Many people feel that the vicious tone of our politics these days has poisoned America, but new billboards popping up in Los Angeles and San Francisco have sunk to a new low by using the murdered children of Uvalde, Texas to gain political points. The “ads” read: “The Texas Miracle died in Uvalde. Don’t move to Texas,” and feature a menacing young male in a hoodie and sunglasses. It is unclear who paid for these cruel, heartless signs.

Billboards in San Francisco and Los Angeles warn against moving to Texas by invoking mass shooting https://t.co/ZuJNqLqhm7 pic.twitter.com/GGpkJ0JI8n

— New York Post (@nypost) August 25, 2022

As my friend Jennifer O’Connell reported Thursday, Californians are fleeing woke politics, out-of-control crime and high taxes in droves, with many moving to Texas. It would appear that these horrific signs are referencing that.

In all, 19 children were among the 21 people killed that day in May as a madman barricaded himself inside the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde and unleashed a barrage of bullets. Nick Arama wrote the heartbreaking story of who these victims were. The police response meanwhile has been heavily criticized as officers held back instead of attacking the gunman. It was a terrible tragedy and quite simply the last thing that should be used as political fodder on billboards.

The New York Post reports on the design of the signs:

The “Texas Miracle” refers to former Gov. Rick Perry’s description of the state’s regulatory model, which helped it weather the Great Recession. “Don’t mess with Texas,” a favorite motto in the Lone Star State, is rooted in a 1980s anti-littering campaign.

Recent statistics suggest that the flood of residents from California did in fact increase during the pandemic, with Texas being the most popular destination. This trend might be fueled in part by the movement of several major tech companies, including Tesla and Oracle Corp., to the state in recent years.

As Breitbart reports, California shouldn’t be bragging about mass shootings, since the state leads the nation in that category:

The billboards do not mention that California was the No. 1 state for “active shooter incidents” in 2021.

Breitbart News reported that California was simultaneously the No. 1 state for gun control in 2021 and the No. 1 state for “active shooter incidents.”

Reaction on social media was mixed, with many posting snarky comments saying they hoped Californians would just stay put and not ruin Texas. Others were understandably disgusted with the signs, pointing out just how cold-blooded the campaign was:

One of the worst acts of desperation I’ve ever seen in politics. https://t.co/6DoyZjgENW

— Ron Nehring (@RonNehring) August 25, 2022

We’ve seen a lot of ugly politics in the past, and will presumably see more in the future. Nonetheless, I find these billboards to be particularly shocking. Losing a child has to be one of the most devastating things that can happen to someone, and the families of the victims will never be the same. Their lives were torn apart forever that day.  I cannot even being to comprehend the thought process of the person or persons behind this ad campaign. I’m not one for cancel culture, but I do hope whoever is behind this is revealed, and that they pay the price. While putting up heinous messages isn’t up there with killing people, I still consider these ones quite simply… evil.