Flaming Leftist Lit Palisades
A flaming leftist ignited the Palisades Heights inferno in January that burned 23,000 acres and leveled more than 6,000 structures, leaving a death toll of 12 in its wake.
The U.S. Department of Justice has charged the 29-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht, living in California at the time. He is said to have ignited the initial Lockman Fire on New Year’s Day shortly after completing his shift working as an Uber driver.
Long obsessed with pyromania, he had been listening to a French song by the artist Josman, celebrating a surly loser who goes around town lighting things on fire. (Below, we’ve presented the song, “Un Zder, Un Thé.” A “zder” is a joint, and “Thé” is a tea.)
Rinderknecht was born and raised in France. Most recently, he had been living in Florida, and was apprehended in Melbourne.
Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli says after he started the fire, Rinderknecht posted a ChatGPT prompt that featured a dystopian painting showing “a burning forest and the crowd running from it.”
The Lockman Fire smoldered in the brush for days, eventually growing into the Palisades Fire, the most destructive blaze in the entire history of Los Angeles.
Here, Benny Johnson discusses the arrest. He says Rinderknecht embraced Kamala Harris and hated Donald Trump. This kook sure had a crazy way to express his admiration for a fellow Californian.
And here’s his pyro anthem — not much of a song, nor really inspiring, unless you’re a moron and a loser through and through.
