Some perspective
While the reasons for Charles Kirk’s murder are yet to be determined, it seems clear that he was executed for speaking out about his religious and political beliefs. It does not appear that he committed any crime so his execution must be based on some unknown justification. But what is known is that this heinous act joins other such acts all too common in our country.
This execution was not driven by pure emotion. It was planned over some period. The same can be said about other recent attacks on political figures. The perpetrator determined that a threat was either unnecessary or ineffective. So, a plan was developed and executed. Some combination of factors or events allowed the plan to go forward. The barriers which most of us feel did not prevent the execution of the plan.
The political and social climate, including social media and the public remarks of leading political figures, does much to break down barriers to anti-social behavior. We can all easily come up with a list of offenders. Nothing new here. For most of this century, public figures have felt free to dehumanize the opposition. But particularly in the past decade, voices from the top speak of violent solutions to perceived problems.
Political leaders continue these destructive practices because we reward them in our media and at the ballot box. It will not stop until we refuse to reward politicians and the media which promote antisocial speech and conduct.