Sep. 13th, 2025 05:03 pm
political thoughts
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k2daisyI have some Charlie Kirk thoughts that aren't really appropriate to put down anywhere else. Mostly because they are lengthy and speculative about the future, and no one is really talking about that yet. It's a bit longer than my earlier musings on the topic.
The preamble: I am sorry that Charlie Kirk, the person, is dead. Cut down in his prime, in a horribly violent, sudden, and public way. I feel for his kids, and I am sure his wife and family and friends are all devastated.
You know what I am not sorry is dead? His influence.
The right is having a convulsion of grief right now, and that's understandable. They seem to be preparing a memorial for him in a football stadium, and that seems appropriate too. His podcast and persona touched a lot of people. I too listen to a lot of podcasters and influencers that would upset me a great deal if they were brutally murdered.
But in 5-10 years, he will be just a footnote. Like Breitbart, like Rush Limbaugh. There aren't mobs of Dittoheads running around anymore. Podcasts and organizations like Charlie's are driven around the star, and when that star is gone, so is the world they built. Shannen Doherty had a podcast before she died, and it was pretty powerful. She had a lot of old 90210 people on, and they finally talked the truth about the show and her. She talked about her cancer, and had other celebrity friends on too. But when she died, they tried to keep it going, and it didn't work. No one had her force of nature personality.
Obviously his reach and Shannen Doherty's were vastly different, but the same philosophy applies. He wasn't grooming anyone to take his place. It was all him.
I think the same will hold true for TPUSA. Without him running it and being the face of it, how long will it last? The conservative/MAGA influencer world is very competitive, and their memories are short.
I also will not miss his cruelty toward women, Blacks, immigrants, and other minorities. I watched a bit of his "debates" on YouTube, and to call them debates is being a little too generous imo. These weren't the equal sharing of ideas; he had the camera, the microphone, the stage, the experience, and the power. Those kids never had a chance. I did not see one instance of the person "debating" him being allowed to speak a full sentence; he cut them off or rolled his eyes/made faces, anything to throw them off. Even in the moment he was murdered, he was being flip and trying to throw them off their stride. He wasn't trying to genuinely debate them.
So I will be glad when that part of his organization dies too. It wasn't about a true exchange of ideas, it was about him influencing young men to his beliefs. And look where that has led us.
Maybe I am wrong in my predictions, but I doubt it. So I am willing to play the longer game and sit through all the handwringing and anger to get us to the next phase, when he gets forgotten.
The preamble: I am sorry that Charlie Kirk, the person, is dead. Cut down in his prime, in a horribly violent, sudden, and public way. I feel for his kids, and I am sure his wife and family and friends are all devastated.
You know what I am not sorry is dead? His influence.
The right is having a convulsion of grief right now, and that's understandable. They seem to be preparing a memorial for him in a football stadium, and that seems appropriate too. His podcast and persona touched a lot of people. I too listen to a lot of podcasters and influencers that would upset me a great deal if they were brutally murdered.
But in 5-10 years, he will be just a footnote. Like Breitbart, like Rush Limbaugh. There aren't mobs of Dittoheads running around anymore. Podcasts and organizations like Charlie's are driven around the star, and when that star is gone, so is the world they built. Shannen Doherty had a podcast before she died, and it was pretty powerful. She had a lot of old 90210 people on, and they finally talked the truth about the show and her. She talked about her cancer, and had other celebrity friends on too. But when she died, they tried to keep it going, and it didn't work. No one had her force of nature personality.
Obviously his reach and Shannen Doherty's were vastly different, but the same philosophy applies. He wasn't grooming anyone to take his place. It was all him.
I think the same will hold true for TPUSA. Without him running it and being the face of it, how long will it last? The conservative/MAGA influencer world is very competitive, and their memories are short.
I also will not miss his cruelty toward women, Blacks, immigrants, and other minorities. I watched a bit of his "debates" on YouTube, and to call them debates is being a little too generous imo. These weren't the equal sharing of ideas; he had the camera, the microphone, the stage, the experience, and the power. Those kids never had a chance. I did not see one instance of the person "debating" him being allowed to speak a full sentence; he cut them off or rolled his eyes/made faces, anything to throw them off. Even in the moment he was murdered, he was being flip and trying to throw them off their stride. He wasn't trying to genuinely debate them.
So I will be glad when that part of his organization dies too. It wasn't about a true exchange of ideas, it was about him influencing young men to his beliefs. And look where that has led us.
Maybe I am wrong in my predictions, but I doubt it. So I am willing to play the longer game and sit through all the handwringing and anger to get us to the next phase, when he gets forgotten.
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