In this episode I go over the El Paso Shooter’s manifesto in detail in order to understand the shooter’s worldview and as an exercise in critical thought. How are we to know if he was correct in his claims or incorrect? Did he lose his mind to a deranged conspiracy theory? Did he make any valid points that we need to recognize and consider? All the questions of why someone would do this and how they were able to come to his conclusions will be asked, challenged and answered in this 2 part series. In this first episode I will just state his claims without providing too much analysis in an attempt to steel man his position so that we can fully understand his perspective. In the second episode of this series I will take his claims head on to assess their validity and help guild you through an honest and critical examination of the soundness of his reasoning. This is the first in a longer series I am planning where we take a deep dive into critical thought; specifically how to read critically. My hope is to provide insight into how someone like the El Paso Shooter can be created through poor critical thinking skills, a willingness to self indoctrinate into conspiracy theories and a misinformed understanding of science. My technique can be duplicated by you so that you won’t be fooled by his claims and so that you can further hone your critical thinking skills.