The US has a long history of honouring its martyrs, from those who died in our wars (including my uncle) to people killed on the front line of political change.

Assassination holds a special place in our culture. It’s an American apotheosis, the closest thing to sainthood in our secular society. The left has no shortage of martyrs, and the right gained one this week.

The bullet has a special and venerated place in this tradition. I felt it was my duty to watch Charlie Kirk’s shooting before writing about it. My strong recommendation: Unless you have a reason to see it, don’t.

I’ve seen more than a few videos of gunfire deaths in my life, and I’m always struck by their banality and tawdriness. There’s nothing romantic about a bullet striking human flesh. It’s vile.

We now know that law enforcement have identified Kirk’s assassin as 22-year-old Tyler Robinson. There’s so much we don’t know, but there are at least two things about Kirk’s violent killing that we do know – one moral, and one societal.

Jewish and Islamic scriptures both say that whoever commits murder has destroyed an entire universe. Secular law and ethics are equally firm in rating murder as the worst crime an individual can commit.

Kirk’s family must now live with its loss. His audience – which, like most audiences, felt it knew him personally – is also in pain.

Perhaps we can agree on this – let’s set aside the cult of the gun. Politically-motivated murder is still just murder. It’s cheap, brutal,........

© The New Daily