NYT is trying to spin Mangione's popularity as a result of his attractiveness, but it's because most regular americans relate to him & would like to commit exactly the same crime.
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@enkiv2 I think it's both/and. The Freudo-Lacanian term is "uncastrated other." We dream of an undeceived other, one who exists without any internal tension, who simply acts. This includes both erotic simplicity (look at him! his attraction is immediate and direct!) and political simplicity (propaganda of the deed, etc.).
I think that Trump served a similar role for his people.
Fundamentally I think it's caused by living in such a hall-of-mirrors, constantly re-interpreting everything.
