Letter to the editor: Our moral fiber is crumbling

The recent assassination of Charlie Kirk and watching how some have responded has made me step back and look at the moral fiber of this country.

Political violence in 2025 has no place in America. We are enlightened people who should be able to discuss, debate and share ideas without the fear of physical harm. No one should be denied their right to express their ideas and opinions as guaranteed by the First Amendment.

Political beliefs aside, we need to realize that Kirk was a person who had a family and whose existence was just as important as ours. Americans not only lost a fellow citizen, but a great political philosopher for this generation. He was able to gather local community members together and get them to think and debate about critical issues. He wanted young people to learn, debate and become greater citizens.

His death should not be celebrated with cheering, dancing or appalling social media posts; rather it should be shown the proper respect and decency as any other individual. The soul and morality of this nation needs to heal. Compassion, empathy, sympathy and unity need to persevere over hate, anger and divisiveness.

As Benjamin Rush said “political freedom includes in it every other blessing. All the pleasures of riches, science, virtue, and even religion itself derive their value from liberty alone.” In my heart, I know that Americans are better than this. I implore you to please take a step back and ask yourself, where do we go from here? I hope we choose the route of unity.

Ashton Caldwell

Cheswick