We now live in a world where mass shootings are as common as bad weather. We’ve almost comfortably settled into a cycle of violence that involves at least one mass shooting a week, if not more. The most recent of these took place in Munich, Germany and saw nine innocent people be gunned by 18 year-old Ali Sonboly, who then turned the gun on himself.
A cell phone video across from where the shooting took place shows a brave man confronting Sonboly after the shooting, attempting to stop him continuing the massacre. Since the video is in German, I thankfully found a translation to go along with it.
Man: “You fucking asshole!”
Sonboly: “Because of you I was bullied for 7 years…”
Man: “You wanker you. You’re a wanker”
Sonboly: “…and now I have to buy a gun to shoot you”
Man: “A gun! Fuck off! Your head should be cut off you asshole”
Sonboly: “I am German.”
Man: “You’re a wanker is what you are”
Sonboly: “Stop filming!”
Man: “A wanker is what you are. What the fuck are you doing?”
Sonboly: “Yeah what, I was born here.”
Man: “Yeah and what the fuck you think you’re doing?”
Sonboly: “I grew up here in the Hartz 4 area.”
The two then shout over each other with neither being heard before the man near the camera says: “Yeah treatment is something for you.”
Sonboly responds, saying: “I haven’t done anything here for (unintelligible) … Please shut your mouth.”
The man shouts back: “You c*nt,” before ducking for cover as Sonboly starts firing.”
Truly just horrifying stuff. Really. Let’s even say that Sonboly was being bullied. What new world mentality do we have that people feel so comfortable about taking the life of others? Why is this so commonplace now? That’s why I feel this video is so important. When not happening in our backyard, events like this can feel very distant from us. We need to remember that all human life is equally as precious, no matter how far away they are.