687: Charlie Kirk & the Conflict Entrepreneurs
- Phil Vischer
- Sep 17
- 2 min read
Last week, a gunman in Utah killed Charlie Kirk on a college campus. Rather than uniting the country against political violence, Kirk’s assassination has only made divisions wider. Some on the left celebrated his death, saying he reaped what he sowed, while some on the right, including the President, are calling for retribution against all leftists. One of the few voices trying to lower the temperature has been Utah’s Republican governor, Spencer Cox, who lamented the polarizing influence of social media and the “conflict entrepreneurs who benefit from radicalizing us.” Phil offers his coffeeshop reflections on how both the right and left justify hating the other side, while Kaitlyn and Skye discuss the need for faithful leadership when all of the incentives are against it.
Holy Post Plus:
Ad-Free Version of this Episode:
0:00 - Show Starts
2:13 - Theme Song
2:35 - Sponsor - Poncho - If you’ve been looking for the perfect shirt—something breathable, fits great, feels even better, and stands out in a good way—give Poncho a try. Get $10 off your first order by using this link: https://www.ponchooutdoors.com/holypost
4:15 - Sponsor - Our Place - Go to https://www.fromourplace.com and use code HOLYPOST to get 10% off site wide on beautiful cookware!
15:41 - Tony Perkins Article on America
23:22 - There Are Monsters in Your Midst, Too
29:15- Sponsor - Policy Genius - Secure your family’s tomorrow so you have peace of mind today. Go to https://www.policygenius.com/HOLYPOST to find the right life insurance for you
30:29 - Sponsor - BetterHelp - This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at https://www.betterhelp.com/HOLYPOST and get 10% off your first month!
31:47 - Sponsor - AG1 - Heavily researched, thoroughly purity-tested, and filled with stuff you need. Get the AG1 welcome pack when you order from https://www.drinkag1.com/HOLYPOST
33:03 - The Increasing Acceptance of Political Violence
41:06 - Platforms of Hate
59:41 - End Credits
Links Mentioned in News Segment:
Tony Perkin’s Article on Charlie Kirk:
David French’s Article:
Other Resources:
Holy Post website: https://www.holypost.com/
Holy Post Plus: www.holypost.com/plus
Holy Post Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/holypost
Holy Post Merch Store: https://www.holypost.com/shop
The Holy Post is supported by our listeners. We may earn affiliate commissions through links listed here. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
Ironically I listened to Rush Limbaugh and Veggie Tales growing up as we drove to Colorado Springs to visit the real Adventures in Odyssey soda shoppe!
Another point relates to the statistics Skye quoted on people saying they might favor violence in political contexts (where we would hope Christians would give a "no" answer).
I wonder if there was variation in how people answering the questions were thinking of "violence." It has become common on the left in recent years to speak of violence not only as physical violence inflicted on people, but with a much broader definition that would include "violence" inflicted by being subjected to unjust systems or hateful words.
I might speculate that for most of those on the right, "violence" in the question would be interpreted primarily as picking up a gun and using it, while for at least some of the…
On the whole, I appreciated the discussion in this episode. Two points, though, that I felt were missed or obscured.
One, on the subject of "conflict entrepreneurs," I kept waiting for the HPers to state the obvious, but nobody did; Kirk WAS a conflict entrepreneur. It was very much his brand to stir up resentment and anger toward the left (or anyone left of himself, really). If the victim had been any other conservative figure, he would have been right in there dishing it up with the worst of them. Two, the HPers are sensitive to criticism of "both-sidesism," and I appreciate their commitment to stick to principle and to resist the temptation to simply become a cheer squad …
Interesting how blame is assigned to the other side immediately by the conflict entrepeneurs even without evidence. The Kirk assassination was blamed on the "left" immediately, before the killer was identified and when for a while it looked possible (turned out not to be the case) that he was angry because Kirk was not far enough to the right. Matt Walsh said the left "tried to kill our President" when the kid in Butler PA was not on the left, just a kid who wanted to be a famous assassin and was also researching Biden as a target.
A thing that is striking to me is how merely pointing out (while condemning murder) that in life Charlie Kirk fomented hate…
In episode 687 re: Charlie Kirk shooting Skye was citing various shooting incidents and included the CDC shooting as one that did not lead to any deaths. This is incorrect. Officer David Rose of the DeKalb County (GA) Police Dept. was shot and died in the line of duty. Please correct this mistake in your next broadcast and help those of us in the Atlanta area express gratitude for his sacrifice and condolences for his family and community.