Thoughts on Charlie Kirk’s Murder?

Charlie Kirk was killed on Wednesday.  I did not make any specific comments on social media about it.  I did post on Facebook, “There are several issues I care passionately about when it comes to politics – public education, personal freedom, many things – but even more than I care about any particular issue, I care about us being able to discuss our differences without demonizing, and belittling and shaming and shunning and hating each other. Because, brothers and sisters, that leads nowhere good.”

 

On Thursday, an old friend posted on my timeline, “Comments on Charlie Kirk’s murder?”  My response was, “It’s bad. I’m against people killing each other.”

 

My friend, actually a couple of my friends, did not think this was a good answer.  What followed were several comments ranging from concerned to indignant, but with the general theme that if I want to have a leadership role I should say more, that I should not be lazy, that I should not play word games. I should be bolder, more of a voice for good.

 

I guess my comment hit the wrong nerve on that day when many of us were wearing our nerves on the outside.  I guess I was being short, which is often interpreted as rude. If so, I think it was more out of sadness and frustration than out of any intention to hurt or aggravate.  Regardless of how it came across, it does sum up pretty much what I think about Charlie Kirk’s murder.

 

It’s bad.  I’m against people killing each other.

 

Let’s not kill politicians. Let’s not kill pundits and people with strong opinions. Let’s not kill people who are still trying to figure out what they think, or people who don’t really even like to talk about politics.  Let’s not kill young people or old people.  Let’s not kill little kids.  Let’s not kill people who disagree with us. Let’s not kill people who think like us. Let’s not kill each other. Let’s find better ways to handle our differences.

 

It’s bad.  I’m against people killing each other.

 

Should I be more shocked and surprised? People have been getting shot pretty regularly lately. I don’t imagine he will be the last one.  We have used our words and our media to create a political climate where people fear and demonize each other.  The natural result of that is violence.

 

It’s bad. I’m against people killing each other.

 

Am I supposed to be madder, somehow, about this killing than about the last two or three?  I’m not. I’m mad about all of them. We have let our political rhetoric get too heated. The natural consequence of that is violence. Charlie Kirk is not uniquely more important or less important to me than anyone else who is getting killed because of that. All of them are important. All of us are important. I am against us killing each other. That applies to him and to any and everyone else who has been killed or who might get killed during this season of political rage. We need to change our political rhetoric. I’m trying to do that. I might not be making very fast progress.  I might not know what I am doing, but I am trying.  I’m trying to learn.  That’s all I know to do.

 

It’s bad. I am against us killing each other.

 

Is it frustrating that I am not assigning blame to someone? Should I be saying it’s the Republican’s fault or it’s the Democrat’s fault? What good would that do? We are all at fault. We all created it. Did one side throw more fuel on the flames than the other?  What difference does that make now?  The flames are too high. The work now is to turn down the flames.

 

It’s bad. I’m against people killing each other.

 

I don’t know whether Charlie Kirk was a part of the problem or a part of the solution because I have never watched Charlie Kirk. I have never watched one of his videos or listened to one of his debates. I don’t have to know what he said or how he said it to know that I think killing him is bad.  I think killing each other is a bad way to resolve our differences.

 

I am against us killing each other.

 

That’s really what it boils down to for me. I think the best thing for us to do right now is to acknowledge that we have let things go too far. Killing each other is bad. I don’t think the best thing to do at this point is to keep provoking each other and blaming each other and finding reasons to be mad at each other. I think we need to turn down the volume. We need to acknowledge that we have gone too far. I think we need to be quiet and sit for a minute. Then I think we need to reset and work on figuring out better ways to resolve our differences and live together.

 

It’s not easy.  Sometimes it doesn’t feel fair or righteous. It feels very often like it is not working.

But are we OK with the alternative?

 

I am against us killing each other.