Shots fired on my campus today. Charlie Kirk TPUSA leader dead

[The Nehor]

52 minutes ago, rodheadlee said:

Yeah, you are part of the problem. 

No, part of the problem is you referring to it as “the problem” so your statement comes across as declarative and sounds like it means something. If you think about it though your statement is meaningless. You didn’t even define at all what the problem is. Gun violence? Some cultural issue about violence? My insinuating that an immoral grifter with heinous opinions is an immoral grifter with heinous opinions? My irrational obsession with finding comfortable hoodies? You won’t define it. You will only refer to it with vague euphemisms and a broad umbrella term. That is definitely part of “THE PROBLEM”.

Oh well. It will probably be forgotten in a few weeks anyways. Either that or the President will send troops to Utah to ‘stop all the violent crime’ or whatever justification they pick this time. That could be fun/horrifying to watch.

[The Nehor]

8 hours ago, ZealouslyStriving said:

I've have, 99% of the time, been politically silent on social media, trying not to upset friends or relatives with different opinions.

After today, that all changes.

I will do my best to not be contentious- but I will not be silent. 😡

QEPD Charlie. 😢

Likely result: You get blocked by some people.

And what are you even going to say? A hot take that shooting people is wrong? May not want to go there unless you want to listen to people suggest sensible gun control legislation and increasing access to mental health care to decrease incidents like this.

[ZealouslyStriving]

15 minutes ago, The Nehor said:

Likely result: You get blocked by some people.

I've already politely asked that anyone like you unfriend me- so if they haven't and they do block me, it would be a blessing.

Any further response to you on any subject will not be forthcoming- you are more vile than I gave you credit for.

[The Nehor]

3 minutes ago, ZealouslyStriving said:

I've already politely asked that anyone like you unfriend me- so if they haven't and they do block me, it would be a blessing.

Any further response to you on any subject will not be forthcoming- you are more vile than I gave you credit for.

 

[Calm]

1 hour ago, The Nehor said:

My irrational obsession with finding comfortable hoodies?

You and my daughter!  Must be a liberal thing.

[Tony uk]

I find it so very sad, certain individuals or groups, feel the need to take a life, on a whim. After taking onboard reports from various media sources, I hope and pray that people of all Nationalities/Creeds/Cultures. Can learn to live with each other, rather than resorting to unneeded acts of aggression.

[Tacenda]

7 hours ago, The Nehor said:

I would express empathy for the deceased and his loved ones but he would have hated that. He really didn’t like empathy. I am trying to respect the dead here.

 

Edit: Nah, I am lying. This guy has openly and repeatedly advocated for people to hurt people I care about. I couldn’t feel empathy. The only emotion I can honestly scrape up about this is worry about how his authoritarian allies will use this as a pretext to inflict even more harm on people I care about.

I have been seeing his quotes, it's disappointing to say the least. I'm saddened that so many in my community and my life support the things he's said. But ultra saddened because this will further the divide in our country. All around these killings are not a good statement for our country and it's citizens. 

[ZealouslyStriving]

35 minutes ago, Tacenda said:

I have been seeing his quotes, it's disappointing to say the least. I'm saddened that so many in my community and my life support the things he's said. But ultra saddened because this will further the divide in our country. All around these killings are not a good statement for our country and it's citizens. 

Examples? (Complete quotes with context)

Have you ever actually watched one of his college debates? Or is cherry picked quotes how you gathered your information on him?

Edited September 11, 2025 by ZealouslyStriving

[Zosimus]

Flags at half mast for Kirk. No problem. Fine by me. 

But compare to Trump's response when a few months ago some guy cosplaying as police knocked on the doors of two democrat families in the middle of the night and opened fire:

"One lawmaker and her husband were killed, and the second legislator and his wife sustained serious injuries in the shootings early Saturday. A suspect surrendered to police on Sunday. The Republican president spoke to reporters early Tuesday aboard Air Force One as he flew back to Washington...Asked if he had called Walz yet, Trump said the Democratic governor is “slick” and “whacked out” and, “I’m not calling him.” “I don’t really call him. He’s slick — he appointed this guy to a position,” Trump said. “I think the governor of Minnesota is so whacked out. I’m not calling him. why would I call him? “I could call him and say, ‘Hi, how you doing?’” Trump continued. “The guy doesn’t have a clue. He’s a, he’s a mess. So, you know, I could be nice and call him but why waste time?”

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/06/17/trump-walz-phone-call-00410141

Edited September 11, 2025 by Zosimus

[bsjkki]

Political violence is wrong. A young father was murdered. ‘They’ wish for more. I find some opinions expressed disgusting today after a political assassination. If you side with Antifa, something is very wrong with your moral compass. 
 

 

[Tacenda]

2 hours ago, ZealouslyStriving said:

Examples? (Complete quotes with context)

Have you ever actually watched one of his college debates? Or is cherry picked quotes how you gathered your information on him?

https://www.newsweek.com/charlie-kirk-says-gun-deaths-worth-it-2nd-amendment-1793113

I've watched him debate, not at a college. Heard this one above just today on FB. So wasn't searching for it. He was controversial, but still no one should be killed over their political views. 

 

[Tacenda]

Edited out:

Something about someone possibly signaling to the right of Charlie, but it's nothing I'm sure. 

Edited September 11, 2025 by Tacenda

[Navidad]

Both physical and symbolic violence are terrible. They leave wounds in both the perpetrator and the victim. We now believe that those wounds may continue generationally. Please don't like, support, share, or in any way applaud memes or posts that foster violence, whether metaphorically or in reality. Please allow me to quote from President Nelson's recent message - I think it bears repeating over and over:

A century of experience has taught me this with certainty: anger never persuades, hostility never heals, and contention never leads to lasting solutions. Too much of today’s public discourse, especially online, fosters enmity instead of empathy. 

Imagine how different our world could be if more of us were peacemakers—building bridges of understanding rather than walls of prejudice—especially with those who may see the world differently than we do. 

Now that is absolutely prophetic in a way that any Christian can consider prophetic.

We have all most likely said or done something we regret moments or years later. Social media, including this forum, gives many more opportunities for that than at any time in the past. "Hostility never heals." I'll shout an Amen to that! 

Edited September 11, 2025 by Navidad

[bluebell]

28 minutes ago, Tacenda said:

https://www.newsweek.com/charlie-kirk-says-gun-deaths-worth-it-2nd-amendment-1793113

I've watched him debate, not at a college. Heard this one above just today on FB. So wasn't searching for it. He was controversial, but still no one should be killed over their political views. 

 

I’ve heard this argument made in regards to cars. That having cars is worth the unfortunate cost of some deaths caused by cars every year. I guess we all agree since we all still drive or ride in cars.  But it’s not something any person with a heart would ever say to someone who has lost a loved one to a car accident.

Nor would it be a great argument to make in a discussion about the need for car safety.

Time, place, and tone make so much difference in how things come across. 

[bsjkki]

1 hour ago, Tacenda said:

https://www.newsweek.com/charlie-kirk-says-gun-deaths-worth-it-2nd-amendment-1793113

I've watched him debate, not at a college. Heard this one above just today on FB. So wasn't searching for it. He was controversial, but still no one should be killed over their political views. 

 

He is being realistic. I don’t have issues with the realism he presents here. Alcohol kills far more people. Drunk driving is a scourge. We tried banning it long ago. 

Edited September 11, 2025 by bsjkki

[bsjkki]

 

[Tacenda]

13 minutes ago, bsjkki said:

He is being realistic. I don’t have issues with the realism he presents here. Alcohol kills far more people. Drunk driving is scourge. We tried banning it long ago. 

I understand and agree to a point, but in light of the massive amount of school shootings and others and the comparison to every other country, we have a problem that isn't getting addressed. IOW, Houston we have a problem. 

 

[bsjkki]

2 hours ago, Zosimus said:

Flags at half mast for Kirk. No problem. Fine by me. 

But compare to Trump's response when a few months ago some guy cosplaying as police knocked on the doors of two democrat families in the middle of the night and opened fire:

"One lawmaker and her husband were killed, and the second legislator and his wife sustained serious injuries in the shootings early Saturday. A suspect surrendered to police on Sunday. The Republican president spoke to reporters early Tuesday aboard Air Force One as he flew back to Washington...Asked if he had called Walz yet, Trump said the Democratic governor is “slick” and “whacked out” and, “I’m not calling him.” “I don’t really call him. He’s slick — he appointed this guy to a position,” Trump said. “I think the governor of Minnesota is so whacked out. I’m not calling him. why would I call him? “I could call him and say, ‘Hi, how you doing?’” Trump continued. “The guy doesn’t have a clue. He’s a, he’s a mess. So, you know, I could be nice and call him but why waste time?”

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/06/17/trump-walz-phone-call-00410141

This is what he said first. 

[ZealouslyStriving]

11 minutes ago, Tacenda said:

I understand and agree to a point, but in light of the massive amount of school shootings and others and the comparison to every other country, we have a problem that isn't getting addressed. IOW, Houston we have a problem. 

 

How about this?

We have a culture that glorifies killing.

*Abortion on demand

*Revenge movies

*GTA type video games

*Rap music

Hearts are cold, self-centered, without God, and addicted to violence in our media.

The solution is repentance.

 

[BlueDreams]

17 hours ago, ZealouslyStriving said:

I've have, 99% of the time, been politically silent on social media, trying not to upset friends or relatives with different opinions.

After today, that all changes.

I will do my best to not be contentious- but I will not be silent. 😡

QEPD Charlie. 😢

The answer isn't found in talking or not. It's learning how to communicate with respect and dignity. To see humanity in what we deem as "them" or "other." To share our disagreements and concerns without losing site of people not like us. To take accountability and acknowledge fault on "our side" as easily as we can another. To understand different views. To avoid broad brush strokes. 

If we can't, then we'll perpetuate the cycle of violence we're currently stuck on. Kirk wasn't the first. He won't be the last if we can't recognize where our speech and actions go too far and lose sight of human dignity. 

 

With luv,

BD

 

Edited September 11, 2025 by BlueDreams

[Tacenda]

4 hours ago, ZealouslyStriving said:

Examples? (Complete quotes with context)

Have you ever actually watched one of his college debates? Or is cherry picked quotes how you gathered your information on him?

This is a better answer, it's in context and even took place in Utah at a church. And may help or hinder Charlie's words. I do believe in our 2nd Amendment rights for sure, more than ever at this point in my life. Not that I'm arguing over it. 

I found this on Snopes: 

Kirk genuinely made this statement during an April 5, 2023, TPUSA Faith event that took place on the Salt Lake City campus of Awaken Church. The Internet Archive's Wayback Machine hosts an archived YouTube video (unavailable on YouTube's website) showing the entire event. The quote begins at the 1:16:21 mark. Meanwhile, the PodBean account for the Awaken Church also hosts the audio from the same function, with the quote occurring at the 41:30 mark.

AUDIENCE QUESTION: How's it going, Charlie? I'm Austin. I just had a question related to Second Amendment rights. We saw the shooting that happened recently and a lot of people are upset. But, I'm seeing people argue for the other side that they want to take our Second Amendment rights away. How do we convince them that it's important to have the right to defend ourselves and all that good stuff?

CHARLIE KIRK: Yeah, it's a great question. Thank you. So, I'm a big Second Amendment fan but I think most politicians are cowards when it comes to defending why we have a Second Amendment. This is why I would not be a good politician, or maybe I would, I don't know, because I actually speak my mind.

The Second Amendment is not about hunting. I love hunting. The Second Amendment is not even about personal defense. That is important. The Second Amendment is there, God forbid, so that you can defend yourself against a tyrannical government. And if that talk scares you — "wow, that's radical, Charlie, I don't know about that" — well then, you have not really read any of the literature of our Founding Fathers. Number two, you've not read any 20th-century history. You're just living in Narnia. By the way, if you're actually living in Narnia, you would be wiser than wherever you're living, because C.S. Lewis was really smart. So I don't know what alternative universe you're living in. You just don't want to face reality that governments tend to get tyrannical and that if people need an ability to protect themselves and their communities and their families.

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Now, we must also be real. We must be honest with the population. Having an armed citizenry comes with a price, and that is part of liberty. Driving comes with a price. 50,000, 50,000, 50,000 people die on the road every year. That's a price. You get rid of driving, you'd have 50,000 less auto fatalities. But we have decided that the benefit of driving — speed, accessibility, mobility, having products, services — is worth the cost of 50,000 people dying on the road. So we need to be very clear that you're not going to get gun deaths to zero. It will not happen. You could significantly reduce them through having more fathers in the home, by having more armed guards in front of schools. We should have a honest and clear reductionist view of gun violence, but we should not have a utopian one.

You will never live in a society when you have an armed citizenry and you won't have a single gun death. That is nonsense. It's drivel. But I am, I, I — I think it's worth it. I think it's worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment to protect our other God-given rights. That is a prudent deal. It is rational. Nobody talks like this. They live in a complete alternate universe.

So then, how do you reduce? Very simple. People say, oh, Charlie, how do you stop school shootings? I don't know. How did we stop shootings at baseball games? Because we have armed guards outside of baseball games. That's why. How did we stop all the shootings at airports? We have armed guards outside of airports. How do we stop all the shootings at banks? We have armed guards outside of banks. How did we stop all the shootings at gun shows? Notice there's not a lot of mass shootings at gun shows, there's all these guns. Because everyone's armed. If our money and our sporting events and our airplanes have armed guards, why don't our children?

Edited September 11, 2025 by Tacenda

[bsjkki]

14 minutes ago, Tacenda said:

I understand and agree to a point, but in light of the massive amount of school shootings and others and the comparison to every other country, we have a problem that isn't getting addressed. IOW, Houston we have a problem. 

 

I am for armed guards at schools and getting to the root of the mental health crisis. Banning guns from the law abiding is not the answer. Denver has seen an increase in stabbing attacks. As a women, being able to be armed whether with mace, a self defense tool or a gun is a right I will not give up. 
 

It’s not that I don’t want something done to prevent school shootings but what the gun absolutists want, is against the constitution and the rights we all have to protect ourselves. I live in a high crime state with strict gun laws. Denver has murders every night and roving gangs in suburban neighborhoods at night. 
 

In England, there is no legal way for a woman to protect herself from violence. I think that is terrible. 
 

It’s fine to discuss these issues civilly. I understand your opinion. 

But, no one with any moral compass should justify this murder because Charlie Kirk didn’t believe the same  things as the liberal left. 
 

 

[Tacenda]

3 minutes ago, bsjkki said:

I am for armed guards at schools and getting to the root of the mental health crisis. Banning guns from the law abiding is not the answer. Denver has seen an increase in stabbing attacks. As a women, being able to be armed whether with mace, a self defense tool or a gun is a right I will not give up. 
 

It’s not that I don’t want something done to prevent school shootings but what the gun absolutists want, is against the constitution and the rights we all have to protect ourselves. I live in a high crime state with strict gun laws. Denver has murders every night and roving gangs in suburban neighborhoods at night. 
 

In England, there is no legal way for a woman to protect herself from violence. I think that is terrible. 
 

It’s fine to discuss these issues civilly. I understand your opinion. 

But, no one with any moral compass should justify this murder because Charlie Kirk didn’t believe the same  things as the liberal left. 
 

 

Very much agree with you! And with BlueDreams! There is a tide lately, and we've got to stop it before it's a tsunami. There's so much anger on both sides. On a significant day like today, 9/11, we can at least have the wonderful memory of our country coming together in a powerful way. I hope there's a cure to what is going on, or a miracle too. 

[ttribe]

17 hours ago, ZealouslyStriving said:

This was political terrorism.

Silence is what they want.

I refuse to comply.

And if I share without contention- why should you question it.

Who are "they"? We know next to nothing about the shooter.

[Damien the Leper]

I abhor gun violence. I would never wish it on anyone. However, Kirk died on his hill. To him, empathy was a New Age term that causes damage. A person is not simply better or more Christlike for having empathy for the one who would not have empathy in return. Humanity is broken. We have allowed the liberals (those who are still RIGHT of CENTER on the spectrum) and the conservatives to create this narrative that is so divisive. One side claim to have some greater morality than the other. However, at the end of the day, it is just one monster speaking from both sides of its mouth. The absolute manipulation by corporate media (OANN, CNN, Fox, MSNBC, Newsmax, etc.) has completely mind screwed Americans. 

What I think may happen is that the right will heavily politicise this and attempt to turn Kirk into some symbolic patriotic martyr for their cause. And it will likely work. It is a trademark of weaponising emotions.