Why all the one-sided "they want to kill us" talk

@Thomas Umstattd Jr. And others have been talking about the assassination of Charlie Kirk - which is understandable, this is a horrible tragedy that should be grieved and spoken against. What I don’t get is how Unstattd and others a saying about how the “left wants to kill us” and using lots of “they” language (there was lots of this during the last author update). I don’t understand how this is helpful. I heard a recent poll that said the vast majority of Americans, regardless of political party, believe all political violence is wrong. Yet, the majority of Americans also think the “other side” wants political violence. I don’t get it. There are trolls and wack jobs and sociopaths with guns all across the political spectrum. Insisting that “they” want to kill “us” only hypes up more trolls, wack jobs, and sociopaths with guns. If you don’t believe me, I have compiled a list of political violence incidents in America, perpetrated by Americans.

  • Killing of Charlie Kirk

  • Killings of Minnesota State Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark

  • Attempted murder of the Minnesota speaker of the house - Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette Hoffman, shot and injured in their home.

  • Arson fire at the governor's mansion in Pennsylvania

  • Shooting of an ICE agent in Texas

  • Fire set at GOP headquarters in New Mexico

  • Shooting at CDC headquarters (place sprayed with hundreds of rounds) - 1 police officer killed

  • 2024 assassination attempts (2) of President Trump - one person killed and Trump injured in the first attack

  • Attack on Nancy Policy Husband

  • Plot to kidnap Michigan Governor (Jan 2020)


  • Brett Kavanaugh attempted assassination - a potential assassin called the police on himself after driving to the Supreme Court justice's house.

  • Shooting spree against New Mexico officials (no injuries) - targeted current officials by a former official who was voted out of office.

  • The January 6th attack on the Capitol

  • U.S. District Judge Esther Salas - targeted and killed by a self-proclaimed “men’s rights activist “

  • Congressional baseball game shooting (2017) - multiple injuries

  • Rep. Gabby Giffords shooting (2011) - 6 killed, Giffords survived.

If we consider politically motivated domestic terrorism a form of political violence, then the list would grow…

-Charlottesville car attack (white supremacist drove car into protestors, killing one)

  • Oaklomhoma City Bombing….

If we go back further, we could include

-Attempted assassination of Ronolad Regan

  • attempted assassination of Gerald Ford

  • Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr

  • Assassination of Bobby Kinedy

  • Assassination of JFK

  • Assassination of Malcom X

  • The Weatherman group bombings

  • Attempted assanation of Teddy Rosevelt

  • Assassination of President McKinley

  • Assassination / Lynching of countless recently freed black Lawmakers, voters, and sympathizers during reconstruction

  • Assassination of Lincoln (note there were multiple previous foiled attempts) and attempt assanation of VP, Secretary of State, Secretary of War.

I could go on. Here is my point. There is no “us and them” and its absurd to think one side is coming for the other when we look at even a recent history of political violence. The real “us” and them is between people who believe in violence and those who don’t - between people who endorse hate and think murder and assanation are acceptable solutions and those who do not. That is not a left or right thing. Thats a human thing. Thats an American thing. That is something that unites the vast vast majority of people (left or right). If we want to stop the cycle of violence, we need to champion the actual evidence and the truth and the human beans who are also our fellow Americans - We need to rebuke the bots and trolls that divide us and (if you are Christian like me) follow Christ’s call to be a peacemaker.

Thank you for considering this. I would love to hear your thoughts.