Letter: Families of both Kirk, shooter need sympathy

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, September 24, 2025

Editor,

Charlie Kirk’s assassination brought out both the best and worst in our political and media class. I was impressed by the Utah Governor’s press conference speech for the calm demeanor and lack of the vitriol so lacking in our elected officials today. If Trump has a flaw, it is in his lacking brevity and humility, not so with the governor.

I like to believe most people, no matter their political affiliations are sad that someone was so stupidly murdered. No matter what anyone thought of Kirk’s ideology he appeared to be a good man. The mouthpieces in the media and Democrat political heirarchy aside, I doubt many average Democrats even knew who Charlie Kirk was. That he was making inroads in political speech and ideology was a threat to establishment Democrats and their media lapdogs. His willingness to discuss issues with anyone by bringing truth and logic to the table scared those power brokers who twist the narrative and browbeat anyone who disagrees with them.

There is no justification for the shooters action. The crime is his and his alone, and he should suffer the consequences. To try to justify or shift blame is a canard by those unwilling to accept the truth.

The people who deserve sympathy are Kirk’s wife and children, his extended family and strangely enough the parents of the shooter. What unimaginable horror it must be to have a child you love and cherish commit such a terrible crime. These parents must have wondered what had happened to that child they raised and how they needed to respond. In the end they did what had to be done, but I think a part of them must have died inside.

Fred Wilferth

Coupeville