, his voice carries more weight. When mentally disturbed people listen, they might just feel a message or call to action. Even when ordinary citizens listen to Trump they react in reprehensible ways so tying Trump to violent incidents is easy but not the only truth.
Beyond that, guns are too accessible. They are too powerful. They are clearly too dangerous. I grew up in a military family. My father was a paratrooper in the Pacific Theater during WWII and he never let us even have cap guns--and he was from east Texas where shooting, and guns were and still are part of the culture. When we visited his sister in 1956, I carefully counted the bullets on her gun belt and declared that she didn't have a 45--it was a 92. I was five at the time. The Dayton shooter only shot for 1 minute according to reports, and yet he used two guns.
Do you feel safe yet? A good man did grab the long gun of the Dayton shooter but he still killed more people. When is too much enough for action?
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