Political Violence Has Absolutely No Place In Our Nation

CAVEAT: This was written Wednesday afternoon,  based on the first reporting.  Given my history,  I know enough to doubt that the facts in these early reports will stand the test of time.  Still.....

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Another young man was assassinated, in front of a crowd of college students, and his wife, and his 3 year old, and his 1 year old.

Sit with that for a minute.  

Babies watched their daddy die, right before their eyes.  The first, unfiltered reporting spoke of lots and lots of blood on his neck.  They saw that.  

HoneyBunny is 2-going-on-3; she remembers minutiae from our past visits. I'm not going to think about what she would have made of that scene, now and for the rest of her life.

Mark Kelly was without words.  Nicolle Wallace looked stricken.  

Political violence has absolutely no place in our nation.  Lots of politicians on the left and the center and the right said that.  I felt like screaming I ALREADY LEARNED THAT LESSON - WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN???

I knew of Charlie Kirk. I knew of Turning Point.  That about sums up the depth and breadth of my knowledge.  I had no idea he was only 31.  I didn't know about his work with Don Jr on the 2024 campaign.  I was completely unaware of Turning Point's focus on motivating young conservative (sic) activism.  

I didn't know this appearance was the first stop on his American Comeback Tour, where was willing to enter into Prove Me Wrong conversations.  The first question was about the number of transgender mass shooters in America.  There was no second question.

But I wonder where it was going. Trans-phobia?  Gun Safety?  We'll never know if a provocative conversation might have changed someone's mind.  

This moment isn't about him, really.  Except for his family and their friends, this is just one more episode of gun violence silencing free speech.  I'm not that enthusiastic about what he was selling, but he certainly should have been able to do so, and live to tell the tale.  

Just as Christina-Taylor and I should have been able to get our handshake from Rep. Giffords, back in 2011.  Just as she should be celebrating her 24th today, September 11th.

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I've been working on birthday card post for a week or so.  It was all edited and ready to go.  

It doesn't seem inappropriate to append it here.

I've been thinking about her more than usual lately.

I'm not surprised; my life includes interactions with kids at all the ages she was when I knew her, and with young adults who are the age she'd be now.  

Every new school year, I notice the ones most like her.  The outspoken ones, the thoughtful ones, the snarky ones who help before they are asked - they are as appealing to me as she was.  

When a strong for her age 3rd grader hefting a bag of soil over her shoulder laughs at my surprise, I'm reminded of my young friend whose presence on the boys' baseball team invited derision.... until she hit one out of the park.  Would she be playing in the Banana Ball League in the fall?

I watch Amster's boys embarking on adulthood and I wonder what advice she'd offer, being just a few years older and, presumably, wiser.  The Mr. 20-somethings are moving out of town.  Would CTG have stayed close to home?

It's hard for me to imagine her as an adult.  Mostly, we're spending time together in the way-back machine, playing pickup sticks on my living room floor.  We're cruising the neighborhood, leaving our homemade flyers for CHRISTINA'S BUSINESS in every mailbox, except those she and her mom had excluded for a variety of reasons.  She had a list.  

Sure, I remember her at the Safeway, but that's not where I usually go.  

For me, she's six and seven and eight and nine, and for some part of all of those years, she was mine.  And she still is, all these years later.

Happy Birthday, Christina-Taylor.  You are not forgotten.