May 23, 2014: Elliot Rodger, the Patron "Saint" of "Incels"

May 23, 2014: Elliot Rodger becomes a mass murderer. He also becomes the patron "saint" of "incels."

Note: Much of this article was originally written as a Facebook post by history professor James Fell, author of the book On This Day in History Shit Went Down. If you haven't bought it, do both him and yourself a favor and buy it. You'll thank both him and me later.

"Incel" is a portmanteau of "involuntary celibate." The term was actually coined in the 1990s, by a woman -- a Canadian university student who did not use her real name on the paper she wrote -- as a way to help people. But, like many things, it was co-opted and warped by rotten men. In this case, by a group comprised almost exclusively of young men, usually white, who lament their inability to convince women to have sex with them.

It’s a toxic online subculture that despises women, while also wanting to use them for sex. But, just as Sigmund Freud used sex as a metaphor for everything else -- or was it vice versa? -- it’s not really about the sexual activity, or the lack thereof. Rather, incels are a hate group that cannot abide having their sense of entitlement thwarted. They want to conquer the bodies of beautiful women to gain status in the male hierarchy. And the Isla Vista Massacre brought the word "incel" into the common vernacular.

On May 23, 2014, Rodger, then 22, wrote a 107,000-word hate-filled manifesto about how much he despised women for “starving him of sex." He then uploaded a video titled "Elliot Rodger's Retribution" to YouTube. In it, he outlined his planned attack and his motives. He blamed both women for rejecting him and sexually active men for being more successful than he was.

In his apartment, he ambushed and stabbed to death his 2 roommates and their friend, killing them separately as they arrived. About 2 hours later, he drove to a sorority house for the University of California at Santa Barbara, and, after failing to gain entry, he shot 3 women walking near the house, 2 of whom died. This showed that he was not targeted particular women for rejecting him, but women in general.

He then drove past a nearby delicatessen, and shot and killed a man who was inside. Following this, he drove around Isla Vista, shooting and wounding several pedestrians from his car, and striking others with his car. He twice exchanged gunfire with police, and was injured in the hip. After Rodger's car crashed into a parked vehicle, he was found dead inside, with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Total wounded, not counting himself 20. Total killed, not counting himself: 6.

The incel community, being warped and entitled, labeled Rodger "Saint Elliot," because he "martyred" himself to the cause. Incels number in the tens of thousands online, and several mass murders have been committed by them in North America, resulting in dozens of deaths. A shift in how these killings are treated came as a result of a February 24, 2020, stabbing attack in Toronto that killed one woman and injured another. A minor-aged male incel was charged. Police later labeled it an act of terrorism.

Which it was. Incels are nihilists: They believe that if they can't be sexually satisfied and happy, nobody should be. They want to punish the world, burn it down, and watch the fire.

However, like any hate group, members are not beyond hope. Just as there are former murderers, former Klansmen and former neo-Nazis, there are former incels -- not necessarily in happy, sexually satisfying relationships, but no longer acting like the world owes them pleasure.

*

May 23, 2014 was a Friday. Football was out of season. The NBA and Stanley Cup Playoffs were underway, but no games were played on this day. These Major League Baseball games were:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Chicago White Sox, 6-5 at U.S. Cellular Field (now Rate Field) in Chicago. The Yankees led 5-4 going to the bottom of the 9th, but David Robertson gave up a single to Dayán Viciedo and a home run to Adam Dunn. Brian McCann hit a home run for the Yankees. Derek Jeter, in his final season, when 2-for-4 with a walk.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 2-0 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Clayton Kershaw pitched 6 innings of 2-hit shutout ball, and 4 relievers completed the 3-hit shutout.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Colorado Rockies, 3-2 at Turner Field (now Center Parc Stadium) in Atlanta.

* The Tampa Bay Rays beat the Boston Red Sox, 1-0 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. The game was scoreless until the bottom of the 9th, when Cole Figueroa doubled Desmond Jennings home. Four Rays pitchers combined on a 5-hit shutout: Chris Archer (4 hits over 6 innings), Jake McGee (none in the 7th), Joel Peralta (none in the 8th) and Juan Carlos Oviedo (1 in the 9th).

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Miami Marlins, 9-5 at Marlins Park (now LoanDepot Park) in Miami.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Oakland Athletics,3-2 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Washington Nationals, 4-3 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Cleveland Indians, 8-4 at Progressive Field in Cleveland.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 5-3 at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Texas Rangers, 7-2 at Comerica Park in Detroit.

* The San Diego Padres beat the Chicago Cubs, 11-1 at Petco Park in San Diego.

* The Los Angeles Angels beat the Kansas City Royals, 8-4 at Angel Stadium of Anaheim.

* The San Francisco Giants beat the Minnesota Twins, 6-2 at AT&T Park in San Francisco.

* The Seattle Mariners beat the Houston Astros, 6-1 at Safeco Field (now T-Mobile Park) in Seattle.

* And the New York Mets and the Arizona Diamondbacks were rained out at Citi Field. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader 2 days later. The Diamondbacks won the opener, 2-1. Daniel Murphy went 2-for-5, but his error in the top of the 9th inning, with Chris Owings at bat, allowed AJ Pollock to score the winning run. The Mets won the nightcap, 4-2. Murphy went 3-for-4 with an RBI, aiding Daisuke Matsuzaka.