Response to Dowd’s MSNBC Comments
I’ve spent the last few days listening to Charlie Kirk’s debates—not soundbites, not headlines, but full conversations.
And I’ll say this plainly: calling him “divisive” is a lazy label.
It’s what people reach for when they’re uncomfortable with disagreement. But disagreement is the bedrock of democracy. It’s how we sharpen ideas, not silence them.
The Comment by Dowd, MSNBC Reporter
He’s been one of the most divisive, especially divisive younger figures in this, who is constantly sort of pushing this sort of hate speech or sort of aimed at certain groups. And I always go back to, hateful thoughts lead to hateful words, which then lead to hateful actions. And I think that is the environment we are in. You can’t stop with these sort of awful thoughts you have and then saying these awful words and not expect awful actions to take place. And that’s the unfortunate environment we are in.
- Matthew Dowd, former MSNBC politcal analysis
Source: Hollywood Reporter
Dowd’s comment—“hateful thoughts lead to hateful words, which then lead to hateful actions”—is a dangerous oversimplification.
It assumes intent.
It assumes causality.
And it assumes that speech, even provocative speech, is inherently violent. That’s not just wrong—it’s authoritarian.
“Divisive” It’s a name people reach for when they’re uncomfortable with disagreement.
I lean right on most political issues, but I’m fiercely protective of individual rights. That includes the right to speak freely, even if what’s said makes people squirm.
Kirk challenges ideas.
He provokes thought. That’s not hate—it’s discourse. And if we start punishing people for being “divisive,” we’re not protecting society—we’re protecting fragility.
As someone who spends her life in the wild—where nature doesn’t coddle, and truth doesn’t bend—I find this kind of reaction from MSNBC cowardly.
Dowd didn’t just mischaracterize Kirk; he implied that words justify violence.
That’s a slippery slope, and it’s one we should all be wary of.
Charlie Kirk wasn’t owed violence. He was owed the same thing every American is: the right to speak, to challenge, and to be heard without fear.
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