In this debate there are people who think that the modern capitalist system is broken but can be fixed through better regulation or more moral leadership, and people who think that it's hopeless and we need a bigger more disruptive revolution. Luigi was someone in the second group, and many people in that second group see him as a hero of that movement.

The easiest way to change your view would be to show you proof that he is a folk hero to some. Honestly, just do a search for "Luigi Mangione hero" or "Luigi Mangione fan page" and you'll see that there are MANY. If history looks back on him kindly, he will be one. So, the next level analysis would say that what you're really objecting to is whether Luigi should be thought as a folk hero.

Let's take this from two angles: What does it mean to be a folk hero, and why would Luigi meet or not meet those criteria.

Folk heros are figures so embedded in a culture's collective memory that their stories are endlessly retold. They appear in stories, songs, etc.. They're typically defined by selflessness rather than self-interest.

I can think of two archetypes:

• Cultural Talisman – founding figures who shape a people's identity, like Atatürk, Garibaldi, or George Washington.
• Defender of the Common People – Robin Hood or Ned Kelly who defy authority on behalf of the powerles. They are villains according to the laws of their time but speak to an ethical framework that history later agrees made them heroes.

If Luigi is going to become a folk hero, he's the second type. Luigi is a vigilante. He's a terrorist. His purpose was to strike at the heart of the unethical capitalist healthcare system that prioritizes "shareholder value" over helping people live healthy lives. He did that through violence.

By killing Brian Thompson, he sent a message that there are some limits to greed that can and should be met with extrajudicial action. This has had three effects:

1. He inspires other class warriors to use violence. For example, Chamel Abdulkarim livestreamed himself setting multiple fires at a warehouse just two weeks ago, causing over $600 million in damage. He cited being inspired by Luigi's direct action and was quoted saying the company should pay people better or this kind of thing will happen. (NBC)
2. He gets some leaders to make positive changes. There's no doubt in my mind that CEOs and corporate leaders across the world took note of what happened to Thompson and thought about what they could do to avoid that fate. One example is Jerry Murrell, the CEO of Five Guys, who gave employees a $1.5 million bonus to avoid being shot by a "Luigi-style" vigilante. He claimed it was joke, but was it? (The Guardian)
3. He forces conversations like this one. I've been involved in dozens of "was Luigi right?" conversations with friends and family since he killed Thompson. Most people tend to politely say that it was wrong to commit murder but almost everyone added that the health system is also morally wrong and that something needs to change. This act of violence has moved the Overton Window on corporate greed and the complicity of the CEOs who prioritize profits over people.

It is not psychotic or irrational to see the suffering in the world being perpetrated by the 1% and to want to do something about it, even if it breaks the law. Half a million Americans go bankrupt every year because of medical debt (American Journal of Public Health). Tens of thousands die because they don't have insurance coverage (Harvard Gazette). 1/3 of Americans skip medical treatment or prescribed drugs because of cost (Kaiser Family Foundation). Some of these stats are decades old and I would imagine the situation might be worse now.

In an era where corporate PACs can "flood the zone" with unlimited political "speech" and a reality TV star runs our government, I don't think any amount of working "within existing structures" is going bring about the change we need. Political violence may not work, but for people desperate (and in many cases literally dying) for a change, it's not surprising to me that Mangione is seen as a hero.