Here we are again, trying desperately to figure out what motivated a young man to take a gun and murder as many people as possible.
This time, the world is trying to explain what motivated Gavin Long to shoot six Baton Rouge police officers.
BuzzFeed published a summary of what we know so far about the killer, who died on his 29th birthday. There are some familiar themes in this sad story. Yet another angry, lost young man who found his expression and his fame with a gun.
This time, though, the young man believed himself to be more powerful than others. He saw himself as something of a chosen leader, or messenger. Unlike so many other lone gunmen, Gavin didn’t seem to be feeling powerless. He seemed to been feeling like a superhero out to save his people.
Gavin’s view of himself began in his teens, after he lost 80 pounds. He became a vegetarian and self-described nutritionist. He wrote books and made videos pushing his views.
Like the shooter who killed five officers in Dallas, Long was a former U.S. Marine. He served in Iraq for seven months in 2008. He came out of the military with an overblown sense of his own strength and power, calling himself an alpha male.
Like the Dallas shooter, he also came out with a sense of paranoia. He claimed that because he was a strong man who never backed down from a fight, the military wanted to punish him. He has been, he said:
“[…]blacklisted from getting employment since I got out of the Marines. I also had a friend tell me that the government threatened him not associate to [sic] closely with me. Essentially it’s isolation. They don’t want the spirit of courage to spread. Because their whole gimmick is fear.”
Gavin went to college and earned a general studies degree. Later, he experienced what he called a spiritual awakening, gave away all of his possessions, and went to Africa. This added to his sense of being someone special.
Long started a website where he promoted himself as a life coach and a personal trainer. He offered small group and individual coaching sessions which promised:
“Each session or class is unique and intuitively guided by what is psychically read and revealed.”
Gavin Long also wrote about his anger at the government, and at police.
Violence is not THE answer (its a answer), but at what point do you stand up so that your people dont become the Native Americans…EXTINCT?
— Convos With Cosmo (@ConvosWithCosmo) July 13, 2016
He spoke about his view of revolution. He felt that violence was the only way to achieve real political change.
Here is one of Cosmo’s recent videos, with some evidence of his disjointed thinking and political views.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLBOZ2yrolE
Featured image via YouTube screengrab.
