Within the last two weeks, the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk and the targeted shooting of a Dallas Immigration and Customs Enforcement office have confirmed a grim reality. The so-called “fringe” left is not fringe at all, but a fully entrenched, violent, mainstream force.
More concerning, the once near-universal belief that violence is never an acceptable response to speech is quickly eroding, particularly among younger generations.
The reaction to Kirk’s murder made this abundantly clear.
Across social media and in sympathetic corners of the corporate press, voices rushed not to condemn the violence but to rationalize it. Some, like popular streamer Destiny, even celebrated it, suggesting that conservatives bring such attacks upon themselves, adding that they need “to be afraid of getting killed when they go to events.”
Former MSNBC analyst Matthew Dowd (he was fired for his comments) captured this mindset when he said immediately after Kirk’s shooting: “Hateful thoughts lead to hateful words, which then lead to hateful actions. You can’t stop with these sort of awful thoughts you have, saying these awful words, and then not expect awful actions to take place. And that’s the unfortunate environment we are in.”
In other words, the violence itself is treated as inevitable and, by extension, justified.
Hellbound and Down 