Categories anti maga charlie kirk did charlie kirk really say that?

No one hates freedom more than MAGA!

What better day than America’s 250th birthday to resurrect my series, “Did Charlie Kirk REALLY Say That?”

And this time, we’re doing it uncensored.

No algorithm constraints. No delicately rearranging words because some social media platform might decide that quoting a prominent conservative’s own public statements is more objectionable than the statements themselves. No squeezing years of documented extremism into whatever sanitized little box Meta considers advertiser friendly.

We’re going straight to the receipts.

Which feels especially appropriate today, considering the way MAGA has worked to turn Charlie Kirk into a martyr for American values – someone who, according to his admirers, should be here to witness the United States celebrate 250 years of existence.

So let’s take a look at the values he actually promoted. Oh boy. The first one’s a doozy.

The Question

Did Charlie Kirk REALLY endorse allowing drivers to run over political protesters – potentially killing them – and say they should face no legal consequences for doing so?

The Answer

Yes. Explicitly.

This is not a matter of interpreting some vague remark in the least charitable way possible. Charlie Kirk wrote it himself:

There it is.

Not implied. Not hinted at. Not taken out of context.

Charlie Kirk said that if a driver “has had enough” and “has to run you over” to get somewhere, that driver should face no penalties.

Pause on that for a moment.

No penalties. Charlie Kirk (husband, father, and “Christian”) said people should have the right to murder peaceful protesters for minor inconveniences. I wasn’t aware that Jesus endorsed consequence free murder because you’re in a hurry to get to Applebees, but maybe they are reading a different Bible than I did? In their version, Jesus sees the poor and says, “Have they tried not being poor?” He encounters the hungry and tells them to get a job. He heals the sick only after checking whether they have insurance. And when protesters block the road, he climbs into a Dodge Ram and says: “No penalties.”

Very moving stuff. Really captures the spirit of Christ.

And the really revealing part is the way Kirk frames it:

“Chaos vs order.”

“We side with order.”

What kind of “law and order” demands a year in jail for “blocking traffic” (even though the protest he was talking about was planned and lawful), but no punishment at all for driving a multi-ton vehicle into a human being?

That contradiction is not incidental. It is the entire point.

This is the authoritarian trick in its purest form: redefine dissent as chaos, redefine violence against dissenters as order, and then act shocked when people notice what you actually said. It’s as old as time, and as rotten as Donald Trump’s stench.

Because once you strip away everything else, that is what remains:

A prominent conservative commentator publicly argued that political protesters should face prison for obstructing traffic, while people who run and potentially murder protesters over should face nothing.

In the immortal words of Tony Stark:

Thought we wouldn’t notice. But we did.

In the MAGA-Verse, There Are Only Two Options

See, in the MAGA-verse, there are ultimately only two acceptable choices:

Submit, or die.

There is no meaningful world, in this ideology, where the opposition is treated as a legitimate part of democratic society. There is no genuine commitment to sitting down at the table and engaging the other side in good faith, despite what Mr. Kirk so often wanted audiences to believe.

Because MAGA does not want a seat at the table.

They want everyone to accept the boot on their neck. Because they have accepted it, and think everyone else should, too.

That is the part people keep missing.

A seat at the table implies compromise. It implies that other people are allowed to exist, speak, vote, protest, organize, and hold values you despise without forfeiting their place in the country.

MAGA does not want that.

They want submission.

That is why one of their favorite responses to criticism is some variation of, “If you don’t love America, leave.”

Notice the options there.

Not: Let’s talk about what you think is wrong.

Not: Maybe your criticism has merit. Perhaps we can compromise.

Not even: I think you’re completely wrong, but you still have a right to say it.

No.

Love the country exactly as we define loving it, or get out.

Submit, or leave.

Stay quiet, or be punished.

Accept their version of America, or be treated as “the enemy within”. (We’ll stop calling you Nazis when you stop using Nazi ideology, by the way.)

And that is why Charlie Kirk’s statement fits so neatly into the larger MAGA worldview. Protesters do not merely disagree. They become “chaos.” Their disruption becomes illegitimate by definition. Their rights become conditional. And violence against them can then be repackaged as the restoration of “order.”

Nothing offends MAGA more than when someone has the nerve to not immediately submit.

And don’t think the hypocrisy is lost on me. When protesters Charlie Kirk despised blocked a roadway, he argued that they should face a year in jail –  and that anyone who ran them over should walk away without penalty.

But when the American right produced the little national embarrassment known as January 6, suddenly we were treated to years of excuses, revisionism, martyrdom narratives, and endless whining about political persecution.

Funny how that works.

Block a road for a cause MAGA hates, and apparently you surrender your right not to be crushed beneath a vehicle.

Storm the U.S. Capitol because your cult leader lost an election, and somehow we’re expected to spend the next several years tenderly examining your grievances. How about no, and go fuck yourself?

So, Did Charlie Kirk REALLY Say That?

Yes.

He really did.

And this is exactly why I wanted to bring this series back.

Because public memory is remarkably easy to sanitize, especially after someone becomes politically useful as a symbol. The cruelty becomes “provocative commentary.” The extremism becomes “passion.” Statements people made openly, proudly, and voluntarily are quietly pushed aside in favour of a much more flattering mythology.

But screenshots exist.

Archives exist.

Receipts exist.

And Charlie Kirk left plenty of them.

Verdict: TRUE.

Charlie Kirk really did publicly endorse running over protesters whose apparent threat to public safety consisted of …  peacefully protesting, and causing people momentary delays.

Happy 250th birthday, America.

If one of your “values” is that it’s okay to murder someone with your car for inconveniencing you, you won’t be around much longer.

Categories anti maga music

It’s a Sin

Some people get very weird when you tell them that values affect what you support.

When MAGA does it, of course, it’s apparently fine. When they boycott a beer, an actor, a candy mascot, or an entire movie because something had the audacity to be “woke,” we’re all supposed to accept it without question.

But when the rest of us say, “Actually, I prefer supporting people whose beliefs don’t make my skin crawl,” suddenly we’re being dramatic.

Let me tell you something.

I love Ghost. I know. Shocker.

There are a lot of reasons why I love Ghost. I love the music. I love the theatrics. The lore is interesting, but I can take or leave it. Tobias Forge also seems like a genuinely cool, thoughtful person. He has inspired me a lot in my own journey as a content creator and in my own artistic projects.

Tobias is also very vocally anti-Trump. And, as you may have noticed, so am I.

This is where MAGA gets it very wrong, because they think we are as shallow as they are.  Is Tobias being anti Trump the only reason I like him? No. I liked Ghost long before I knew much about his politics. But does it help?

Oh, absolutely. But it doesn’t necessarily mean I am bound to like him.

Someone can agree with me on every major issue and still make music I do not want to listen to, movies I do not want to watch, books I do not want to read, or content I do not find interesting. Political agreement is not a substitute for talent. It is not a substitute for taste. It is not a magic spell that makes me suddenly enjoy something I do not enjoy.

But politics can absolutely change how I feel about supporting someone. Because now, it’s not just politics. It’s a question of morality. For better or worse, your political stance tells me a lot about you. And that will for sure affect where my money goes.

Some people would ask why that matters. What do someone’s values have to do with their art?

Honestly, why shouldn’t it matter?

People love to make the disingenuous argument that MAGA supporters are being cut out of people’s lives over simple “political differences.” But there is a very big difference between “this person does not agree with me politically” and “this person supports things I find genuinely abhorrent.”

At a certain point, this stops being a normal political divide. It’s a question of morality vs. cruel and evil.

There is MAGA, and there is basic decency. They are not the same. You cannot build your politics around cruelty and then act offended when people notice.

If someone supports cruelty toward immigrants, attacks on LGBTQ+ people, forced birth, book bans, authoritarian power grabs, conspiracy theories, white grievance politics, and the cultish worship of Donald Trump, I am not obligated to treat that like a quirky difference of opinion. And honestly? Not all opinions are welcome. If your opinion is rooted in cruelty, I don’t have to act like it’s valid or worth hearing.

That is not “we disagree on policy.”

That is “we do not share the same moral universe.”

And yes, that absolutely matters.

I have stopped supporting people over this. I have stopped listening to bands, watching actors, buying products, and giving my attention to people once I found out their values were not just different from mine, but actively opposed to the kind of world I want to live in.

When I found out Koichi Fukuda from Static-X was a Trump supporter, I made the difficult decision that I did not want to keep supporting Static-X with my time, money, and attention.

Was that fun?

No. Of course not.

I liked Static-X. I had history with that music. I did not wake up one day saying “You know what sounds fun? Cutting out something from my life”.

I’m not going to pretend something does not bother me just because I used to like the songs. I am not going to shrug and say, “Well, the riffs are good,” as if that magically erases what my support is helping sustain. I saw Static-X in 2023, and sadly that’s going to be the last time I see them. Because the truth is, the money I spend on concert tickets is lining the pockets of a person who has disgusting views. And I’m not okay with that, nostalgia be damned.

That is the part people love to ignore when they accuse you of being “dramatic” or “too political.” They act like walking away from something you liked is some gleeful little power trip, when most of the time it … just sucks.

That is the choice people keep pretending we are not allowed to make. I can appreciate what something meant to me once and still decide I do not want to carry it forward with me. Or even better: find a band I like even more that also happens to align with my values.

And before someone asks: would I still support Ghost if Tobias Forge turned out to be a right-wing nut?

Nope.

That is the part people like to pretend is irrational.

It is not.

Like everyone else, I only have a finite number of hours in the day. I only have so much money, attention, energy, and goodwill to give. I do not want to spend any of it helping people who support cruelty, authoritarianism, bigotry, or the cultish worship of men like Trump.

MAGA understands this perfectly well when they are the ones doing it. They have no problem supporting people who align with their weird, cruel, authoritarian little worldview. For all their bluster about “facts don’t care about your feelings,” they become suddenly, violently emotional the second someone uses their platform to criticize their cult leader.

So why are the rest of us supposed to pretend values do not matter?

They clearly do.

Do you want your money going to people who support things you oppose? Do you want your clicks, streams, attention, and enthusiasm helping people whose beliefs make the world worse?

I don’t.

When I buy a concert ticket, I am not just buying two hours in a venue. I am helping make the next tour possible. When I buy merch, I am not just buying a shirt. I am putting my money behind the thing. When I recommend an artist to other people, I am lending them a little piece of my own credibility.

That matters to me.

And I am not going to pretend it doesn’t.

So yes, when someone is openly on the right side of history: against cruelty, against authoritarianism, against the miserable anti-woke grievance machine … it makes me more likely to support them.

Buying merch. Buying concert tickets. Watching their movies. Streaming their music. Buying their products. Recommending them to other people.

There might be MAGA reading this thinking, “Well, fine. I’m going to support people who believe in MAGA values even harder, just to spite you.”

God, I hope you do.

Please. Spend every penny you have on the next Donald Trump grift, the next aggressively horrible Morgan Wallen album, the next Kid Rock booze cruise. Buy the commemorative coins. Buy the ugly shoes. Buy the red hats. Buy the Bible with Trump’s name slapped on it. Buy tickets to see whatever washed-up celebrity is currently yelling about “freedom” at a 10k a plate dinner at Mar-a-Lago.

That will show us.

Yep, I encourage it! Support whoever you want. Spend your money wherever you want. Stream whatever makes your little flag fetishizing heart happy.

But don’t get in your feelings when the rest of us do the same. When we turn away from artists that support hateful things. When we choose not to spend our time, money, and attention on people who are actively making the world worse.

You are allowed to support people who reflect your worldview.

I am allowed to find that worldview repulsive, and look elsewhere.

Categories welcome

Welcome to Told You So

Welcome to Told You So, the place where my long-form thoughts live.

I wanted a place to write that felt like mine again. Not a feed. Not a platform constantly nudging me toward subscriptions, algorithms, engagement tricks, or whatever new trending thing is out there. Just a blog. A real one. On my own domain, where I can post what I want, how I want, when I want. No obligations. No pressure. No suppression.

I considered Substack, but the subscription model has never really appealed to me, especially when I already have my own little patch of internet sitting here, waiting to be used.

So here we are.

Told You So is for political snark, music thoughts, cat posts, complaints, little obsessions, big opinions, and anything else that needs more room than a social media post can give it.

If you’d like, you can head to the sidebar and sign up for a monthly newsletter with recent posts, things I’m digging in politics and music, and probably a few guest appearances from a cat or two to brighten up your month. Or you can just check in whenever you feel like it. We’re cool either way.

Everything here is free, and it’s staying that way. No paywalls. No locked posts. No weird little velvet rope between me and you. If you want to support me, I’ll appreciate it deeply, but access to my writing will never depend on it.

Mostly, I just wanted a place to think out loud again.

Welcome in.