The 26-year-old suspect in the UnitedHealthcare CEO murder case had a history of posting bizarre and extremist views on social media. On X, Luigi Mangione’s posts ranged from calling for a ban on sex toys in Japan to comparisons between modern America and the fall of the Roman Empire.
In April, he made headlines with a controversial take on Japan’s falling population. He argued that the real issue wasn’t immigration but rather an overreliance on sex toys and pornography. Mangione suggested Japan ban products such as Tenga Fleshlights and promote “natural human interaction, sex, physical fitness, and spirituality” to combat this trend.
He also criticised the “modern Japanese urban environment,” recommending they shift from automated services such as conveyor belt sushi and vending machines to human interactions, including “real human waiters.”
Modern Japanese urban environment is an evolutionary mismatch for the human animal.
The solution to falling birthdates isn’t immigration. It’s cultural.
Encourage natural human interaction, sex, physical fitness and spirituality:
* ban Tenga fleshlights and “Japan Real Hole”… https://t.co/3OaJLJPwpX— Luigi Mangione (@PepMangione) April 18, 2024
His social media also reveals an admiration for controversial figures such as Aldous Huxley, Ted Kaczynski (the Unabomber), and Jonathan Haidt. Mangione frequently quoted Huxley’s Brave New World, conveying a disdain for comfort and conformity: “But I don’t want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness. I want sin.”
Mangione also shared a quote on his Goodreads account from Ted Kaczynski, the notorious “Unabomber” who terrorised the US for nearly two decades with deadly bombings before his arrest in 1996. The quote, which Mangione liked, reads: “Imagine a society that subjects people to conditions that make them terribly unhappy then gives them the drugs to take away their unhappiness.”
The 26-year-old also frequently engaged with the work of blogger Tim Urban, known for his website Wait But Why, which explores artificial intelligence, space exploration, and human productivity.
In a post reposted by Mangione, Urban advocated for restricting cell phone use in children under the age of 16, citing research on the negative effects of screen time on mental health.
It’ll soon become ubiquitous among upper class families to restrict kids under 16 from using social media. Hopefully the trend spreads to all families before too long. A hundred times easier to enforce the rule when all parents are doing it.https://t.co/TuAJvk7DXa @JonHaidt
— Tim Urban (@waitbutwhy) March 26, 2024
His social media posts frequently talked about masculinity, often romanticising male resilience and the pursuit of “daring feats.” He reposted a tweet that read, “Men are made for impossible situations and daring feats… This is the heart that society is trying so hard to quash.”
If you want to understand men better, just look at all the movies they’ve made, books they’ve written, and games they invent when they’re young.
Almost every single one is about a young man being thrust into a position or situation he doesn’t know if he can overcome. Many times…
— Daughter of Wolves (@Alicia_Bittle_) April 17, 2024
He was also an advocate for weightlifting, describing it as a superior alternative to antidepressants and engaging with fitness influencers for tips.