A Personal Note on the Murder of Charlie Kirk
I feel like I felt when Andrew Breitbart died. I don’t know where things go from this point, but Breitbart’s death inspired many people to commit to the fight — including me — and that would be the best legacy for Charlie.
I found out Charlie Kirk was shot just before I headed into class this afternoon, and I found out he had died when I left class.
I didn’t know Charlie personally, but I knew him the way most people knew him – he was larger than life and had built a massive youth movement that made a difference in promoting America against enemies foreign and domestic. I deeply appreciated that he also was a friend of the Jewish people at a time we need friends.
I loved that he loved to mix it up face to face by debating people who disagreed with him. He was a gladiator of ideas.
As to the perp behind his assassination – we don’t know as of this writing. It certainly looked like a professional operation and if they didn’t catch the perp right away, I’m worried he or she is long gone by now. It’s important we know who was behind it.
As to the motivation, I’m following the ‘Bongino Rule’ and waiting a couple of days to see how the facts play out and whether the perp is caught before reaching sweeping political conclusions. There are some obvious likely motivations, and what seems obvious likely is the case.
I know people are furious, and I respect and understand that. I’m trying to contain my own rage.
Most of all, I feel like the day I found out Andrew Breitbart had died. At the time I wrote: “There are few people who are irreplaceable, but Andrew may have been one of those few.”
Later that day I wrote A personal note on the death of Andrew Breitbart: “Andrew is irreplaceable, but we would serve his memory well to aspire to more freedom of thought and more freedom of action.”
I feel that same way right now.
What a loss. Sincere condolences to Charlie’s family.
I don’t know where things go from this point, but Andrew Breitbart’s death inspired many people to commit to the fight — including me — and that would be the best legacy for Charlie.
Donations tax deductible
to the full extent allowed by law.
Comments
Here, Here, Professor!
My reaction was similar to the Professor and I came over hear expecting to read a post that referenced the feelings experienced after Breitbart’s passing.
As always it is best to take the time to digest and reflect on what happens and what comes next, but making these words I saw on Twitter come to life would be appropriate:
“The tyrant dies and his rule ends, the martyr dies and his rule begins.”
– Kierkegaard
My daughter’s friend wrote this. He was there, and my daughter knew about it from him about 5 minutes before it hit any of my news sites
https://mountlibertyrostra.com/charlie-kirk-assassination-timeline/
The description of the perp’s behavior makes me wonder if this was a professional hit.
I agree that it appears to be a professional hit.
It appears to be professional, but not necessarily.
The distance to the rooftop where the sniper supposedly shot from is approximately 200 yards, at least that is what is being reported.
That is not a difficult shot to make with some basic marksmanship training, even without a scope.
The angle though was not an easy shot.
Perp didn’t pick up the weapon yesterday. SOME level of experience required. I shoot, but mostly pistol. I’d have to spend some range time… and if I was thinking of trading my life for anothers, I’d train enough to not miss. Don’t think he didn’t take the Trump shooter’s miss to heart. He saw that and started training his ass off.
He also walked the area before hand. Even if familiar with the area he’d do that. This likely wasn’t a roof vantage point where him and his trantifa buds go to smoke a doobie. Once the venue was known for this event, he did homework. He probably even had video and even drone footage.
We don’t know yet. As a USSS investigator said today, after 72 hours, there’s much more clarity.
They have a hand print and a shoe print from where he dropped from the roof. The shoes are converse sneakers. Does any professional sniper/assassin wear converse sneakers?
He is believed to be approximately 24 years old. Maybe a pro? Maybe a good shot with yung leggs to run.
A professional wouldn’t be dressed all in black. That’s a Hollywood myth. Black actually makes you stand out more, even at night. Black also tends to leave more easily identifiable trace evidence behind and makes it difficult to blend in with a crowd when you need to escape.
Some people seem desperate to turn the shooter into Jason Bourne. I think some want to make it a more dramatic event than it was — which is a terrifying thought itself. Others want to feign safety by making the skill required elite, reducing the number of people who could accomplish it.
The shooter was not a professional. They were moderately practiced. The danger in enlarging the issue, for whatever reason, is that when the culprit is caught some people will have convinced themselves it can’t be THAT GUY, so there has to be a cover-up.
I agree, people want to turn this into the Day of the Jackal. It was an easy shot. The unsubstantiated conspiracy theories gag me.
Amen. 8-yr-olds train w/ Papa to make that shot, on steaming-hot East Texas September afternoons and bone-chilling sub-zero North Dakota January mornings.
The only conspiracy is a leftist long-term mind-warp program eventually resulted in a switch flipping in a young activist, and he went for it.
WWGMD?
What would Golda Meir do?
Use RICO to permanently abolish the Democrat Crime cabal
No other criminal enterprise would be left intact. MAGA and “Republicans” GROW A SET Democrats conspired with hostile foreign regimes to not only import as many CRIMINAL MIGRANTS AS POSSIBLE during the Kenyan’s 3rd term, they conspired to EMPTY PRISONS AND MENTAL INSTITUTIONS and FLY THOSE PEOPLE HERE in midnight flight sponsored by our traitors in the deep state. Destinations included HPN (Westchester NY) This is the type of thing that DIRECTLY led to the rape/murder of Jocelyn Nungary, a 12 year old Texas girl, and countless others. It’s unlikely the Democrat crime cabal could have disappeared the mountains of evidence associated with this facet of the Democrat crime cabal RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) can apply to immigration crimes if they’re part of a pattern of racketeering activity conducted by an organized enterprise. RICO targets ongoing criminal enterprises engaging in specific predicate offenses, like fraud, extortion, or trafficking. Some immigration-related crimes, such as visa fraud, human smuggling, or document trafficking, could qualify as predicate offenses if they meet RICO’s criteria: a structured group, repeated illegal acts over time, and an impact on interstate or foreign commerce. For example, a criminal organization systematically smuggling migrants or forging immigration documents for profit could face RICO charges. However, standalone immigration violations, like illegal entry without an organized scheme, typically wouldn’t trigger RICO. Prosecutors must prove the enterprise’s structure and a pattern (at least two predicate acts within 10 years). Penalties include up to 20 years per racketeering count, fines, and asset forfeiture.
Stop spamming this comment. It has nothing to do with the subject at hand and you’ve made your point multiple times already.
This should be a George Floyd moment. People should peacefully take to the street to show the country that the intolerance will no longer be tolerated. Especially the young who were increasingly giving their hearts and minds, only to be cynically deprived, enabled by those in that spread fear of the movement Kirk was creating.
Someone suggested we paint over all the George Floyd murals. (This was before the assassination.)
Elon Musk has pledged $1 million to fund murals across the United States to honor Zarutska’s memory and raise awareness about public safety and mental health issues. Additionally, Eoghan McCabe, CEO of Intercom, has pledged $500,000 to support artists in creating murals of Zarutska in high-visibility urban areas. These initiatives aim to commemorate her life and spark conversations about transit safety and systemic issues surrounding crime and mental health. A fundraising campaign has also been launched to expand the mural project.
Not sure how we can commemorate Charlie. Too soon.
I must apologize first because I understand your thoughts… but putting George Floyd, the deaths of over 30 people, 2 billion dollars in damages and the loss of minority businesses in the same sentence as Charlie Kirk is a tough sell. George Floyd was a cheap crook elevated to sainthood on lies. I agree that peaceable assembly is needed but will incur physical blowback by the Left’s street hoods. We have few options that I know you rightfully believe in….as do I. Those days are gone…stolen.
I am saddened because today at church, the conversation with the usual folks (veterans, many of them) was absolutely normal: we talked about college football.
As if (a prominent piece of) our republic had not been murdered since we last gathered.
It was disturbing enough that we don’t talk about Jesus.
I recall when President Trump was shot. There were news stories everywhere.
The number of stories, comments (good and harmful) about Mr. KIRK rivals that day.
It will mean nothing to those he left behind, but the massive effect he had on so many is a tangible thing.
Rest In Peace.
You are missed today and for a long time.
Charlie Kirk was well-known and respected (by conservatives, at least) for his willingness to debate people who didn’t share his views.
His assassination by a leftist/Dhimmi-crat coward is part of a long-running pattern of leftists/Dhimmi-crats resorting to political violence, as a de facto admission that they’ve lost the battle of ideas and rhetoric, and, increasingly, are losing the battle at the ballot box.
When Dhimmi-crats can’t convince anyone of the alleged soundness of their policies, and, they’re incapable of winning debates and rhetorical battles, they predictably resort to terrorism, assassination, violence, intimidation, threats and assorted thuggery.
The Dhimmi-crats are desperate to achieve anything that they can cling to as an alleged political “win,” and, assassinating prominent conservative figures is one manner in which they’re achieving that goal.
I should add — your words are well-stated, Professor. One hopes that some good will come from this tragic and horrific crime, in the form of additional support for the conservative movement, as more people see the ugly and evil face of leftist/Dhimmi-crat totalitarian violence. And, assassinating a prominent political figure, merely because you disagree with his opinions and views, is quite obviously a totalitarian and terrorist tactic.
The goal plainly is to make conservative Americans afraid to voice their opinions and views in public; to drive conservatives behind closed doors, and away from the public square.
They no doubt intended to scare conservatives into silence, but I believe it will have the opposite effect. They are too stupid to realize that killing the messenger doesn’t kill the message; it only amplifies it. They silenced Charlie because he was such an effective advocate for his worldview, and in doing so they spawned an army of Charlie Kirks to rise up and take his place.
And the fact of the matter is, proven time and time again by Charlie and others, than the Leftist “ideals” simply cannot stand up to scrutiny. They cannot stand up under honest, thoughtful debate. Marxism crashes and burns in the real world. Always has and always will.
I am so much in despair.
I have spent countless hours listening to Kirk online. He was a very effective messenger and quite gentle. He was straightforward and honest with those who would attack him but not vicious or vindictive. He would defeat them with calm words of conviction and evidence from a well-read and thinking mind. I encourage those who haven’t had the privilege to hit his many amazing videos online over and over again.
Show the left that he will not be silenced, even in death! This was possibly the greatest mind of his generation and I pray that his legacy lives on.
By the way, where is the deified “lightbringer?” Where are his words of wisdom, of comfort, of introspection?
The vile narcissist-incompetent-dunce, Obama — the Arsonist-in-Chief who has done more than any other Dhimmi-crat figure to foment and contrive the political division and corrosiveness that we are witnessing, now, is nowhere to be found.
I guarantee that if the wretched Obama releases a statement, it will be in the same utterly wicked, stupid and morally bankrupt vein as his statement on the 10/7 terrorist murders, rapes, kidnappings and atrocities, in which the despicable POS attempted to rationalized and contextualize Hamas’s evil crimes, by opining — with typical myopia and brazen dishonesty — “What’s also true is that the ‘occupation’ has become unbearable.”
Obama made a statement on X earlier in the day, and although I find him dispicable in general, what he wrote was appropriate.
“”We don’t know what motivated the person who shot and killed Charlie Kirk, but this kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy.”
————
You find this anodyne, insincere, hypocritical and feckless statement “appropriate?”
This coming from the racial/cultural arsonist who has toiled 24/7 to vilify conservatives, to sow political division, and, is hugely responsible for bringing the country to this point in time, at which assassination attempts upon GOP presidential candidates, and, assassinations of leading conservative figures, are deemed to be acceptable behavior by Dhimmi-crats, in order to stop “Hitler” and his supporters?
Don’t be naive.
You pointedly, myopically and foolishly ignore the vile Obama’s seminal role in creating the attitudes among leftists/Dhimmi-crats that directly led to Kirk’s assassination. Via his dishonest demagoguery and non-stop, 24/7 vilification and slanders against conservatives.
So, to praise this reprobate’s utterly worthless and self-serving statement is indefensibly naive.
Wake up.
JFC dude – I said Obama is dispicable. I left out a lot of crap he’s said. You want me to talk about how rephrensible and damaging his rhetoric has been over the years? I could fill a library with that.
His statement, which you didn’t know about, was all I was addressing. You asked – where are his words of comfort? He said he was going to pray for Charlie’s family and kids. Is that inappropriate? No. Is it a lie? Let’s assume it’s the typical Obama lie. I find it the height of irony that you ask me to wake up, when you can’t even recall know how this clown operates. He is a silver tongued devil who will not go off the deep end on a simple social media post.
A WLM march? A peaceful protest that would remain peaceful until the shock troops of Democrats, Antifa attack.
MSNBC bounced Matthew Dowd because of his remarks today.
Dowd not only blamed Charlie for his own death but also it could have been an accidental shooting. TDS has driven these people insane.
It could only be an “accident” if the intended target was someone else near Charlie and the shooter missed that badly.
Gee, what a shame.
Professional hit team involved. The person asking question at time of shot was in on it. The ineptness of police was on purpose. Patel acting like a idiot was on purpose.FBI was most likely the shooter
It wasn’t a professional job. This was done by someone who watched far too many movies.
At 200 yards, no professional would have hit someone in the neck.
The shooter failed to compensate for bullet drop over the distance. Not a pro. Ditto Sanddog’s comments about wearing black. Black, as he mentioned, isn’t even good at night. At night it stands out like a black hole. I’m betting there was no wind or a zero value wind, otherwise the shooter would have missed entirely.
Do we know what weapon it was? My .308 is zero’d at 150yards for shooting my deer. At 200 yards the bullet drop is less than 1 inch, not 6-8 inches. With normal factory ammunition and a good rifle, there will be about 2-3 inches of variance in bullet placement. With a good handload and an good rifle, the variance is around half an inch to an inch.
It seems to me the two explanations are either a poor/mediocre shooter “lucking” into a good bullet placement despite making a poor shot, or a mediocre shooter failing to compensate for the downward angle. It looks like the shot was from a 3ish story building roof, down a hill and into a pit like area. Failing to compensate for shooting angle is a very common mistake people make.
He used a Mauser chambered in 30.06. I’ve got a 30.06 Garand zeroed at 100 yards, and the bullet drop between 100 and 200 is roughly 3.5 inches. At 300 yards the drop is far more significant, like 12 inches. But everything I’ve read said the shooter was less than 200 yards away.
I cannot imagine someone like that not understanding shot placement at 100 yards vs. 200, plus we don’t know where that rifle was zeroed. He also used an old bolt action gun, he didn’t pull any given AR off the shelf. That tells me he was more into shooting than the average psycho we’ve seen in recent times. If he was going for a head shot and missed, it seems to me it was a combination of nerves, lack of skill and not accounting for the shooting angle, like Dathurtz said. Not bullet drop.
Tell me you haven’t shot rifles without telling me you haven’t shot rifles.
There’s a lot of people assuming that, since the shooter was successful (compared to the two attempts on Trump) and got away, he must be a pro.
Really, he was a good enough shooter who had put some thought into the whole event. He also seemed to not be interested in suicide by cop. He likely wasn’t a pro, but he tried to emulate one.
As to the black clothes being a mistake, it sure did help him blend in to the roofline more than a lot of other choices. (Wearing woodland camouflage would have probably been the worst choice.)
Provo is in Utah County. Home of Brigham Young University. For at least 40 years, Provo and its met area (Orem, Lehi, Spanish Fork, etc) has been called “Happy Valley” by the rest of Utah. Why, because it is a city with a small town feel, because there are so many Mormons around being super cheerful and law abiding. Seriously. maybe there was a police in on this, but I doubt it very much.
No, this was a small, safe town, even if UVU is known as the Gentile or apostate college in Utah county (it is neither… but BYU rivalry runs strong). And this was not the president with lax secret service that missed all sorts of signs.
between this and lonely Moscow, Idaho, I am beginning to think that our American small towns are no longer safe places. The crazy has come
What makes it look professional is the people who obstructed the manhunt, on of who has been charged.
I hope he is treated to “cameras off” interrogation.
If that individual had anything to do with it, he’ll sing. Anyone stupid enough to make a plan and agree to intentionally misdirect the police after the event and expected to not get nailed for it is fairly dim. If he’s involved, he’s sweating bullets now.
George Zinn is reported to be a well-known person in the area, politically conservative but a bit of a nutcase, who likes the spotlight, doesn’t mind being arrested, but is mostly harmless. The police seem to regard him as just a nuisance. It doesn’t seem like he would knowingly agree to participate in the assassination. But we shall see.
This is not the fringe or extreme left.
48% of the left thought killing Elon was justified.
They will celebrate the killing of somebody they disagree with politically.
This is not fringe, extreme, far left.
This is MAINSTREAM LEFT.
People need to wake TF up and stop pretending the left can be reasoned with.
Charlie Kirk is the Martin Luther King of his generation. He deserves a statue in every capital of every state in the union.
.
I said it once before Prof, you need to arm yourself, the leftists like killing people, especially babies. And with assisted suicide they’re going after the older people.
The left just cannot help itself. They are determined to show us EXACTLY who they are and we absolutely should believe them!
The left tried to ignore the murder of Iryna Zarutska but couldnt once the footage of her killing was leaked. With the murder of Charlie Kirk there is no chance in hell the left can ignore his killing but they are doing exactly as we have come to expect, celebrating his killing with glee.
What these intellectual pygmies fail to realise is that they have created a martyr and he will be far more dangerous to their ideology now than he ever would have been alive (although, I would have far preferred he wasnt murdered by a Democrat!). There is a reckoning coming for Democrats and with Charlie Kirks murder they have made then even more inevitable.
I have watched Charlie debate gently with people who hated him. He never treated anyone who challenged him harshly. What this has done to me is put me into despair because if the left goes after a CK who is as considerate as anyone can be, who won’t they go after?
Just considering all the horrible events this year makes me realize that the world I grew up in is gone. We have coddled these monsters for way too long and now we are reaping the whirlwind. There has to be a nation-wide crack down on all forms of violence by any group. We have to build new prisons for these monsters and reinstate the death penalty. No cashless bail and recall of judges unfit for office as well as making them liable for whom they let free. We’ll all miss Charlie’s big smile and gentle ways!
They killed him because of what he was going to be. They murdered his future.
TY Professor..
And because he was right, almost every time. He could calmly and respectfully ask questions that caused the arguments of his debate opponents to crumble under simply logic. His ability to debate and win so consistently is both a testament to his intellectual ability as well as a damning statement on the quality of our higher educational system.
And one important part of his method: he could let them walk away, still misguided. He didn’t feel it necessary to win any particular argument right away. He gave them truth and reality – and let that do the work (and on the rest of the folks around when he did it).
” They murdered his future.”
and our future.
There was a story 1-2 weeks ago about a “trans militia”. They are militaristic and training with weapons. The group was involved in the Portland area. That’s one of the data points to start an investigation. Antifa has similar military style weapons training. A bolt action .308 or 6.5 Creedmore with a scope is no small package. Plus a bullet at that range and the known velocity hitting the neck should have gone right through. Because he reached for his neck the bullet didn’t sever the spinal cord and most likely missed it entirely. Even a glancing blow would have led to a temporary paralysis. I’ve seen that type of wound reaction. The perp had training, but not knowledge of ballistic performance. My opinion is the shooter was going for a head shot and the dramatic visual impact. The lack of ballistic knowledge is a giveaway. This a dangerous situation. This may only be the first of many attempts on conservatives.
Nick Freitas wrote today on X regarding tolerance and forgiveness.
https://x.com/NickJFreitas/status/1965927877926432868
His video where he addresses the X post and the VA Speaker’s response (or other writing) is amazing.
How many small businesses across America are boarding up tonight in fear of Burning, Looting and Murdering by conservatives rioting because of Kirk’s death?
“When you were born, you cried, and the world rejoiced.
Live your life so that when you die, the world cries, and you rejoice.”
—Cherokee Proverb
As to the motivation…
Guess what? It’s the same motivation our social superiors on University turf have, employing speech codes and finks to suppress the expression of ‘wrong’ ideas. The musketeer was simply carrying out that motivation with permanence in mind.
If the perp is caught, there needs to be an express lane to death row and the firing squad. I say let’s allow a total of ONE MONTH from immediate trial to ultimate justice. Anything longer is a farce and waste of taxpayer money.
Congratulations to those who have the courage to carry out a lawful sentence. Here is something that will never be taught in America’s schools, but it should be.
“On February 15,1933, a deranged, unemployed brick layer named Giuseppe Zangara shouts, “Too many people are starving!” and he fires a gun at America’s president-elect, Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Roosevelt had just delivered a speech in Miami’s Bayfront Park from the back seat of his open touring car when Zangara opened fire with six rounds. Five people were hit. The president escaped injury but the mayor of Chicago, Anton Cermak, who was also in attendance, received a mortal stomach wound in the attack.
Several men tackled the assailant and might have beaten him to death if Roosevelt had not intervened, telling the crowd to leave justice to the authorities. Zangara later claimed “I don’t hate Mr. Roosevelt personally, hate all officials and anyone who is rich” [obviously a future member of the Occupy Wall Street gang]. He also told the FBI that chronic stomach pain led to his action: “Since my stomach hurt I want to make even with the capitalists by kill the president. My stomach hurt long time”. Zangara’s extreme action reflected the anger and frustration felt among many working Americans during the Great Depression.
At the time of the shooting, Roosevelt was still only the president-elect and had yet to be sworn in. His policies remained untested but reports of Roosevelt’s composure during the assassination attempt filled the following day’s newspapers and did much to enforce Roosevelt’s public image as a strong leader.
Unsubstantiated reports later claimed that Zangara’s real target had been Cermak and hinted at Zangara’s connection to organized crime in Chicago. Zangara was initially tried for attempted murder and sentenced to 80 years in prison, but when Mayor Cermak later died of his wounds, Zangara was retried and sentenced to death. Zangara died on the electric chair on March 5, 1933.”
It took less than 20 days for what FDR referred to as “leave justice to the authorities”. Today, we can expect “leaving justice to the authorities” as taking millions of taxpayer dollars and about 20 years.
On September 6, 1901, President McKinley was shot by Leon Czolgosz. McKinley died September 14. Czolgosz was tried, convicted, and executed on October 29, seven weeks later, It can be done.
“We have recovered what we believed is the weapon used in yesterday’s shooting. It is a high powered bolt action rifle. It was recovered in a wooded area. Officers have also collected foot prints and palm prints,” said Robert Bohls, special agent in charge of the Salt Lake City field office.
Bohls also revealed that the FBI has obtained a high-quality video of the suspect, which they are choosing to withhold from the public at this time, though they may publish the video online if they need the public’s help in identifying the suspect.”
National Review
I have no idea where this thing leads, but the assassination of Calvo Sotelo started the Spanish Civil war, one of the bloodiest of the past century.