Murder is wrong. The murder of Charlie Kirk was wrong. One should not even have to say this obvious truth, but we live in a time when “the restatement of the obvious,” as George Orwell wrote, is our “first duty.”
Charlie Kirk was a controversial public figure, with admirers and critics. I was a critic. I remain critical of much that he said and did. And—I do not say but, I say and—I denounce his killing without equivocation or reservation, and offer condolences to his family and friends.
There are too many murders in today’s America. A month ago, another young man was taken from us, also in his early thirties, also with a wife and two young children. His name was David Rose.
David Rose was the DeKalb County police officer who rushed to the Centers for Disease Control campus in Atlanta when employees there were under attack from a gunman who believed he had been poisoned by the COVID-19 vaccine. David Rose had served as a Marine in Afghanistan, and then decided to serve here at home in law enforcement.
When he graduated from the police academy this past March, Rose, as the class leader, addressed the graduates and guests. “From the very first day,” he said, “we learned that policing isn’t just about enforcing the law. It’s about protecting the vulnerable, standing for justice, and being the person who runs towards danger when others run away.”
David Rose ran towards danger, and gave his life in doing so.
Officer Rose received some well deserved recognition at the time of his death, though not as much it seemed to me as was warranted. For example, so far as I can tell, President Trump never praised him by name or called his family to offer condolences.
But it’s a free country. And while we all agree that murder is wrong, we won’t all agree about which of our fellow citizens deserve special notice or public praise, either in life or in death. Charlie Kirk was a prominent participant in our public discourse, and an important ally of our current president. So it’s natural that his shocking and awful death has been the focus of so much attention. And not just here in the United States. The man who comes as close as anyone to being Vladimir Putin’s court philosopher, the fascist polemicist Alexander Dugin, weighed in with an essay: “Who Killed Charlie Kirk? From Utah to Ukraine: one global war.”
But let us leave the deplorable Dugin aside. Yesterday was a day on which we Americans quite properly considered the life and legacy of Charlie Kirk. But it was also September 11. One’s thoughts turned to those who were killed on that terrible day. But September 11, 2001, was a day not just of tragedy but of heroism. And so one remembered also those who, in New York and Washington and aboard Flight 93, ran heroically toward danger. And my thoughts turned also to David Rose, who volunteered to try to prevent another such attack on our country, and then, when back home, ran toward danger once again to help his fellow Americans.
“Let us now praise famous men,” as the old saying goes. Let us also praise men like David Rose.
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[This essay first appeared in the September 11 edition of the Morning Shots newsletter.]
Bill, Thanks for the powerful presentation of one man's courage and devotion to duty. David Rose appeared to be the dream person you would want to be a law enforcement officer. He had the three most important qualities found in men. There is no substitute for character, integrity and dignity. He was not universally or sufficiently eulogized to the detriment of us all. Our leaders must do better and we should demand that they do.