A Letter to the Editor from Rich Rostron correctly stated that, after the murder of Charlie Kirk the nation peacefully observed one calm night, united in mutual abhorrence of this latest example of gun violence.

Yet the letter then went on the offensive, denying the message of peace and unity he began with. Mr. Rostron spoke of “the left’s violent opportunism” while wielding a broad brush painting all people who oppose the present administration as violent criminals.

[ From the archives: Kishwaukee River open to kayaks from Union to Marengo after years-long cleanup ]

Such ranting reflects present administration’s efforts (At Kirk’s memorial service, Trump actually said “I hate my opponent.”) Unfortunately, Kirk’s words have also contributed to this effort: “The American Democratic party hates this country. They wanna see it collapse” Source: The Charlie Kirk show Aug. 22, 2025.

Likewise VP Vance stated “… it is a statistical fact that most of the lunatics in American politics today are proud members of the far left.” Hardly words that unify – nor are they true. Consider this U.S. Justice Department report: “Report finding rightwing extremists have killed more Americans than other domestic terrorist groups,” citing 227 far-right extremists’ events killing 520 compared to 43 far-left extremists’ events taking 78 lives.

Of course, not one such murder is acceptable, but lies and laying blame only worsen the situation. (Nor does it help that this report was scrubbed from the DOJ website days after Kirk’s murder.)

Bottom line, unfounded accusations only beget more politically motivated violence. It’s unfortunate Mr. Rostron has contributed to this dangerous trend by exploiting a tragic murder.

Joan Davis

Huntley