In this episode, we discuss the assassination of Charlie Kirk on September 10, 2025 at 12:23pm MT on the campus of Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. We touch on Charlie’s beginnings when he co-founded Turning Point USA in 2012 at the age of 18. We reflect on the access to healthy discourse on college campuses and how it has changed since we attended college in the late 1980s - early 90s. We discuss how Charlie’s art of debate on college campuses simply started with a folding table, a chair and a sign that read “Prove Me Wrong”. We observe how the media has covered the death of Charlie Kirk fairly overall, with Brian discussing the assumed motivation behind their approach. Charlie Kirk gained power through the use of words, encouraging the youth of America to debate him on any topic. Literally, Charlie debated any topic someone brought him, even something as simple as “pancakes or waffles?”. He would encourage those who disagreed with him to come to the front of the crowd to present their topic or question to debate. Through this open discourse, Charlie’s influence on the youth of America, and even the world, grew larger than many people realize. Through communication, Charlie platformed his “opponents”, while simultaneously creating a space for his young supporters to connect and feel accepted. Nicole reads Charlie’s quote on empathy and shares her own perspective on the subject. She also reads one of his quotes discussing the Second Amendment, as well as a back and forth with an attendee regarding homosexuality and conservatism. We discuss Charlie’s outlook on diversity and unity, and touch on the murder of Iryna Zarutska. Charlie had an exceptionally strong Christian faith and there was no question that Jesus Christ was his Lord and Savior. This faith guided him in almost everything he did, and was certainly a support system as he created dialogue with everyone, from Only Fans girls to President Trump. He was a bridge between the right and left of the youth, bringing them together to use their voices, even if they were coming from opposite points of view. You don’t have to agree with everything Charlie discussed or believed in order to respect his phenomenal talent to debate anything and everything with anyone. The true tragedy of all of this is that he left behind his beautiful wife and two young children. Charlie certainly lived more life in his short 31 years than most people live in a lifetime, and we think it’s safe to assume his impact on the world is nowhere near complete.
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Chapters:
00:00:15 Intro
00:02:46 Who Was Charlie Kirk?
00:04:53 Healthy Discourse and College Campus Culture
00:13:00 Prove Me Wrong and the Art of Debate
00:17:05 Manipulating Charlie Kirk Quotes to Dehumanize Him
00:18:24 The Media Wants Charlie Kirk’s Followers
00:23:42 TMZ Reaction to Charlie Kirk Being Assassinated
00:28:45 Charlie Kirk Empathy Quote
00:36:12 Sympathy vs Empathy
00:39:27 How Empathy Can Contribute to Persistent Racism
00:43:21 Diversity vs Unity
00:52:45 Charlie Kirk Second Amendment Quote
00:59:20 School Shootings and the Murder of Iryna Zarutska
01:03:24 People Who Celebrated the Assassination of Charlie Kirk
01:12:30 Charlie Kirk Quote in Reference to Homosexuality and Conservatism
01:15:03 No Peaceful Outlet for the Liberal Left
01:28:49 The Left and Right of the Youth
01:37:07 Finding Middle Ground in America
01:41:50 The Shift Triggered by the Loss of Charlie Kirk
01:46:05 People Getting Fired from Their Jobs as a Result of Their Charlie Kirk Social Media Posts
01:51:10 Charlie Kirk Created a Place for Young Conservatives
01:54:43 The Void That Charlie Kirk Leaves Behind
02:16:00 Not a Political Episode
02:16:59 Wrap Up
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