I was going to leave this one alone, but – alas – it seems I cannot.
On Sunday, February 25th, 25-year-old Airman Aaron Bushnell doused himself in gasoline and lit himself alight in front of the Israeli embassy in DC. He live-streamed the event on Twitch.
During the livestream, he said “Hi, my name is Aaron Bushnell, I am an active-duty member of the United States Air Force, and I will no longer be complicit in genocide,’’ as he made his way to the embassy. “I am about to engage in an extreme act of protest, but compared to what people have been experiencing in Palestine at the hands of their colonizers, it’s not extreme at all. This is what our ruling class has decided will be normal.’’
“I will no longer be complicit in genocide.” he said before dousing himself and lighting the gas.“I am about to engage in an extreme act of protest,” he added before repeatedly screaming, “Free Palestine!’’ as fire engulfed him and he eventually collapsed. He was taken to the hospital in critical condition and died several hours later.
Now that we’ve covered the basics, lets get into why I decided to weigh in.
Since the USAF admitted this person was an active-duty Airman later that same day, both sides of the political divide have been making disgusting noises about Aaron and his suicide.
And be clear, that’s exactly what this was: a suicide.
I am going to digress here for a minute and rant about the Air Force and the DOD in general. It wasn’t that long ago that SecDef Lloyd Austin ordered a ‘right-wing extremism‘ stand-down. The stand-down – and the subsequent report – was supposed to help root out extremism in the ranks. That report, however, seemed to refute the idea that there was a right wing extremism problem in the ranks; it did seem, however, to reveal a left-wing extremism problem.
It wasn’t that long ago that Spenser Rapone was outed as an outright Communist – you may remember the commie cadet at West Point. His career ended ignominiously: he was relieved for cause at his very first duty station, FT Drum, and separated from the Army shortly afterwards. His highly visible example is one of hundreds, if not potentially thousands, of left wing extremists in the military.
Those on the pro-Palestinian side are holding this clearly mentally ill individual up as some sort of hero, while some on the other side are celebrating his death.
I want to be perfectly clear here; Aaron Bushnell is not a hero, nor is his death anything to celebrate. His self-immolation is the result of both mental illness and a weak mind succumbing to internet propaganda.
According to all the reports I’ve been reading, Aaron grew up in a sheltered environment. He was at least partially homeschooled. His parents are active in a Christian sect called the Community of Jesus.
Aaron was also an ‘anarchist’. Or at least subscribed to that general point of view politically. His social media was filled with anarchist propaganda. Some of his last social media interactions were with an anarchist group based in Palestine, which advocated for responses to the Israeli-Hamas war in the US.
This ‘protest’ isn’t going to change a damned thing – it certainly won’t affect the conflict he was intending to protest with it. This poor kid died one of the most horrific deaths imaginable for no reason. Unfortunately, he may inspire other mentally unstable people to do the same thing or worse.
Please do not lionize this act. Please do not use it to score political points. And please do not make fun of the mentally ill individual who did this.
If you or someone you know is having a mental health crisis including suicidal ideation call the Veterans Crisis Line at 988 then press 1. They are there 24/7 ready to help.
