Max, if the messages from Luigi are inflammatory, please consider not including screenshots, and instead just relaying the gist. The media is out to get him and anything he says will blow up and be used against him. Humor, context, won't matter. This man's life is literally on the line and his only hope is the public support and donations that are coming in. If what he said to you can be used against him in the media, please, please consider not including the actual screenshots. We don't need to actually see his (private) words to you to understand the type of thing he was saying.
I appreciate the leveled response and respect for Luigi. From the outset it has been critical to me that I write something which Luigi (and any reasonable and thoughtful person) will be satisfied with. And this desire has only increased after the dozens of hours I've spent "with him" these last 2 months doing this research.
I can assure you the decision to show the DMs was not taken lightly but also that you are much more worried about them than you need to be. It's a few innocuous messages, not long conversations. They won't sway anything in any which way, and the only negative thing that will come from them is that more dorks will call me a "clout chaser" for ever wrestling in the first place with whether or not to share them.
If anything I write could possibly harm Luigi, it is will be my meticulously crafted social media timeline and motive analysis. But any half competent lawyer will have already done this anyway, so it too is a nothing burger.
In the end, Luigi was a truth seeker and thus will appreciate that someone with a functioning brain is writing true things about him rather than whatever they want to be true about him (what just about everyone else appears to be doing). I will send it to him and we will find out what he thinks.
Your sober comments here have given me some hope, but I do still hope you know how much responsibility you carry when releasing - or not releasing - this private correspondence with him. This is a man possibly facing capital punishment and certainly facing great indignities right now. The supporters he has amassed are largely the type to take even the smallest verbal transgressions with great offense. But adversity makes strange bedfellows, and currently Luigi is reliant on these people for moral and financial support. They may even make up part of the twelve who will decide upon his fate. Please be very careful and responsible. And why not write a letter to him first?
I second Ellie’s kind sentiments. Luigi has been actively corresponding through letters while incarcerated. His legal team is also very responsive. Not sure if you’ve seen it, but they actually launched a website for him last week. Would you consider writing to him first? Of course it’s up to you, but I would echo, that your words hold a lot of weight in Luigi’s public perception right now. I know it would most likely mean a great deal to him to hear from you himself before you released your article. Truly all the best Max. I’ll try to get out of your comment section now.
or "Luigi thought women were objects". One of these tweets was quite recent as well. Do you not realize how this might be harming him? And do you derive this information from the DMs you claim are so innocuous, they could not possibly impact his reputation?
I thought I just replied to this but I don't see the comment anymore. Not sure if substack having an aneurysm or me but here is a copy paste of what I said to a similar question from someone else:
"This is insightful thank you. I said all of those things flippantly and to get a rise out of people who were annoying me. In restrospect, I can see why those had much more of an impact that I thought they would. Luigi was not sexist or racist or anything of the sort. In fact, our DMs are mostly him telling me to stop being sexist and racist."
Thanks for the reply. I commented this twice (once as a reply and once as a stand alone comment), since I was not sure how substacks notifications system worked. I believe someone else also commented something similar, so I think that is where the confusion comes from, but thank you for taking the time to reply to all pertinent comments. If that is indeed true (and please consider that the people he relies on now for support, financial or otherwise, largely see even small transgressions as monumentally catastrophical), then I suppose there is no harm in releasing these DMs. In fact it might even help him at this point, since even this harmless preamble has led to much catastrophizing about his character.
"I appreciate the leveled response and respect for Luigi". Unfortunately no respect for him coming from you. What a sad, pathetic life one must have to try to get clicks out of another man's misery. Spend more time with your kids and less on the Internet, it'll be better for you.
I can understand why this situation—and Luigi himself—spark curiosity. But for him, this isn’t just an intellectual exercise. He’s awaiting trial, facing the possibility of a death sentence for something he may not have even done. At the same time, people online dissect every word he’s ever posted, every message, every scrap of public information. And he’s not in a position to respond.
I doubt that you're approaching this with any malice. You seem to be a provocateur but not evil, and I'm sure you'd agree with that assessment. I'm not arguing that you should scrap this, but rather that you should consider saving it until you get his take on it first. You can give him some autonomy over what information about him is shared online, and I think he deserves that. Don't you?
He'll definitely post screenshots, he's a troll. He's known for being racist, misogynistic, homophobic on X... so I'm waiting for the worst conversations between them, especially since Max himself has said bad things about Luigi. It's terrible to have someone exposing you while you're facing the death penalty and trusted him, at least they stopped talking in may. I'm sure the first part will come out on friday.
After all your comments I considered trolling you, then concluded to ignore you, but after this post I finally understand whats motivating you and so I want to instead connect with you:
You care deeply about Luigi. You are not alone in this. There are millions of people who feel the same. And you might not believe me when I say this, but I've always seen Luigi is a kindred spirit and someone who I have always wanted the best for, even back as far his first replies to me. The kind of person he was—a caring, thoughtful, driven yet considerate person—was evident from our first interaction and is the reason I took the time to reply to him in the first place.
Heck, I spent the first week after his arrest wondering whether if I talked with him more if it could have lead to a different path for him. So I reached out to literally every "reply guy" I could think of to check on them and let them know that I will make time for them if they ever need.
And my feeling of connection with Luigi has only grown since working on this project.
So while yes, I say inappropriate and devious things on Twitter because I think they are funny or at least cathartic, and maybe you can't imagine how someone who could do that could be ensouled or not-actually-evil, I can assure we are on the same team when it comes to this topic. We both want what's best for him and to do right by him. For me that includes staying within the bounds of the law which I can understand you may not agree with, but overall I am pretty confident Luigi will greatly appreciate this series and enjoy reading it. And thus I hope you can do.
Max, have you considered just reaching out to Luigi generally? He's not dead lol, he's just in jail. You guys seemed cool before he went media dark, so if you're being honest about feeling connected to him, why not try to offer him friendship and support now? It will probably mean a lot coming from you. Please consider it.
Also, if you're thinking of sending it to him after the fact, why not ask him if it's ok to post beforehand? Send it through his website so he sees it via his legal team. You won't be stopped by jail censors then.
It's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission, but doing the easier thing isn't always better
I have planned to reach out to him yes. Just been drowning with things lately I haven't had time to figure it out. If you can send me instructions that would help. Also I'd be fine with talking with his legal team before publishing part two. If you can let me know how I can get in contact with them, I'd appreciate it.
I know he’d be stoked to hear from you dude. Honestly, thank you for having so much integrity and tact in these replies tonight. I genuinely do look forward to reading what you’ve put together for us, and if it has Luigi’s input I actually think that’s even better and gives you a unique angle on this, even if we have to wait a while. Most of all, I think it would just mean a lot to him to hear from you as someone who’s under a lot of pressure right now and he likely misses interacting with your content.
I can appreciate the heavy toll this took on you Max. I see it in Gurwinder as well. We’re all seeking answers and understanding right now. This is a tragedy and with the right interventions, I think it could have been prevented. It’s completely understandable that someone who obviously had an influence on Luigi would try to shed some light on who he was and what exactly he was struggling with. I have a lot of grace for you, just as I have for Gurwinder and Tim Urban. I trust that you can also have grace for Luigi.
Gurwinder has written articles, but has also participated in multiple media appearances to talk about his interactions with Luigi amidst some pretty heavy backlash. Like I said, I have a lot of grace for him as it’s clear he’s struggling with the thought that he may have had the influence to intervene in this tragedy. But I think this is why you’re also receiving the same criticism. It’s perceived as threatening to his image and capitalizing on someone else’s misfortune.
Yes. Tim has also written about Luigi in the following NYT article:
It's horrible to spread the dm's of someone who trusted you. I find it funny that you think he would like that, how do you know... did call him on MDC? Anyway, it's good to know that the people who do this are who weren't his friends or knew him personally, in real life friends and family are quiet, as it should be
2) I literally just spent 100 hours reading through everything he's ever said online. I guarantee that doing this for any individual will tell you as much if not more about them than most of their friends and family know about them.
3) I plan to send him the post as a letter and specifically ask him what he thinks. If he responds, I'll tell you what he says if you stop being such a hater :)
This is fair. Thank you for the perspective. I guess I forget how flippant I am on Twitter, and people expect me to be the same here (I am not). I think at this point I just need to not read comments, finish writing, and we can see where the pieces land.
his life is talked about every day you are just another one doing this. ask him after you post, this can't be serious hahaha omg his opinion is not important to you at all, I hope he doesn't waste stamps on this
Thank you!! This mans literal life is on the line. The whole system is rigged against him! Anything you share about him can and will be used against him! Please don’t make his defense even harder!
omg hahahahah get a job and stop spreading private conversations of someone who is in prison. since you are clearly a weirdo and a fame seeker, I expect the worst things to come from this text
It's terrible to think that his "friend" trusted him and another loser author, only for it to be published months later. I hate that they treat him like a character and not a real person.
Grifters the lot of them. What interests could you possibly have to disclose private conversations other than clout and grifting? (Rhetorical question)
Thanks for your response. I really hope you're right. Luigi was not an angel, nor does he need to be whiter-than-white for his overall message to prevail. He's a normal, complex, but realistically, very flawed person...he did, allegedly, shoot someone, after all.
I'm not trying to protect my dream of some sort of pure-prince here...but given the fact that he is facing the death penalty, and the current administration want to increase capital punishment and make an example out of him, I feel very wary. He faces an incredibly long, lonely, and serious uphill battle and I hate the thought that you, someone he clearly liked, respected, and trusted, could make things worse for him.
I will take your word for it that you don't, though. Thank you. Super keen to hear what he thinks about it too! I hope you do write to him.
Thank you for giving me the benefit of the doubt. I totally understand your concern and perspective and I hear you. I am hopeful that you will be satisfied that I walked this line fairly and wrote something which is only-productive. I look forward to your feedback, both positive and negative, once you give it a read.
I’m following Luigi’s case closely — he’s getting absolutely skullfucked by the media and the criminal justice system, so understandably people on Reddit are concerned that your DMs might erode the public support that Luigi has had since December based on some of your spiciest Twitter posts. A proper defense for Luigi is gonna cost millions, so having his fundraising dry up cause he said “gay” or “retarded” in a DM once is a pretty bleak outcome imo.
I’m impressed by your thoughtful replies, and truly believe that you understand how vulnerable Luigi is right now. Just please remember that the press is absolutely ruthless and will bend and twist your writing to fit their narrative if there’s anything vaguely questionable in his DMs.
Thank you. Yes I understand. I expect my series will go nowhere besides a few dorks on Twitter, but I am writing it with the care necessary for the possibility of it reaching a much wider audience. Unfortunately, we cannot avoid stupid people with their own narratives taking things out of context, but I am doing the best I can to make it hard for them to do that or at least easy for others to call them out for it.
I look forward to your thoughts on things as you read it and also welcome your feedback, positive and negative :)
I can almost assure you that this will go farther than some recesses on twitter, in fact this relatively unspectacular (in content, not eloquence) preamble has already been causing hysteria on a subreddit dedicated to him - a subreddit which has also had two tabloid articles written about it in the past weeks, so eyes are on it. All facetts of the establishment will try to find ways to discredit Luigi and make his already very bleak future even harder. Please only release these DMs if no reasonable person could find great issue with them. Then think about the values his average supporter may have. And please consider writing him (or his legal team) first, I'm sure he would be happy to hear from an old aquaintance
His weird landlord shared private information about Luigis intimate life and the press went wild calling him an incel. Whatever this person exposes WILL get twisted by the media. I truly dont think there is anything that the press wont use to vilify him.
Hey Max I'm happy that you've come to the decision to reach out to Luigi's legal team and to also send Luigi your article before publishing it, I truly think this is the correct way to go about it , I'm sorry for the hate that you might be getting but you have to understand that it's because of the things that you've tweeted in the past about Luigi , Many (including me ) have been really concerned that this article could really hurt his public image (if you weren't trolling and those things that you've said about him were true), And in this case were there are already so many outrageous prosecutions against him, the support of the public is truly one of the only things that can help him right now regardless of his innocence. Sorry for my schizo ramblings I understand you've done lots of research and worked a lot on this so I do want to read what you have to say but again with the way media has been already trying to dig for anything bad they can say about him I really don't want your article to be taken the wrong way and become another nail in his coffin
This is insightful thank you. I said all of those things flippantly and to get a rise out of people who were annoying me. In restrospect, I can see why those had much more of an impact that I thought they would. Luigi was not sexist or racist or anything of the sort. In fact, our DMs are mostly him telling me to stop being sexist and racist.
delete those tweets then. it’s truly not clear that you are joking in them. and it’s also wrong to shitpost at the expense of someone who is already vulnerable and can’t even reply to your tweets
it would have been clear if you’d read anything else i’ve ever said anywhere. Or frankly even my bio on X. And deleting them might appease you but it will inflame others who will claim some nefarious intent behind it. Cant make everyone happy so not worth trying. Can only try to make happy the people whose opinion I value. And they would want me to clarify things but would agree that deleting anything would only create blood in the water to attract crazies looking for their pound of flesh.
Hi Max. This is not a question but just wanted to say that Luigi, inadvertently, introduced me to your substack page back in December and for what it's worth I'm glad he did. I noticed that him and I share nearly all of the same beliefs, the good as well as the "not so popular" ones (from what is shown on social media) and that's how I ended up here. A reminder, even though I'm sure you're aware, that 99% of all his "supporters" are disillusioned women who are enamored with his online presence and project a lot of their fantasies onto this canvas of a man who cannot deny or confirm any of it. If I recall correctly you talked about these sort of gender dynamics in dating and searching for competent mates in some of your articles. However, they will never admit that to themselves cause - virtue signaling.
Unfortunately, his online funding depends on these people and 1 may as well be part of the jury later on. So, to you Max as well as anyone who might get triggered reading this so far, I'm confident you'll do him justice. Don't get discouraged to share any conversations or opinions you think are relevant to painting a more accurate picture of him and the situation because of some keyboard warriors. I'm pretty confident Luigi would dislike all the pitying and infantilization that's going on in these online echochambers. He needs people like you in his corner!
99%??? Maybe 50% tops. You sound like a jealous incel. There are various reasons for support. You know what I hate more than a greedy ceo? A PD that plants evidence, a media that tries to shame and persuade the public and potential jurors, a top corp that pressures the doj, a mayor that uses a suspect to distract from his own scandal, and naive activists that think justifiable homicide is a winning defense for their imaginary revolutionary. That just adds to my own conclusions that this kid is innocent. There are infinite reasons to support him. I don’t even care what his political ideological leanings are. I find the fangirling to be comic relief because this whole situation is going to get real dark real quick.
If the top 1% want to make something happen, they'll make it happen. Water is wet. Welcome to the world. Don't get it twisted I don't care if he did/didn't do it, he shouldn't be in prison, period, but people indulge in wishful thinking too much and it's clouding their minds. This goes beyond fangirl behavior. It's also the reason why the momentum of support will drop drastically within the next 6 months, unless they televise more of his court appearances. I'm all for support as long as its for the right reasons, but I also have and will continue to call a spade a spade
or "Luigi thought women were objects". One of these tweets was quite recent as well. Do you not realize how this might be harming him? And do you derive this information from the DMs you claim are so innocuous, they could not possibly impact his reputation?
That makes more sense. No, all those tweets were jokes and not true. He was not any of those things. In fact, the DMs are mostly him telling me to stop being racist and sexist.
You write this so stripped down and analytically. Yanno, my father worked in tech too--it seems like this type of analytical speaking is pretty common with men in tech. You should try being more affective with your writing.
i was quite turned on by the "luigi thought of women as objects" one. I'm sorry I know I'm not supposed to be saying this; I swear I'm pro-luigi, although I feel like that would be clear enough from the preceding comment. It's like, hey daddy! lol
Okay, my apologies, but that one didn't impact me negatively.
Your sober comments here have given me some hope, but I do still hope you know how much responsibility you carry when releasing - or not releasing - this private correspondence with him. This is a man possibly facing capital punishment and certainly facing great indignities right now. The supporters he has amassed are largely the type to take even the smallest verbal transgressions (you know what I mean) with great offense. But adversity makes strange bedfellows, and currently Luigi is reliant on these people for moral and financial support. They may even make up part of the twelve who will decide upon his fate. Please be very careful and responsible. And why not write a letter to him first?
I'm really looking forward to reading the upcoming parts. I think the most interesting part (for me at least) will be to learn your perception of him, since you actually were friends. It will be refreshing to see something substantial for once, instead of seeing everyone else's baseless analyses of his character where they're simply projecting or straight guessing based off of their feelings.
I don’t think calling us “friends” would be quite accurate, as we only shared a few conversations. But at this point I am pretty sure I know more about him than all but his best of friends. Hoping some will find it useful. we will see!
I'm really tired of these authors pretending they were his friends. And this Max is a redpill who has already insinuated a lot bad things about his "friend" (who he didn't know personally). I really hate unemployed people.
It’s strange to read your comments on Substack after only being exposed to the (frankly, horrible) things you say on Twitter. They’re dissonant.
Your tweets about Luigi, and the way they seem to foreshadow the content of this series, have caused a lot of upset in different communities that support him. Like, a lot. Based on your Twitter, I understand that you like to upset people, but you seem to be underestimating the reach that this will have. It won’t be a few people on twitter who read it - it will shared widely, as this preview already has been. Consider the impact it will have beyond riling people up.
Yes I understand. I wrote a second preamble last night after reading all these comments which i hope will clear things up. It will go out today. i would appreciate any feedback you have on it.
Can we give this man a break! You may not agree with his tweets, his views etc but his article clearly states he "owes this to Luigi" .....that doesn't sound negative to me!? Maybe Luigi also disagreed with his views and called him out on them, and this man was respectful enough to understand everyone has different opinions? Not everything everyone writes is incriminating
Thank you. I appreciate your openess. For what it's worth, and actually yes, his DMs to me were mostly him expressing his disapproval of my racism and sexism, saying that it tarnishes the other good ideas I have.
I've been following Luigi's story since before the unveiling of his identity. Although I don't condone violence, I immediately saw him as a personal hero of mine (and still kinda do). I've had issues with the healthcare/insurance industry for years. My older brother with cerebral palsy died from colon cancer at 25 and an older sister survived it at 29. The system is screwed up. I will say this; whatever happens to Luigi's reputation when each article is released to the public could ruin his case which could lead to a potential death penalty even faster. I saw a glimmer of hope through Luigi "allegedly" who stood up for the people. I know no one is perfect but... yikes. I guess there is no hope for him after all which makes me very sad. The admiration was great while it lasted. My hurt breaks for him and his family.
While I am in the business of telling the truth, even if it shatters peoples ideals, I can say that I am fairly sure your position on Luigi will not change much. If anything, I think you will appreciate him more as you get to know him more as a person. Sure he has flaws, but I can't see how anyone besides those who worship him as some kind of superhuman God will come away with a worse view of him. We will see though! I look forward to hearing your thoughts when you read it.
"3) I plan to send him the post as a letter and specifically ask him what he thinks. If he responds, I'll tell you what he says if you stop being such a hater :)"
why not ask him what he thinks before you upload the post to the internet? you will still get a lot of eyes on your writing even if you have to wait a couple of months for a reply.
Max, if the messages from Luigi are inflammatory, please consider not including screenshots, and instead just relaying the gist. The media is out to get him and anything he says will blow up and be used against him. Humor, context, won't matter. This man's life is literally on the line and his only hope is the public support and donations that are coming in. If what he said to you can be used against him in the media, please, please consider not including the actual screenshots. We don't need to actually see his (private) words to you to understand the type of thing he was saying.
I appreciate the leveled response and respect for Luigi. From the outset it has been critical to me that I write something which Luigi (and any reasonable and thoughtful person) will be satisfied with. And this desire has only increased after the dozens of hours I've spent "with him" these last 2 months doing this research.
I can assure you the decision to show the DMs was not taken lightly but also that you are much more worried about them than you need to be. It's a few innocuous messages, not long conversations. They won't sway anything in any which way, and the only negative thing that will come from them is that more dorks will call me a "clout chaser" for ever wrestling in the first place with whether or not to share them.
If anything I write could possibly harm Luigi, it is will be my meticulously crafted social media timeline and motive analysis. But any half competent lawyer will have already done this anyway, so it too is a nothing burger.
In the end, Luigi was a truth seeker and thus will appreciate that someone with a functioning brain is writing true things about him rather than whatever they want to be true about him (what just about everyone else appears to be doing). I will send it to him and we will find out what he thinks.
Your sober comments here have given me some hope, but I do still hope you know how much responsibility you carry when releasing - or not releasing - this private correspondence with him. This is a man possibly facing capital punishment and certainly facing great indignities right now. The supporters he has amassed are largely the type to take even the smallest verbal transgressions with great offense. But adversity makes strange bedfellows, and currently Luigi is reliant on these people for moral and financial support. They may even make up part of the twelve who will decide upon his fate. Please be very careful and responsible. And why not write a letter to him first?
I second Ellie’s kind sentiments. Luigi has been actively corresponding through letters while incarcerated. His legal team is also very responsive. Not sure if you’ve seen it, but they actually launched a website for him last week. Would you consider writing to him first? Of course it’s up to you, but I would echo, that your words hold a lot of weight in Luigi’s public perception right now. I know it would most likely mean a great deal to him to hear from you himself before you released your article. Truly all the best Max. I’ll try to get out of your comment section now.
Max. Don’t kick this guy while he’s down. Please consider omitting the DMs. Otherwise I look forward to seeing what you’ve put together for us.
I believe some of the worry that people have, also comes from you tweeting stuff like "Luigi was fatphobic and racist" (https://x.com/minordissent/status/1890560458777629055)
or "Luigi thought women were objects". One of these tweets was quite recent as well. Do you not realize how this might be harming him? And do you derive this information from the DMs you claim are so innocuous, they could not possibly impact his reputation?
I thought I just replied to this but I don't see the comment anymore. Not sure if substack having an aneurysm or me but here is a copy paste of what I said to a similar question from someone else:
"This is insightful thank you. I said all of those things flippantly and to get a rise out of people who were annoying me. In restrospect, I can see why those had much more of an impact that I thought they would. Luigi was not sexist or racist or anything of the sort. In fact, our DMs are mostly him telling me to stop being sexist and racist."
Thanks for the reply. I commented this twice (once as a reply and once as a stand alone comment), since I was not sure how substacks notifications system worked. I believe someone else also commented something similar, so I think that is where the confusion comes from, but thank you for taking the time to reply to all pertinent comments. If that is indeed true (and please consider that the people he relies on now for support, financial or otherwise, largely see even small transgressions as monumentally catastrophical), then I suppose there is no harm in releasing these DMs. In fact it might even help him at this point, since even this harmless preamble has led to much catastrophizing about his character.
"I appreciate the leveled response and respect for Luigi". Unfortunately no respect for him coming from you. What a sad, pathetic life one must have to try to get clicks out of another man's misery. Spend more time with your kids and less on the Internet, it'll be better for you.
Another man's misery? He's a murderer. go fuck yourself
There hasn't been a trial yet, you fucking cunt.
I can understand why this situation—and Luigi himself—spark curiosity. But for him, this isn’t just an intellectual exercise. He’s awaiting trial, facing the possibility of a death sentence for something he may not have even done. At the same time, people online dissect every word he’s ever posted, every message, every scrap of public information. And he’s not in a position to respond.
I doubt that you're approaching this with any malice. You seem to be a provocateur but not evil, and I'm sure you'd agree with that assessment. I'm not arguing that you should scrap this, but rather that you should consider saving it until you get his take on it first. You can give him some autonomy over what information about him is shared online, and I think he deserves that. Don't you?
I will publish a new piece called Part 0.5 tomorrow. After you read it, I’d appreciate if you could let me know if you still agree with this comment.
I will. Until then, I guess.
Update: I both did and didn’t. It’s complicated. Sent a more expansive explanation via DM.
He'll definitely post screenshots, he's a troll. He's known for being racist, misogynistic, homophobic on X... so I'm waiting for the worst conversations between them, especially since Max himself has said bad things about Luigi. It's terrible to have someone exposing you while you're facing the death penalty and trusted him, at least they stopped talking in may. I'm sure the first part will come out on friday.
After all your comments I considered trolling you, then concluded to ignore you, but after this post I finally understand whats motivating you and so I want to instead connect with you:
You care deeply about Luigi. You are not alone in this. There are millions of people who feel the same. And you might not believe me when I say this, but I've always seen Luigi is a kindred spirit and someone who I have always wanted the best for, even back as far his first replies to me. The kind of person he was—a caring, thoughtful, driven yet considerate person—was evident from our first interaction and is the reason I took the time to reply to him in the first place.
Heck, I spent the first week after his arrest wondering whether if I talked with him more if it could have lead to a different path for him. So I reached out to literally every "reply guy" I could think of to check on them and let them know that I will make time for them if they ever need.
And my feeling of connection with Luigi has only grown since working on this project.
So while yes, I say inappropriate and devious things on Twitter because I think they are funny or at least cathartic, and maybe you can't imagine how someone who could do that could be ensouled or not-actually-evil, I can assure we are on the same team when it comes to this topic. We both want what's best for him and to do right by him. For me that includes staying within the bounds of the law which I can understand you may not agree with, but overall I am pretty confident Luigi will greatly appreciate this series and enjoy reading it. And thus I hope you can do.
All the best to you,
Max
Max, have you considered just reaching out to Luigi generally? He's not dead lol, he's just in jail. You guys seemed cool before he went media dark, so if you're being honest about feeling connected to him, why not try to offer him friendship and support now? It will probably mean a lot coming from you. Please consider it.
Also, if you're thinking of sending it to him after the fact, why not ask him if it's ok to post beforehand? Send it through his website so he sees it via his legal team. You won't be stopped by jail censors then.
It's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission, but doing the easier thing isn't always better
I have planned to reach out to him yes. Just been drowning with things lately I haven't had time to figure it out. If you can send me instructions that would help. Also I'd be fine with talking with his legal team before publishing part two. If you can let me know how I can get in contact with them, I'd appreciate it.
Looks like the best way to reach out would be going to the contact section on https://www.luigimangioneinfo.com/
It's been confirmed by Rolling Stone to be legit. There's also a FAQ and a public statement by him.
I would hope this method of communication is faster than jail snail mail, but we'll have to see.
Really glad to hear you want to connect with him & his team! You're a good dude Max 🙏
I just reached out to them. Thanks for the suggestion.
I know he’d be stoked to hear from you dude. Honestly, thank you for having so much integrity and tact in these replies tonight. I genuinely do look forward to reading what you’ve put together for us, and if it has Luigi’s input I actually think that’s even better and gives you a unique angle on this, even if we have to wait a while. Most of all, I think it would just mean a lot to him to hear from you as someone who’s under a lot of pressure right now and he likely misses interacting with your content.
this is his legal team’s official contact form: https://www.luigimangioneinfo.com/pages/contact/
I can appreciate the heavy toll this took on you Max. I see it in Gurwinder as well. We’re all seeking answers and understanding right now. This is a tragedy and with the right interventions, I think it could have been prevented. It’s completely understandable that someone who obviously had an influence on Luigi would try to shed some light on who he was and what exactly he was struggling with. I have a lot of grace for you, just as I have for Gurwinder and Tim Urban. I trust that you can also have grace for Luigi.
Thank you. I appreciate this. Who is Gurwinder? Is this someone who Luigi also talked to a lot? Would love to connect with them.
Oh this guy? https://www.gurwinder.blog/p/the-riddle-of-luigi-mangione
I've been too head deep in trying to stay afloat I haven't even kept up on what others have been saying. Will read.
Has Urban written or said anything? I haven't seen it. Please link.
Gurwinder has written articles, but has also participated in multiple media appearances to talk about his interactions with Luigi amidst some pretty heavy backlash. Like I said, I have a lot of grace for him as it’s clear he’s struggling with the thought that he may have had the influence to intervene in this tragedy. But I think this is why you’re also receiving the same criticism. It’s perceived as threatening to his image and capitalizing on someone else’s misfortune.
Yes. Tim has also written about Luigi in the following NYT article:
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/18/opinion/luigi-mangione-writer-tim-urban.html
This is very helpful thank you for sharing.
It's horrible to spread the dm's of someone who trusted you. I find it funny that you think he would like that, how do you know... did call him on MDC? Anyway, it's good to know that the people who do this are who weren't his friends or knew him personally, in real life friends and family are quiet, as it should be
1) Its like 3 message. Relax.
2) I literally just spent 100 hours reading through everything he's ever said online. I guarantee that doing this for any individual will tell you as much if not more about them than most of their friends and family know about them.
3) I plan to send him the post as a letter and specifically ask him what he thinks. If he responds, I'll tell you what he says if you stop being such a hater :)
I'll read your article, but you have to assume due to your trolling that a lot of the young women commenting here are suspicious.
I like to read a lot of stuff from a lot of sources and give shit the benefit of the doubt because that's just how I was taught to look at things.
This is fair. Thank you for the perspective. I guess I forget how flippant I am on Twitter, and people expect me to be the same here (I am not). I think at this point I just need to not read comments, finish writing, and we can see where the pieces land.
his life is talked about every day you are just another one doing this. ask him after you post, this can't be serious hahaha omg his opinion is not important to you at all, I hope he doesn't waste stamps on this
Thank you!! This mans literal life is on the line. The whole system is rigged against him! Anything you share about him can and will be used against him! Please don’t make his defense even harder!
omg hahahahah get a job and stop spreading private conversations of someone who is in prison. since you are clearly a weirdo and a fame seeker, I expect the worst things to come from this text
'Friends is a stretch, but I know him better than his closest friends' gtfoh
It's terrible to think that his "friend" trusted him and another loser author, only for it to be published months later. I hate that they treat him like a character and not a real person.
Grifters the lot of them. What interests could you possibly have to disclose private conversations other than clout and grifting? (Rhetorical question)
Thanks for your response. I really hope you're right. Luigi was not an angel, nor does he need to be whiter-than-white for his overall message to prevail. He's a normal, complex, but realistically, very flawed person...he did, allegedly, shoot someone, after all.
I'm not trying to protect my dream of some sort of pure-prince here...but given the fact that he is facing the death penalty, and the current administration want to increase capital punishment and make an example out of him, I feel very wary. He faces an incredibly long, lonely, and serious uphill battle and I hate the thought that you, someone he clearly liked, respected, and trusted, could make things worse for him.
I will take your word for it that you don't, though. Thank you. Super keen to hear what he thinks about it too! I hope you do write to him.
Thank you for giving me the benefit of the doubt. I totally understand your concern and perspective and I hear you. I am hopeful that you will be satisfied that I walked this line fairly and wrote something which is only-productive. I look forward to your feedback, both positive and negative, once you give it a read.
I’m following Luigi’s case closely — he’s getting absolutely skullfucked by the media and the criminal justice system, so understandably people on Reddit are concerned that your DMs might erode the public support that Luigi has had since December based on some of your spiciest Twitter posts. A proper defense for Luigi is gonna cost millions, so having his fundraising dry up cause he said “gay” or “retarded” in a DM once is a pretty bleak outcome imo.
I’m impressed by your thoughtful replies, and truly believe that you understand how vulnerable Luigi is right now. Just please remember that the press is absolutely ruthless and will bend and twist your writing to fit their narrative if there’s anything vaguely questionable in his DMs.
Thank you. Yes I understand. I expect my series will go nowhere besides a few dorks on Twitter, but I am writing it with the care necessary for the possibility of it reaching a much wider audience. Unfortunately, we cannot avoid stupid people with their own narratives taking things out of context, but I am doing the best I can to make it hard for them to do that or at least easy for others to call them out for it.
I look forward to your thoughts on things as you read it and also welcome your feedback, positive and negative :)
I can almost assure you that this will go farther than some recesses on twitter, in fact this relatively unspectacular (in content, not eloquence) preamble has already been causing hysteria on a subreddit dedicated to him - a subreddit which has also had two tabloid articles written about it in the past weeks, so eyes are on it. All facetts of the establishment will try to find ways to discredit Luigi and make his already very bleak future even harder. Please only release these DMs if no reasonable person could find great issue with them. Then think about the values his average supporter may have. And please consider writing him (or his legal team) first, I'm sure he would be happy to hear from an old aquaintance
His weird landlord shared private information about Luigis intimate life and the press went wild calling him an incel. Whatever this person exposes WILL get twisted by the media. I truly dont think there is anything that the press wont use to vilify him.
you’re so gay for doing this
do we have to insult gay men to crit the guy?
Don't ruin our fun Maggie!
Stealth?
You seriously sound like you’re fangirling hard dude. Go play with your kids.
Hey Max I'm happy that you've come to the decision to reach out to Luigi's legal team and to also send Luigi your article before publishing it, I truly think this is the correct way to go about it , I'm sorry for the hate that you might be getting but you have to understand that it's because of the things that you've tweeted in the past about Luigi , Many (including me ) have been really concerned that this article could really hurt his public image (if you weren't trolling and those things that you've said about him were true), And in this case were there are already so many outrageous prosecutions against him, the support of the public is truly one of the only things that can help him right now regardless of his innocence. Sorry for my schizo ramblings I understand you've done lots of research and worked a lot on this so I do want to read what you have to say but again with the way media has been already trying to dig for anything bad they can say about him I really don't want your article to be taken the wrong way and become another nail in his coffin
This is insightful thank you. I said all of those things flippantly and to get a rise out of people who were annoying me. In restrospect, I can see why those had much more of an impact that I thought they would. Luigi was not sexist or racist or anything of the sort. In fact, our DMs are mostly him telling me to stop being sexist and racist.
delete those tweets then. it’s truly not clear that you are joking in them. and it’s also wrong to shitpost at the expense of someone who is already vulnerable and can’t even reply to your tweets
it would have been clear if you’d read anything else i’ve ever said anywhere. Or frankly even my bio on X. And deleting them might appease you but it will inflame others who will claim some nefarious intent behind it. Cant make everyone happy so not worth trying. Can only try to make happy the people whose opinion I value. And they would want me to clarify things but would agree that deleting anything would only create blood in the water to attract crazies looking for their pound of flesh.
Hi Max. This is not a question but just wanted to say that Luigi, inadvertently, introduced me to your substack page back in December and for what it's worth I'm glad he did. I noticed that him and I share nearly all of the same beliefs, the good as well as the "not so popular" ones (from what is shown on social media) and that's how I ended up here. A reminder, even though I'm sure you're aware, that 99% of all his "supporters" are disillusioned women who are enamored with his online presence and project a lot of their fantasies onto this canvas of a man who cannot deny or confirm any of it. If I recall correctly you talked about these sort of gender dynamics in dating and searching for competent mates in some of your articles. However, they will never admit that to themselves cause - virtue signaling.
Unfortunately, his online funding depends on these people and 1 may as well be part of the jury later on. So, to you Max as well as anyone who might get triggered reading this so far, I'm confident you'll do him justice. Don't get discouraged to share any conversations or opinions you think are relevant to painting a more accurate picture of him and the situation because of some keyboard warriors. I'm pretty confident Luigi would dislike all the pitying and infantilization that's going on in these online echochambers. He needs people like you in his corner!
I agree and understand and appreciate you taking the time the make this comment.
99%??? Maybe 50% tops. You sound like a jealous incel. There are various reasons for support. You know what I hate more than a greedy ceo? A PD that plants evidence, a media that tries to shame and persuade the public and potential jurors, a top corp that pressures the doj, a mayor that uses a suspect to distract from his own scandal, and naive activists that think justifiable homicide is a winning defense for their imaginary revolutionary. That just adds to my own conclusions that this kid is innocent. There are infinite reasons to support him. I don’t even care what his political ideological leanings are. I find the fangirling to be comic relief because this whole situation is going to get real dark real quick.
If the top 1% want to make something happen, they'll make it happen. Water is wet. Welcome to the world. Don't get it twisted I don't care if he did/didn't do it, he shouldn't be in prison, period, but people indulge in wishful thinking too much and it's clouding their minds. This goes beyond fangirl behavior. It's also the reason why the momentum of support will drop drastically within the next 6 months, unless they televise more of his court appearances. I'm all for support as long as its for the right reasons, but I also have and will continue to call a spade a spade
Clout chaser
I believe some of the worry that people have, also comes from you tweeting stuff like "Luigi was fatphobic and racist" (https://x.com/minordissent/status/1890560458777629055)
or "Luigi thought women were objects". One of these tweets was quite recent as well. Do you not realize how this might be harming him? And do you derive this information from the DMs you claim are so innocuous, they could not possibly impact his reputation?
That makes more sense. No, all those tweets were jokes and not true. He was not any of those things. In fact, the DMs are mostly him telling me to stop being racist and sexist.
i just read this. so he doesn't like to use women as he sees fit??? I am disappoint.
haha I cannot speak to his sexual demeanor but i can say that at least from what i have gleaned, he was a woman respecter
You write this so stripped down and analytically. Yanno, my father worked in tech too--it seems like this type of analytical speaking is pretty common with men in tech. You should try being more affective with your writing.
Woman respecter? lol
lmao. You’re my kind of people, Maggie.
leave it to me to turn rando internet dude's intro post to his Luigi epic into a luigi thirst convo.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oxu3pq319r0
We’re simple women, we see “Luigi” and the thirst takes over. It is what it is.
even playing mario kart gets me wet now.
i was quite turned on by the "luigi thought of women as objects" one. I'm sorry I know I'm not supposed to be saying this; I swear I'm pro-luigi, although I feel like that would be clear enough from the preceding comment. It's like, hey daddy! lol
Okay, my apologies, but that one didn't impact me negatively.
lol, i get you
looks like max DOES have a way with words.
Max is a piece of shit and will definitely write a lot of crap
Your sober comments here have given me some hope, but I do still hope you know how much responsibility you carry when releasing - or not releasing - this private correspondence with him. This is a man possibly facing capital punishment and certainly facing great indignities right now. The supporters he has amassed are largely the type to take even the smallest verbal transgressions (you know what I mean) with great offense. But adversity makes strange bedfellows, and currently Luigi is reliant on these people for moral and financial support. They may even make up part of the twelve who will decide upon his fate. Please be very careful and responsible. And why not write a letter to him first?
I'm really looking forward to reading the upcoming parts. I think the most interesting part (for me at least) will be to learn your perception of him, since you actually were friends. It will be refreshing to see something substantial for once, instead of seeing everyone else's baseless analyses of his character where they're simply projecting or straight guessing based off of their feelings.
As always, well done!
I don’t think calling us “friends” would be quite accurate, as we only shared a few conversations. But at this point I am pretty sure I know more about him than all but his best of friends. Hoping some will find it useful. we will see!
LOL you are such a grifter
haahhahahaahahhahahaahahha no, you don't. all this because he's going to show up on friday and you're going to take the opportunity to go with him
"Friends" is a stretch for someone who only spoke to him over DMs, notice how his IRL friends are all silent. This guy is a grifter at best.
I'm really tired of these authors pretending they were his friends. And this Max is a redpill who has already insinuated a lot bad things about his "friend" (who he didn't know personally). I really hate unemployed people.
He should probably spend more time with his family. It really is embarrassing to see such an old guy be so chronically online.
He should do as his "friend" did and disappear from social media. This Max only served with the PhD tweet and nothing more.
It’s strange to read your comments on Substack after only being exposed to the (frankly, horrible) things you say on Twitter. They’re dissonant.
Your tweets about Luigi, and the way they seem to foreshadow the content of this series, have caused a lot of upset in different communities that support him. Like, a lot. Based on your Twitter, I understand that you like to upset people, but you seem to be underestimating the reach that this will have. It won’t be a few people on twitter who read it - it will shared widely, as this preview already has been. Consider the impact it will have beyond riling people up.
Yes I understand. I wrote a second preamble last night after reading all these comments which i hope will clear things up. It will go out today. i would appreciate any feedback you have on it.
Can we give this man a break! You may not agree with his tweets, his views etc but his article clearly states he "owes this to Luigi" .....that doesn't sound negative to me!? Maybe Luigi also disagreed with his views and called him out on them, and this man was respectful enough to understand everyone has different opinions? Not everything everyone writes is incriminating
Thank you. I appreciate your openess. For what it's worth, and actually yes, his DMs to me were mostly him expressing his disapproval of my racism and sexism, saying that it tarnishes the other good ideas I have.
I've been following Luigi's story since before the unveiling of his identity. Although I don't condone violence, I immediately saw him as a personal hero of mine (and still kinda do). I've had issues with the healthcare/insurance industry for years. My older brother with cerebral palsy died from colon cancer at 25 and an older sister survived it at 29. The system is screwed up. I will say this; whatever happens to Luigi's reputation when each article is released to the public could ruin his case which could lead to a potential death penalty even faster. I saw a glimmer of hope through Luigi "allegedly" who stood up for the people. I know no one is perfect but... yikes. I guess there is no hope for him after all which makes me very sad. The admiration was great while it lasted. My hurt breaks for him and his family.
While I am in the business of telling the truth, even if it shatters peoples ideals, I can say that I am fairly sure your position on Luigi will not change much. If anything, I think you will appreciate him more as you get to know him more as a person. Sure he has flaws, but I can't see how anyone besides those who worship him as some kind of superhuman God will come away with a worse view of him. We will see though! I look forward to hearing your thoughts when you read it.
"3) I plan to send him the post as a letter and specifically ask him what he thinks. If he responds, I'll tell you what he says if you stop being such a hater :)"
why not ask him what he thinks before you upload the post to the internet? you will still get a lot of eyes on your writing even if you have to wait a couple of months for a reply.