I sent a fully-sourced document with links to CBS, NPR, ProPublica, Chatham House, and the US Holocaust Memorial Museum. It documented an American citizen shot by ICE, court orders defied, a sovereign nation invaded, and a NATO ally threatened with military force.
What follows are the actual responses I received—and what they reveal about tribal thinking.
I share these not to mock individuals, but to illustrate a pattern that affects millions of Americans: the inability to evaluate information outside tribal loyalty.
The Responses
"Were They Here Illegally?"
My first response to a 3,000-word sourced document about constitutional violations, international law, and the murder of an American citizen:
— Initial response
The woman who was shot, Renee Nicole Good, was an American citizen. Not an immigrant. Not "illegal." An American mother of three.
The question "were they here illegally?" proves the responder didn't read past the first paragraph. It's a reflex, not a response.
"Who Gives a Fuck If She's a US Citizen"
When I pointed out that Good was American and that the Bill of Rights applies to everyone on US soil, the response escalated:
— Fritz
Read that again: "Who gives a fuck if she is a US citizen."
This is from someone who claims to care about the Constitution. Someone who demands immigrants "follow the law." Someone who wraps themselves in patriotism.
When the victim is one of "them," citizenship matters everything. When the victim was defending "them," citizenship means nothing.
"She Broke the Law"
— Dave
Let me understand: A woman sitting in her car—who ABC News video analysis showed was turning her steering wheel away from the agent—deserved to be shot dead because she "interfered."
But the agent who shot an unarmed woman in the head deserves to "go home" without consequence.
This is not a legal argument. This is tribal loyalty dressed up as principle.
"Like You Did With Floyd"
— Dave
The official autopsy ruled George Floyd's death a homicide. A jury convicted Derek Chauvin. The medical examiner testified that Floyd died from "cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint, and neck compression."
But facts don't matter when tribal loyalty is at stake. The tribal mind creates alternative realities where convicted murderers are victims and murdered citizens "had it coming."
The Hypocrisy Pattern
On Following the Law
When immigrants are involved:
"No one is above the law. They broke the law. Consequences."
When Trump defies court orders:
*silence* — or — "The judges are biased."
On Citizenship Rights
Normally:
"American citizens have rights! The Constitution matters!"
When an American is killed defending immigrants:
"Who gives a fuck if she is a US citizen."
On Government Overreach
Under Democrats:
"Tyranny! Federal overreach! States' rights!"
When federal agents invade a state and kill a citizen:
"The state should have cooperated with the Feds."
On Due Process
For Trump:
"Witch hunt! Unfair trial! Political persecution!"
For immigrants sent to foreign prisons without trial:
"Due process? What was [victim's] due process?"
The Crimes They Never Mention
In all these responses defending Trump and attacking my sources, notice what's never addressed:
Exposed and Documented Republican Crimes Since Reagan
- Iran-Contra (Reagan): Illegally sold weapons to Iran, funded terrorists in Nicaragua, shredded documents, pardoned co-conspirators
- Exposed and Documented Republican Crimes Since Reagan
- Iraq War Lies (Bush): Exposed fabricated evidence of WMDs, exposed torture program (Abu Ghraib, CIA black sites), 4,500 American soldiers dead
- Trump's 34 Felony Convictions: Business fraud, falsified records—convicted by a jury
- Trump's Sexual Abuse Finding: Found liable for sexual abuse by a jury in the E. Jean Carroll case
- January 6th: Exposed incitement to overturn an election, 140+ officers injured, multiple deaths
- Classified Documents: Exposed boxes of classified documents kept in a bathroom, shared with unauthorized persons
- Child Separation Policy: Exposed thousands of children separated from parents, some never reunited
- Trump Foundation: Shut down by court order for self-dealing and illegal coordination
- Trump University: $25 million fraud settlement
Not one mention. Not one acknowledgment. Not one defense.
But an American woman shot in the head? She had it coming.
The Murder They Dismissed
This pattern isn't new. When I shared information about the Octopus Murders—the investigation into government corruption that got journalist Danny Casolaro killed—the response was:
— Dave
Not "that's terrible." Not "who was responsible?" Not "we should investigate."
"They should have paid him."
A journalist murdered for investigating government crimes, and the response is that he should have taken a bribe instead.
This is what tribal thinking produces: the complete inversion of stated values. Murder becomes acceptable. Bribery becomes wisdom. Citizens become expendable. And facts become "narcissistic rhetoric."
What This Reveals
These are not stupid people. They run businesses. They have families. They vote. They're convinced they're the informed ones.
That's what makes this dangerous.
The tribal mind doesn't process information—it sorts it. Information that supports the tribe gets accepted. Information that challenges the tribe gets rejected, attacked, or simply ignored.
It doesn't matter how many sources you provide. It doesn't matter how credible those sources are. CBS, NPR, ProPublica, international think tanks—they're all "lies and propaganda" if they challenge tribal loyalty.
"Propaganda works best when those who are being manipulated are confident they are acting on their own free will."
These men are convinced they're independent thinkers. They believe they see through the media. They think they're the ones who've figured it out.
They can't see that they've been trained to dismiss any information that threatens their tribal identity—and that this dismissal feels like critical thinking.
Why I'm Done
I've spent years trying to share information with people who respond with bumper-sticker slogans instead of engagement. People who demand sources, then dismiss every source provided. People whose principles change based on who's being accused.
I'm not angry. I'm exhausted.
You can't reason someone out of a position they didn't reason themselves into. And you can't share facts with people who've been trained to experience facts as attacks.
To those still capable of evaluating information:
Watch for the pattern. When someone's principles only apply to the other side, they don't have principles—they have tribal loyalty.
When "law and order" only matters for some people, it's not about law and order. When "constitutional rights" only apply to some citizens, it's not about rights. When "evidence" is demanded from one side and dismissed from the other, it's not about truth.
The tribal mind cannot see its own contradictions. It experiences tribal loyalty as principle and dismissal as discernment.
The only defense is to ask yourself:
Would I accept this argument if the parties were reversed?
If not, it's not a principle. It's a tribe.
—Brad