Charlie Kirk's Killing and Our Poisonous Internet

[pat_k]

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The only thing that can be said conclusively about Mr. Robinson, at this moment, is that he was a chronically online, white American male.
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Today’s internet for most Americans, but especially for those like Mr. Robinson, who came of age on social and streaming platforms, is an immeasurably potent vibes machine. One powered by a complex fuel of negative emotions — hatred, rage, hopelessness, nihilism, grievance, cynicism, paranoia, discontent and addiction. It’s a machine more than capable of constructing false realities and corroding our lived experiences.

Intent, meaning and sincerity are near-valueless concepts in this realm, while things like knowledge, understanding and good faith — critical elements to any healthy public sphere — have been gradually distorted beyond the point of recognition, or abandoned completely.
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The combative and rage-bait style that Mr. Kirk pioneered has become the dominant mode for the right. And it’s probably more accurate to say this is how many young Americans as a whole exist on the internet today, trolling and provoking anyone who crosses their paths.
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That his killer might have been in pursuit of a similar moment of viral conflict is a grim encapsulation of the nightmare cesspit we’ve entered.

The internet machine is now operating out in the open, in front of everyone’s eyes, and as long as that continues unchecked, our ability to make meaning of the world will continue to deteriorate. Empathy, as a human quality, will be snuffed out for those who are chronically online. The memes, and the memetic violence, will continue to proliferate.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/14/opinion/charlie-kirk-shooting-internet.html?unlocked_article_code=1.mE8.d5PF.iLN9T5JrVT-f&smid=url-share