Rest in Peace Charlie Kirk

There are no words on days like today. These are the kind of days where you just sit in front of a blank computer screen and stare frozen, not being able to do much of anything or think about much of anything. for Charlie Kirk to be murdered in cold blood in broad daylight. It's an attack on him, of course, and his family and close friends and at every other level. Also devastating the impact of what this attack means to free speech, to open debate, to dialogue. We all exist in this arena of civility in the marketplace of ideas. Yes, things get ugly, things get intense. We criticize each other. But there's an understanding that no one wishes anyone actual physical harm. Even to our worst opponents, even to people we think hold misguided or dangerous ideas, as long as their ideas, as long as they stay in the realm, in the arena of ideas, then we meet them with ideas, that domain of existence, of discussion. That domain is sacred. And that domain was attacked yesterday, violated. Charlie himself said, "If we stop talking to each other, the only thing left is fighting, is violence, and we need to prevent that at all costs." Such an unimaginable tragedy, such an awful, awful display of the worst of humanity for something like this to happen to him. And to those of you out there celebrating, dancing, cheering in the streets, we see you. We've been seeing you for the past few years. You're revealing yourselves for the monsters and barbarians you are. And we won't forget. We know you are among us. We know that in addition to this monster who committed this unspeakable act of pure evil. There are those of you out there enabling it, permitting it, celebrating it, and you're just as evil. And it's all of those forces that we need to unite and stand against. It's a fight for civilization itself. And of all the things you can say about Charlie Kirk, all the positive contributions, all the different labels you can attribute to him as a conservative, as a commentator, as a podcaster, as a leader, he was a young father and a husband. And at the most basic human level that we should all be able to relate to in a civilized society. My heart goes out to his wife and two young children, his immediate family and friends. It's a devastating loss for them and a devastating loss for all of us. Let this be a turning point to remember what Charlie was fighting for and what all the good people of the world are fighting for. Rest in peace, Charlie Kirk.