Assassination of Charlie Kirk, Attack on Democracy, and 9/11 Commemorations

Support the ShowTranscript: But I wanted to interrupt our normal programming to talk about what happened yesterday with Charlie Kirk. I’m really angry about this. And if you’re not familiar with him, I encourage you to check out some of his content on YouTube or wherever. I was first made aware of him earlier this year by my teenage sons. They loved him. We were looking forward to him coming to speak at a church near us next week. The way Charlie articulated his arguments. He was intelligent, well-spoken, fierce but fair. And if you’re a parent of teenagers, you understand the sheer volume of brain rot they come across and consume on all the different social media channels, so when they introduced me to Charlie Kirk, I was shocked. I’m like, my sons are watching and enjoying a formal debate. That’s what Charlie Kirk did. He engaged in public discourse. He would have a sign that read “Prove me wrong.” He invited argument. He welcomed debate. It doesn’t matter if you agreed with his ideas or not. If you called him right-wing or whatever. The whole point was to discuss ideas. So, I’m angry for a few reasons. First and foremost, on a personal level. This was a 31-year-old man with a wife and two small children, now a widow and fatherless. That’s number one. Secondly, not only was he assassinated for only God knows why, but this was an attack on democracy itself. If we can not disagree openly in the marketplace of ideas and feel safe when doing that, we’re in deep trouble. We are in deep trouble. I mean he’s not the first person to be killed for speaking his mind. That’s for sure. Unfortunately, he won’t be the last. This has been happening since time immemorial. We can all think of relatively recent examples almost instantly: Gandhi, MLK, JFK, RFK. Different men who expressed different ideas. But none of these men were violent. They were killed for their ideas and public influence. Lastly, I’m angry about some of the comments I’ve read immediately following Charlie Kirk’s death. I’ll give you just two examples, but there are more. One is, “He’s the literal definition of a piece of s-h-i-t.” Another commenter said, “He’s looking up at us now.” What kind of mind do you have to have to say such atrocious things about someone who was non-violent themselves and who was just assassinated? I don’t understand it. So, while Charlie Kirk has died. Free speech has not died. Democracy has not died. Public discourse has not died. If anything, I imagine these things will grow stronger as a result.  All you young people that followed Charlie Kirk, don’t let this put fear in your heart. Be bold and courageous. Speak up when you need to speak up. Let his example inspire you to articulate your thoughts in a peaceful and intelligent way. Engage in public discourse. It’s okay if people disagree. That’s what our democratic republic is all about. Jesus said do not worry about those who can only destroy your body, but rather worry about the one who can destroy both body and soul in hell. Now I know that sounds kind of heavy, but what Jesus is saying here is that some things are more important than self-preservation. So we don’t let an event like this fill us with fear. And I don’t believe people being afraid to talk openly is a legacy Charlie Kirk would want either. Sources: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/us-marks-24th-anniversary-911-terror-attacks-125468167   https://apnews.com/live/charlie-kirk-shooting-response-updates https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2025/9/11/live-charlie-kirk-killing-stokes-fears-of-rise-in-political-assassinations https://biblehub.com/matthew/10-28.htm