Icon: A person or thing widely admired for having great influence or significance in a particular sphere, a symbol representing an idea or object, a sacred image in Eastern Christian churches, or a stylized picture on a computer screen that represents a function. ~ Merriam Webster Dictionary
Readers may recall that, back in September, our Constitutional Right to Keep and Bear Arms (Amendment #2) enabled an arms-bearing American to kill another with a single shot while said other American was freely speaking (Amendment #1) before a large audience at a small college in Utah.
Whether idolized by the political Right or jeered by the Left, the deceased has become An American Icon.
Fully aware that any tat could trigger a tit (or vice versa), your correspondent has no intention of taking sides in the debate as to whether that killing was (a) a senseless murder of a fine young family man lawfully engaged in freely speaking his sincerely held political views, or (b) a great shot from 250 yards away.
Politicians of all stripes rightfully condemned the killing, urging all Americans to join them in mourning the victim and his family. Aware that few things are more American than death-by-gunfire (45,000-plus every year, plus four presidential assassinations and numerous attempts), they also increased their security details.
The alleged shooter may also be enroute to Icon-hood, not unlike the iconic Luigi Mangione, alleged killer of an insurance CEO. Luigi’s legal defense fund has raised over $1,500,000 and has its own website at: www.luigimangioneinfo.com .
Fortunately for Utah prosecutors, the FBI is assisting local law enforcement. Fortunately for the defense, Kash Patel is leading the FBI.
President Trump has gutted DEI programs nationwide but that should not impact the case in Utah, where some 95 percent of the population is religiously white, as are all but a few police officers. In the case at hand, the shooter (alleged) and the deceased are/were also white, further reducing the likelihood of racial discord. The suspect was turned over to authorities by his own family, but ICE may round up a few Latinos for beating, just for practice.
But what does this assassination mean for our nation?
As Americans have always done in perilous times, your correspondent has looked to Our Great Leaders for guidance. Older readers will recall that, as the Great Civil War ended, President Abraham Lincoln famously urged citizens to “bind up the nation’s wounds” and strive for a lasting peace:
“With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in.”
Following the Utah tragedy, President Trump likewise provided direction for the nation, declaring:
“I tell you something that is going to get me in trouble, but I couldn’t care less.”
While our President may never have a Memorial on the National Mall next to Lincoln’s, he still has time to increase his stature and popularity with all Americans. To calm things down in this difficult hour; To become An American Icon. But how?
Many – eager for peace and quiet – think he should simply calm down and relax. Yes, Relax! Step away from world problems and the relentless media spotlight. Perhaps have a nice, quiet dinner with Melania. Sip some tea. Afterwards, they could take the limo down to Ford’s Theater and see a revival of that old English comedy, “Our American Cousin.”
The gods willing, it would be an iconic evening.
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