Trump Assassination Attempt

A Wake-Up Call for America

Walker Larson

July 16, 2024

Few actions manifest division and hatred more than an assassination attempt, such as the one targeting Donald Trump that took place last Saturday. Such an incident proclaims to the universe, “I hate this person and what he represents so much that I believe he must be stopped at all costs, including the cost of blood.”

The tragic and harrowing events at the Trump rally do not bode well when it comes to the health of our Republic because they are emblematic of a deep divide in our society. The fact that we’re witnessing political violence shows how polarized we’ve become.

“War is the continuation of politics by other means,” so goes the old saying of Prussian general and military theorist Clausewitz. The aphorism can be applied pretty well to any form of political violence, including riots, terrorism, and assassination attempts. Political violence gives physical manifestation to political differences, and it is inevitable in human history because we are embodied, physical beings, and what we think and say plays out in the physical universe. Ideas Have Consequences is, after all, the famous title of a book by conservative thinker Richard M. Weaver. Ideas are not just figments in an imaginary, intangible world with no bearing on everyday reality: No, they are the deciding factor, and they exist and play out in and through things, including human actions, political movements, and violence. Ideas influence thoughts and words, which influence action, which changes the face of history.

Kinetic wars with real steel and real blood begin, as a rule, as spiritual, intellectual, and rhetorical battles. Stalin’s purges and Mao’s mass starvations had their direct origins in the pages of Marx’s manifesto. Similarly, the transformation of pagan Rome into an epicenter of Christianity began with the faith present in the hearts of martyrs, who had first won an interior battle against themselves, of which their physical deaths in the Colosseum were a mere aftermath.

All of this is to say that the blood spilled at the Trump rally was the result, ultimately, of ideological differences in America (whatever the particular ideologies of the shooter turn out to be—one does not shoot at a presidential candidate without at least some ideological motive). Political violence is an outward manifestation of political difference. But political difference, in turn, is rooted in cultural, moral, and religious difference—matters of the mind and heart. This is the real challenge we face, and it can’t be fixed simply.

To their credit, both Biden and Trump have spoken about the need for both sides to show restraint and solidarity in this moment. Biden said in his Oval Office address, “while we may disagree, we are not enemies … we must stand together.” Trump has called for Americans to “stand united” and “show our True Character as Americans.”

I understand these sentiments. This is a good start, even, and probably is what our leaders ought to be saying right now. But I fear that their calls for unity do not go far enough and do not get at the root of the problem nor provide a full solution to it. I concur with the statement Vivek Ramaswamy recently made on X: “We want real unity. Not some fake, artificial version – but the real thing.”

What is true unity? Unity cannot be accomplished through a few trite phrases, a bit of well-timed rhetoric, a polishing over by media or by political figures. Unity depends upon truth. That is, to be truly united, groups of people must believe in the same things, must understand reality as it is. Unity cannot be accomplished by fiat or by choice words—not by Biden, not by Trump, not by anyone else, especially after both sides have cast so many rhetorical grenades at the other side.

Realistically, which side, upon hearing Biden’s recent Oval Office address, for example, is going to give up its set of values? Will the trans lobby lay down its arms, proclaiming that they’ve seen the light and that, for the sake of unity, they are willing to abandon their cause? Will the pro-lifers sigh and shake their heads, saying that the unborn babies must now be abandoned to their fate, merely because Biden and Trump spoke nicely about each other? To ask these questions is to answer them.

If America is to pull back from the precipice of continued polarization and the political violence that may become more common as a result, it must rediscover a unifying principle. Shared values, morals, and beliefs form the backbone of a nation. America lacks this. The majority of Americans no longer accept a single body of shared values or visions. A nation without a common culture cannot stand any more than a person with a broken back can stand.

Through a corrupted educational system, failed immigration policies, a manipulative media, and a politicized entertainment industry, America has largely abandoned the cultural heritage of the West, a heritage inseparably linked to Christianity. It’s no wonder Americans no longer have a shared vision of the future: We no longer have a shared vision of the past. We were not formed by the same philosophers, the same understanding of history and national identity, the same works of literature, art, music, the same liturgical, moral, and religious tradition.

There are serious questions about the performance of the Secret Service last Saturday, but in addition to asking whether they’ll be able to protect Trump for the rest of the campaign, maybe we should be asking a bigger question: Is there any bulletproof way to prevent political violence and protect candidates other than finding true political unity? I tend to think not. To heal political division, we must rediscover the shared values of our Western heritage, which is founded upon unchanging natural and divine law.

intellectualtakeout.org/2024/07/trump-assassination-attempt-wake-up-call-for-america

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Image credit: public domain

CONTRIBUTOR Walker Larson

Walker Larson holds a BA in writing and an MA in English literature. Prior to becoming a writer, he taught literature and history at a private academy in Wisconsin. He is the author of two novels, Hologram and Song of Spheres. When not working on his acreage or spending time with family and friends, he blogs about literature and education on his Substack, The Hazelnut.PROFILE

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