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After fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, here's what we know

UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot and killed Wednesday morning outside of a hotel in New York City, police said. A manhunt is underway to find the gunman, who fled the scene on a bike into Central Park.

Here is what we know so far.

Shooting appeared to be targeted attack

Thompson, 50, suffered gunshot wounds to the back and to the leg at around 6:45 a.m. ET, while outside of the Hilton Midtown hotel in a busy section of Manhattan. Police said they believe this was not a random attack, and that Thompson was targeted. Authorities are searching for a motive.

"We are deeply saddened by this morning's events in the area and our thoughts are with all affected by the tragedy," a spokesperson for the hotel said in a statement.

Investigators have video of the shooting in which the gunman appeared to wait for Thompson for several minutes prior to firing, New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a briefing. The gunman arrived at the shooting location on foot about five minutes before Thompson arrived.

The suspect approached Thompson from behind and fired the gun at least twice, striking him in the back and the right calf, according to the police commissioner. The shooter used a silencer, which is a device that acts like a muzzle to reduce the sound of a gunshot. Video shows the suspect fire the gun initially and step toward Thompson, said NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny. The gun appeared to malfunction, but the shooter cleared the jam fairly quickly before firing again. The CEO was not robbed.

"I want to be clear. At this time, every indication is that this was a premeditated, preplanned, targeted attack," Tisch said. 

The commissioner said the gunman ignored multiple passersby while seemingly lying in wait for Thompson. Another person is also seen in security footage standing against the side of the building between the gunman and Thompson, but just outside of the line of fire. The gunman does not appear to move from his position facing Thompson as the person, apparently realizing there has been a shooting, looks up from their phone and hurries away. 

Police did not respond directly when asked whether Thompson had known enemies prior to his death or been blamed for a health insurance recipient's lack of coverage under UnitedHealthcare — since the latter issue led to protests in Minnesota, where the company is headquartered and where Thompson lived, over the summer. They said investigators were "looking at everything," including the executive's social media, and interviewing his colleagues and family members to work out what circumstances may have led to the incident. NYPD is also connecting with law enforcement in Minnesota.

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Susie is an award-winning writer, playwright, director, producer, and actress. She started her TV/Film career in 2006 writing, producing, and directing two children’s series for CBS Saturday morning, “Cake” and “Dance Revolution”. She moved into features writing “BRATZ” for Lionsgate and co-producing “Soul Surfer” for Sony. Her short film, “My Mom and The Girl” starring Valerie Harper in her final beautiful performance, won numerous awards including Best Direction, Best Short Film, Best Ensemble Cast, was officially selected at the “Emerging Filmmaker Showcase” at Cannes 2017 winning a spot in the PBS Fine Cuts series, and was Oscar’s qualified in 2018.

A Return to Alcatraz  

ALCATRAZ: A SHORT HISTORY

Originally built as a naval defense fortification in the 1850s, the facility on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay housed military prisoners from 1861 to 1933, after which the U.S. Army transferred control to the Department of Justice. The new federal penitentiary on Alcatraz Island opened in 1934 and was considered the toughest prison America could produce. A maximum-security, minimum-privilege facility for the most hardened and unrepentant criminals in the U.S. prison system, Alcatraz represented the government’s attempt to take a hard-line stance against the rampant crime of the 1920s and ‘30s. During its 29 years in operation (1934-63), the prison housed some of the country’s most notorious bad guys, including Al Capone, George “Machine Gun” Kelly, Alvin Karpis (designated the first “Public Enemy #1”) and “Birdman” Robert Stroud.

FRANK MORRIS & THE ANGLIN BROTHERS

(In the Hollywood version of events, 1979’s “Escape from Alcatraz,” Clint Eastwood would play Morris.)

ARE WE BORN RACIST?

Is bigotry in our DNA, a remnant of our fear of “the other” way back when that was necessary? If so, why do some battle with their instincts while others embrace them?

Humans are the most cooperative species on the planet – all part of a huge interconnected ecosystem. We have built vast cities, connected by a global nervous system of roads, shipping lanes and optical fibers. We have sent thousands of satellites spinning around the planet. Even seemingly simple objects like a graphite pencil are the work of thousands of hands from around the world, as the wonderful essay I-Pencil, quoted above, by Leonard Read describes.

Yet we can also be surprisingly intolerant of each other. If we are completely honest, there is perhaps a little bit of xenophobia, racism, sexism and bigotry deep within all of us, if we would only allow it. Luckily, we can choose to control and suppress such tendencies for our own wellbeing and the good of society.

When the media, and especially people we trust, talk in such a way, it has a profound effect on our receiving minds. It can even shape our beliefs in what we might think are purely rational issues. For example, the belief in whether humans are causing climate change is strongly associated with US political party membership.

This is because we tend to adopt a common position on a topic to signal we are part of a group, just like football fans wear certain colors or have tattoos to show their tribal loyalty. Even strong individuals who stand up to oppressive regimes typically have shared ideals and norms with other members of a resistance movement.

This tribalism can all feel very visceral and natural because, well, in a way, it is. It fires up the primal parts of our brain designed for such responses. Yet, there are other natural attitudes, such as compassion and consideration for others, that can be suppressed in such circumstances. Imbalanced cultures produce imbalanced brains.

This combination of nature and nurture shaping our attitudes and behavior is apparent in many human characteristics, and unpicking some of these examples can help us see opportunities to steer the process.

Consider the tendency to become overweight in modern society. In premodern times, sugary and fatty foods were rare and valuable for humans. Now, they are everywhere. A biological trait – the craving for sugary or fatty foods – which was adaptive in premodern times, has become detrimental and maladaptive.

Surely our modern cultures can protect us from these innate drives when they are unhealthy for ourselves and society? After all, we effectively suppress violent behavior in society through the way we bring up children, policing and the prison system.

Instead of acknowledging and protecting us from the innate drive to binge on unhealthy food, however, our modern cultures (in many countries at least) actually exacerbate that particular problem. The result is 2 billion people – over a quarter of the world’s population – overweight or obese, while another 2 billion suffer some kind of micronutrient deficiency.

When we understand how our hardwired urges interact with an unhelpful cultural context, we can begin to design positive interventions. In the case of obesity, this might mean less junk food marketing and altering the composition of manufactured food. We can also change our own behavior, for example laying down new routines and healthier eating habits.

Climate change could boost bigotry

Rewiring the brain

An important first step is appreciating our connectedness to other people. We all evolved from the same bacteria-like ancestor, and right now we share over 99% of our DNA with everyone else on the planet. Our minds are closely linked through social networks, and the things we create are often the inevitable next step in a series of interdependent innovations.

Innovation is part of a great, linked creative human endeavor with no respect for race or national boundaries. In the face of overwhelming evidence from multiple scientific disciplines (biology, psychology, neuroscience) you can even question whether we exist as discrete individuals, or whether this sense individuality is an illusion (as I argue in my book The Self Delusion).

We evolved to believe we are discrete individuals because it brought survival benefits (such as memory formation and an ability to track complex social interactions). But taken too far, self-centered individualism can prevent us from solving collective problems.

Beyond theory, practice is also necessary to literally rewire our brains – reinforcing the neural networks through which compassionate behavior arises. Outdoor community activities have been shown to increase our psychological connectedness to others. Similarly, meditation approaches alter neural networks in the brain and reduce our sense of isolated self-identity, instead promoting compassion towards others. Even computer games and books can be designed to increase empathy.

Finally, at the societal level, we need frank and open debate about environmental change and its current and future human impacts – crucially, how our attitudes and values can affect other lives and livelihoods. We need public dialogue around climate-driven human migration and how we respond to that as a society, allowing us to mitigate the knee-jerk reaction of devaluing others.

Let’s defuse this ticking ethical timebomb and shame those who stoke flames of bigotry beneath it. Instead, we can open ourselves up to a more expansive attitude of connectedness, empowering us to work together in cooperation with our fellow human kin.

It is possible to steer our cultures and rewire our brains so that xenophobia and bigotry all but disappear. Indeed, working collaboratively across borders to overcome the global challenges of the 21st century relies upon us doing just that.

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WHATS REALLY INSIDE FORT KNOX

During the Cold War, the U.S. military stockpiled opium and morphine sulfate in case of a medical supply shortage or nuclear exchange. The government spent millions refining the opium into morphine in 1993, and it's still stored at Fort Knox. 

Historic artifacts

Fort Knox also stores historic artifacts, including the Holy Crown of Hungary, which was brought to Fort Knox for safekeeping during World War II. 

Is there Gold in Fort Knox? 

Fort Knox is a top-secret United States Army post that's surrounded by mystery and conspiracy theories. The facility is not open to visitors, and even U.S. Presidents don't get an invite.

The United States Bullion Depository at Fort Knox, Kentucky stores a large portion of the United States' gold reserves, as well as other precious items: 

Gold

Fort Knox holds about half of the Treasury's gold, which is roughly 147.3 million troy ounces (4,580 metric tons). The gold is kept in deep storage, which means it's in sealed vaults that are examined annually by the Treasury Department. 

Other precious items

Fort Knox also stores other valuables belonging to or in custody of the federal government. 

Morphine sulfate

An informal meeting of the minds with host and executive producer MadDog DiSipio

A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy, when other explanations are more probable. The term generally has a negative connotation, implying that the appeal of a conspiracy theory is based in prejudice, emotional conviction, or insufficient evidence.

Some of the more popular conspiracy theories floating about the world wide web and even some you may have never heard about. Join us all week long for our year end conspiracy week long extravaganza.

What Is a Conspiracy Theory

A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy, when other explanations are more probable. The term generally has a negative connotation, implying that the appeal of a conspiracy theory is based in prejudice, emotional conviction, or insufficient evidence.

Conspiracy theory, an attempt to explain harmful or tragic events as the result of the actions of a small powerful group.

A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy when other explanations are more probable.

In June 1962, inmates Clarence Anglin, John Anglin, and Frank Morris escaped from Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary, a maximum-security prison located on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay, California, United States.[2] Late on the night of June 11 or early morning of June 12, the three men tucked papier-mâché model heads resembling their own likenesses into their beds, broke out of the main prison building via ventilation ducts and an unguarded utility corridor, and departed the island aboard an improvised inflatable raft to an uncertain fate.[3] A fourth conspirator, Allen West, failed in his escape attempt and remained on the island.

Hundreds of leads were pursued by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and local law enforcement officials in the ensuing years, but no conclusive evidence has ever surfaced favoring the success or failure of the attempt.[4] Numerous theories of widely varying plausibility have been proposed by authorities, reporters, family members, and amateur enthusiasts.[5] In 1979 the FBI officially concluded, on the basis of circumstantial evidence and a preponderance of expert opinion, that the men drowned in the frigid waters of San Francisco Bay without reaching the mainland.[6][7] The U.S. Marshals Service case file remains open and active, and Morris and the Anglin brothers remain on its wanted list.[8]

New circumstantial and material evidence has continued to surface, stoking new debates on whether the inmates managed to survive.

Conspiracy Week on WWF Radio

A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy, when other explanations are more probable. The term generally has a negative connotation, implying that the appeal of a conspiracy theory is based in prejudice, emotional conviction, or insufficient evidence.