Reminder, people are complicated 👨‍👨‍👦

There are those who were certainly not happy that I dare to praise some of Charlie Kirk’s positions on my blog the other day – noting his strong defense of the first and second amendments. They noted his contradictory stands – namely his suggestions that liberal professors be black listed, his racist remarks, his advocacy against climate action. All valid things to consider when considering one’s legacy.

I don’t think there is anyone out there who is completely agreeable. If such people exist, they only exist in one’s mind – a deeper examination would show all people at one level are deeply flawed. Kirk was a conservative, his views were very much of that orthodoxy. But not all conservative views are bad – they should viewed in context and weighted against the pros and cons of each position.

And when a man dies, it’s not unreasonable to highlight the good he has done for society – even if it’s an incomplete picture of who the man was. It’s not to say the record shouldn’t eventually be corrected for posterity but in the immediate time of loss it makes sense to be respectful and highlight the good and deemphasize the problematic in the immediate loss of the life.