Keep It Simple

By Joseph Catena

Sometimes we tend to overly analyze situations and complicate the uncomplicated. Suddenly, the obvious gets lost and is replaced by a number of circumstances that didn’t belong there in the first place. And so goes Minnesota.

The chaos and social breakdown in Minneapolis certainly did not have to turn out the way it did. Two protesters were shot dead. ICE officers were injured, and one even had part of his finger savagely bitten off. It was political theater at its worst.

As to whose fault it is, that opens up another powder keg, depending on whom you ask. You may get seven or eight different answers. Much of it has to do with one’s political leanings or political ideology.

But it shouldn’t.

To unravel this unnecessary complication, we must go back to the root of the problem and why the solution was put in place. Minnesota, a sanctuary state, has numerous illegal aliens living among its law-abiding population. Within that subset of lawbreakers – no matter how hardworking and upstanding you are, entering this country illegally is a crime – too many were dangerous criminals comprised of rapists, child molesters, gang bangers, thieves, and drug dealers, among others. To combat this, the federal government acted and rightfully called upon ICE to mitigate this disaster, which has mushroomed over the last few years, thanks to unfettered swarms of illegals walking through our borders, north and south, as if they were walking from one neighborhood in town to the next.

So far, no one in their right mind can disagree that this is a simple problem-solution scenario.

In a normal, simple world, ICE would be allowed to carry forth its mission, get the bad guys out, and clean up the city. They would be welcomed into the infected area by state and city officials, and before long, they could move to the next U.S. city that has been adversely affected by the Biden-era lawlessness.

Unfortunately, Minneapolis and Minnesota as a whole, are galaxies away from the normal world.

Governor Tim Walz and Mayor Jacob Frey went out of their way to foster a sequel to “The Horrific Demise of St. George of Fentanyl,” featured in 2020. Instead of welcoming ICE and coordinating their efforts with state and local police to ensure a smooth operation, the governor and the mayor stoked the flames of anarchy and disruption. They encouraged photographing ICE officers, which led to doxing. They also encouraged blowing whistles and causing disruptions during procedures. They held press conferences and called ICE agents “Nazis” and referred to them as Trump’s “Gestapo enforcers.” Frey even proclaimed that ICE should “get the F— out.” It would be too easy and too cliché to dub Walz and Frey as “Dumb and Dumber,” because they are not. They knew exactly what they were doing. Evil and Diabolical or Spiteful and Sleazeball would be more appropriate monikers. It is quite obvious that these two beta pseudo males are looking for an opportunity to buck President Trump and divert everyone’s attention from their inexcusable Somali daycare scandal, where billions of taxpayer dollars were funneled into the hands of scammers and pirates.

Walz and Frey’s blatant flouting of law enforcement made this simple problem complex. Protesters were given wider boundaries, and their protests turned into unlawful riots. They directly injected themselves into ICE jurisdiction and basically morphed into criminals. Such was the case of Renee Nicole Good. According to eyewitnesses, Good was following ICE agents throughout the day and trying to thwart their efforts. When it came to the point where the officers told her to get out of her car, she made a fatal mistake. Regardless of how right or wrong a person might be or think they are, if an officer commands someone to get out of their vehicle, under no circumstances is there a choice not to. Furthermore, if a person decides to rev up their SUV to try and escape, all bets are off, especially if the SUV makes bodily contact with the officer, as was the case here. Sadly and unfortunately, the officer had no other recourse and fired his weapon, thus ending Good’s life.

Cold as it may sound, Renee Good brought on her own demise. All other circumstances are irrelevant. Extremely sad, but irrelevant. No one is happy to see three children lose their mother. No one is celebrating the fact that parents lost a child or that Good’s lesbian partner was now without her lover. This is all heart wrenching, but it is irrelevant to what happened. The fact that Frey and Walz played on it and politicized it was sickening. Neither showed any remorse toward the officer who suffered injuries. Frey even minimized it and made a spurious claim that his injuries were the mere equivalent to closing a refrigerator door with his hips.

The second fatal incident involving Alex Pretti was another example of escalation when there need not have been any. Pretti placed himself in the middle of police business when he had no right to get involved. The fact that he was brandishing a firearm – and did not declare it from the outset – made him armed and dangerous. While the case is currently being investigated, one thing is very clear: Alex Pretti put himself in danger and had absolutely no right to be involved in law enforcement’s business. Carrying a weapon while doing this was quite simply, a moronic thing to do. These are the facts that we know, and they are indisputable. We also know that the week before, Pretti was identified at another anti-ICE mini-riot. He was seen shouting, “F&%K YOU!” and waving his middle finger at officers. He also spat on their vehicle before reaching his crescendo. That was when he maniacally kicked the taillight of the ICE vehicle until it cracked and dangled. This too will surely be a part of the investigation. Perhaps it will uncover a deeper motive, but the facts we already know do not paint a pretty picture, no pun intended.

Already, liberals have been hailing Pretti as a hero, a selfless intensive care nurse at a Minneapolis VA medical center. According to other reports, Pretti grew up in Green Bay, sang in a choir, was an athlete, and also performed in musicals. While these are also facts, they cannot override the aforementioned truths about how he carried himself on the day of his death, nor can they erase his malfeasance the week before.

Two horrific deaths occurred in Minnesota. Nothing could change that. People’s actions during critical moments led to the fatal outcomes. But they could have and should have been avoided. This is where leadership failed. Jacob Frey and Tim Walz put political ambitions, financial coverups and hatred of President Trump ahead of following the law. Because of this, they lost two constituents.

Simply put, the ultimate fault lies with these two agitators. And they may eventually find out how complicated it is to cleanse their hands of the blood that is staining them.