OK, maybe you should go and re-read the poem about the 6 blind men and the elephant.
The "trend" is increasing hatred and fear of smokers. The ultimate expression of that fear is murder.
I, too (and the other 25% of your fellow citizens who smoke) hope that this is not the start of a "trend" by non-smokers to murder smokers.
If you don't see this action as part of and the ultimate consequence of a long and dedicated campaign against smokers, you are only seeing the tail of the elephant, not the whole beast.