Charlie Kirk has never received a warm welcome in the pages of this magazine. It doesn’t matter now. The assassination of Kirk is a tragedy. Morally, it is unjustifiable. Politically, it is cause for serious alarm. A larger spiral into political violence would be a catastrophe for the Left.
In the short time since Kirk was slain, most on the Left have rightly condemned his murder. A not insignificant number, however, have reacted with an almost competitive lack of empathy. Not only is their anti-moral posturing likely to turn off ordinary Americans, who abhor political violence, but it is also politically misguided and strategically naive. There is nothing to celebrate here. Indeed, there is much to fear.
sit back and observe time
but fr:
If history is any guide, the Left faces serious dangers from this development. The theory that acts of individual political violence will somehow spark mass movements for justice (what used to be called “propaganda of the deed”) has been tested, in a variety of circumstances around the world, for centuries. It’s very consistently been a disaster, almost always leading to enhanced repression of the Left and attacks on democracy writ large. The aftermath of Kirk’s murder could easily follow this familiar, grim pattern. Whether or not the shooter even turns out to be left-wing, there are good reasons to worry that the assassination could be used as a pretext for new crackdowns against dissenting speech from an administration that’s already shown itself willing to engage in a degree of authoritarianism we haven’t seen in recent American history.
Kirk himself played a leading role in pushing Gen Z toward the Right, especially young men. If the killer hoped to snuff out his influence, their actions will almost certainly have the opposite effect. Kirk’s murder at age thirty-one will no doubt convince many of his millions of viewers and listeners to dedicate themselves to his cause, thus hastening the coherence of a militant right-wing political bloc that will be an obstacle to our own project for decades to come.
does jacobin have short guide for spain as related to political violence from anarchists?
I wonder if Jacobin has heard of the Jacobins
In their defense, the Jacobins weren’t doing adventurism. They were organized.
Absolutely true, but some of the article takes up the line about “political violence” in general.
we will make excuses for the Terror smdh
In the short time since Kirk was slain, most on the Left have rightly condemned his murder. A not insignificant number, however, have reacted with an almost competitive lack of empathy. Not only is their anti-moral posturing likely to turn off ordinary Americans, who abhor political violence, but it is also politically misguided and strategically naive. There is nothing to celebrate here. Indeed, there is much to fear.
And that’s all I need to know that this author is a liberal wrecker and most importantly a liar; most Americans do not give a shit Kirk was killed, most Americans support Luigi, most Americans DO support political violence, of course it’s usually in the form of the state attacking their perceived enemies but they support it nevertheless
These liberals spin their dying ideology as if it was common sense, while ignoring the fact nobody, not even themselves, subscribe to its ideological content
So we’re left with the obvious realization that these articles are only designed to demoralize the left and make it appear as fringe as possible, well that’s not gonna work on behalf of a Nazi like Charlie Kirk
My lib ass mom’s comment was that karma is a bitch. Commentators and news guys think it’s unjustifiable. The average person understands exactly why Charlie’s neck did that.
hey charlie, what dat neck do?
Morally, it is unjustifiable. Politically, it is cause for serious alarm.
Politically can be argued, I think the shooting is just an accelerant for things that were already happening.
Morally can not. Charlie was an advocate for the most vile beliefs and bears no small amount of responsibility for deaths due to gun violence, vaccine hesitancy, and hate crimes that have occurred during his miserable life. He got exactly what he deserved, fuck Charlie Kirk rest in piss.
i’d rather eat day-old vomit off the sidewalk than listen to a bunch of gutless cowards cry and whine over a nazi getting a new speaking hole installed
jacobin in the 80s if somebody merced federal society founder
Also Jacobin: The IRA needs to cut it out.
Also Jacobin: The Mujahideen are doing great things to free their society
I am glad Charlie Kirk is dead because I hated him. I’m not more holy than he was or a better person than he was or his followers are. I’m not above celebrating the end of my enemies. He would be glad to know people like me suffer and die. He would have let us all die. If all you have for me is “yeah but now the people who don’t care if we die don’t care if we die” then you need the horse bit slapped out of your mouth.
But neither am I so low that I have no respect for my enemies. Kirk’s execution is a tough blow for the other side. Say whatever you want about how there will always be another reactionary but its just a tired cliche. Kirk was effective in his evil and we are all spared by his murder. Charlie meant something and it is good that that meaning has been frustrated, by whatever degree, with is death.
At the very least a bunch of college campuses will be spared his hateful drivel from his “tour”.
And Ben Shamiro too who just cancelled all his college tours. lmao this is already proving to have a good impact.
Once again proving that violence against fascists works
Political power does indeed come from the barrel of a gun
Praxis 🥳
I believe Ben isn’t great enough a fool to think he can make himself safe. This is ultimately what gives me hope.
You’re a better person by virtue of not being a fascist and not spreading hate speech at college campuses
It’s a cosmic accident that Charlie and I are on opposite poles. Yes he was evil but that will never make any of us good. It’s nothing to take pride in. We don’t need to be good anyway. We just need to be us. We become ourselves by facing our enemies if you believe Fanon. But there is no guarantee this makes us good. I’m afraid we would need to know about our relationships to more than just Charlie to know something like that.
You are a better person simply through your intent. If every action you took was the same but your true, honest, personal intent was more moral and just, you are better
And now realize that every action you take is not the same
You aren’t even comparable. I’d say there are greater differences between you and him than you and completely different species
A just society must be intolerant towards those who are without any motivation but their own greed
I don’t put stock in intent any more than I put stock in mere knowledge making someone good. Charlie’s intentions were just as good as anyone else’s and its not clear how greedy he was. Maybe he was greedy for his bosses?
If every action you took was the same but your true, honest, personal intent was more moral and just, you are better
If I actively did what Charlie was doing, but intended to not be evil… I would actually be good? This is why I don’t bother believing I’m better than my enemies.
No. You are better. Doesn’t make you good, just makes you relatively better. If you were a delusional Charlie Kirk with legitimately good intentions, you’d still be a shitty fucking person, but you would be better than him, you’d just also be delusional.
But that also doesn’t happen. There are exceptions to everything in life; our general rhetoric and understanding of life shouldn’t have to account for those otherwise we’d be here all day. I don’t think it’s possible to have a Charlie Kirk I described, as I don’t think thoughts the opposite of your actions to that extent could be reconciled, but my comment included theoretical measurements
This might be correct if there was a left in the US for Trump to crack down on
They’re just going to crack down harder on poor people and minorities instead
Which will hopefully result in more dead fascists. Eventually something is going to happen, maybe we are at that point
We are at that point. This is it.
Trumpo will crack down on newsom, and we will be very sad.
Truly hate the “now the right will escalate its violence” takes. I do understand the impulse of being afraid of retaliation, because of course you should be. But the sentiment that keeps getting repeated is one of “oh no, we can’t do anything to stop this retaliation” instead of “violent acts are escalating as part of the class war, prepare yourselves to resist the fascist crackdown.” It’s the same current that sees the rise of fascism as something we can’t fight back against.
They retaliate. Then are retaliated against. Then are faced with the prospect of retaliating again. Until inevitably the will to retaliate is destroyed.
This is just simply how conflict proceeds and is nothing to be disturbed by.
Meanwhile one of the right’s best young mouthpieces of the last decade is now forever silenced by an early grave.
jacobin already forgor escalation after elias rodriguez did his deed. or luigi.
counterpoint: no it isnt.
Not only is their anti-moral posturing likely to turn off ordinary Americans
Ordinary Americans really shouldn’t know who Charlie Kirk is lol
I hope people look up who these media clowns are memorializing and learn that he was genuinely a hateful asshole. The 24 hour news channels were all caught off guard by the public support for Luigi.
Nah you can post whatever vile shit he said and people are still going to clutch pearls. Sad but true
Oh no, not pretext for what the fascists are already doing.
playing Hell Let Loose and one of my squadmates is named “Charlie Squirt” lol
God… even Jacobin is taking the “we better not say mean things about the right” approach.
Demsucc emphasis on succ
No!! You’re supposed to be sad when fascists get the pit! Feel bad! Feel bad! WE’RE BETTER THAN THIS!!
