Internet memes like 'Somebody’s got to do it' can act as moral permission slips that reframe lone‑actor attacks as necessary interventions against an unjust system. When mainstream figures discuss these frames without strong counter‑norms, they risk normalizing them in wider audiences.
— It highlights how online culture can supply justificatory narratives for real‑world violence, demanding new strategies for prevention and public messaging.
Scott Alexander
2025.10.10
78% relevant
The article shows how slogans like 'This machine kills fascists' and 'Make Fascists Afraid Again' function as permission slips, turning the 'fascist' label into a justification for violence—exactly the mechanism described by meme‑driven moral licensing for lone‑actor attacks.
Christopher F. Rufo
2025.09.30
78% relevant
The article claims elite 'prestige narratives' (e.g., Hitler analogies, 'genocide' rhetoric) seed radicalized online memespaces that furnish moral permission for lone‑actor violence, echoing the idea that memes act as justificatory scripts for attacks.
Isegoria
2025.09.27
86% relevant
The NCRI report described here says memes have turned a CEO’s killer into a folk hero and now 'gamify' discussion of killing figures like Trump and Musk, creating 'permission structures' for violence—precisely the mechanism of memes supplying moral justifications for lone‑actor attacks.
David Hawkes
2025.09.24
78% relevant
The piece contends that memes collapse individuals into dehumanized types and, through repetition, train audiences to sneer and sometimes act violently; it links this cultural mechanism to reactions surrounding Charlie Kirk’s assassination and the alleged killer’s online consumption.
Christopher F. Rufo
2025.09.24
78% relevant
The article argues that recent attackers used meme slogans and online in‑jokes as a thin ideological veneer, with actions driven more by personal urges and identity turmoil—exactly the mechanism where memes serve as moral permission or narrative for violence.
David D. Corey
2025.09.24
55% relevant
The article contends that ideological frames which cast rivals as 'enemies' and politics as war normalize tactics like assassination; this aligns with the idea that moralized narratives (memes or doctrines) supply permission structures for lone‑actor violence.
Simon Cottee
2025.09.21
73% relevant
It documents users constructing moral permission for the killing ('normie sex haver,' 'death to all normies'), illustrating how subcultural frames and in‑group slang function like memes to justify lone‑actor violence and public celebration of it.
Tal Fortgang
2025.09.18
76% relevant
The article documents admirers justifying Luigi Mangione’s alleged murder of Brian Thompson by treating the victim as a symbol of 'insurance greed' and links this to celebrations of Charlie Kirk’s assassination—an example of moral permission frames that repackage killing as meaningful 'justice.' It names actors (DA Alvin Bragg, the judge, AG Pam Bondi) and shows how online/offline narratives rationalize violence.
Steve Sailer
2025.09.16
70% relevant
The article cites posts that predicted and then celebrated the killing (“We fucking did it,” a promise of what was coming), illustrating how online narratives can provide moral permission and coordination signals for lone‑actor violence.
eugyppius
2025.09.12
70% relevant
The recovered rifle reportedly had cartridges engraved with partisan slogans and internet meme references ('Bella Ciao,' a gay furry meme), echoing the Christchurch trend of memetic inscriptions that turn ideology and online culture into justificatory theater for violence.
Rod Dreher
2025.09.11
68% relevant
The post cites a verified BLM account claiming 'oppressed people have a right to violence' to justify another killing, exemplifying how moralized online frames can provide permission slips for real‑world attacks.
Colin Wright
2025.08.29
82% relevant
The article argues that 'trans genocide' messaging and events like the 'Trans Day of Vengeance' provide a justificatory script for violent action by unstable people, a direct example of memeified narratives functioning as moral permission slips.
Christopher F. Rufo
2025.08.07
100% relevant
Lorenz’s discussion of the Luigi Mangione case and the 'Somebody’s got to do it' meme as a lens on political action.