Charlie wasn't just murdered, it was a professional hit. Very likely an alphabet agency. Consider the venue: public and dramatic. I saw a video of someone beside him giving, what appeared to be hand signals. The killer could have killed him in a much more subtle way, but didn't. This was a message designed to scare people from publicly being against the system.
Why was Kirk targeted? His tactics are effective. He's not violent, he has credibility, people listen to him. He has many followers. He's a threat to the establishment.
The establishment is scared. People have had enough, they aren't reacting to the system the way the system wants so it's visibly lashing out. There's nothing worse than a corned animal.
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