...as I don't really spend a lot of time or thought on political punditry (just straight news from multiple sources, thanks). So I had to look into his actual statements...not to form an opinion on the fact of his assassination (horrible), but to decide if the loss of his voice mattered beyond that dreadful fact. I am disinclined to be receptive to right-wing rhetoric...but I'm even more disinclined to reject objective analysis.

Unsurprisingly, the first round of informal research showed a mix of statements both admirable and problematic. This just in: people are complicated. Charlie Kirk was surely no different in that respect.

Mind you, this is without having yet vetted any of the quotes, at least not beyond "pre-vetting" by trying to be at least somewhat selective in the sites I searched. I may or may not look deeper. Honestly, the matter of what sort of person Kirk was is of far less interest to me than the ramifications of his assassination on our democratic society. Murder as a tool of political conflict cannot be condoned.