Charlie Kirk shooting: Simplicity KiwiSaver boss Sam Stubbs says freedom of speech being lost
Outspoken Kiwi businessman Sam Stubbs, who received flak for comments on Charlie Kirk, says the US conservative’s opinions made him angry and he wanted to express that.
Stubbs, co-founder and director of KiwiSaver provider Simplicity, told Ryan Bridge on Herald NOW he was sad Kirk had died, “but we’ve got to live in a world where you’re able to express your views and you have freedom of expression”.
He then said the US was losing freedom of speech and compared it to 1930s Germany.
Stubbs said on social media on Saturday: “We should mourn the violence, but not the man. And we certainly cannot eulogise a racist, sexist and bigot.”
Let’s be clear.
In the West, we whakapapa to an anglo-saxon democratic tradition with values that date back to the Magna Carter. Over those 1000 years those values have been shaped by Catholic, Protestant, Whig and Tory protagonists to create sacrosanct principles that are the bedrock upon which we build our democracy.
The rule of law, an independent judiciary, freedom and liberty of the individual, contract law, no taxation without representation and Free Speech.
Whatever you think of Charlie Kirk and his incendiary rhetoric, Free Speech is a paramount value that can not be attacked in the despicable manner of his assassination.
I will not celebrate the death of Charlie Kirk, because that is ghoulish and the principle of free speech is too important, but equally – I’m not going to pander to martyring him as a free speech hero either – he was protected by Free Speech, he wasn’t a champion of it!
Charlie Kirk was a Christofascist Hate Grifter who would go to Colleges and beat up on kids intellectually weaker than him with hard right rhetoric designed to cause offence!
Now he is protected by free speech for that inflammatory language, but martyring him as some sort of religious saint only promotes the rhetoric he used, it doesn’t stand for the principles of free speech.
The game being played by MAGA now is to martyr Kirk and weaponise free speech as a cudgel to silence dissent, as we are seeing with Jimmy Kimmel.
Sam Stubbs was 100% right.
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Well he is being eulogised…..by racist sexist bigots. Either that or people watch absolute crap like sky news Australia without doing their own looking around. The circus around the investigation into Kirk’s death is just a con job. Its just bizarre that unlike the 30’s Zionists have a seat at the table
Example A of someone who has not watched more than a 30 second Tik Tok video and who trusts what the media tell him.
This assassination of Charlie Kirk favors the far-right in nations like the US, UK, NZ, AUS, CAN, FRA, GER, ISR etc. all European countries and colonies wonder why?
Sam Stubbs is 100% right but business pragmatism required him to protect his investors and clients so he was forced to apologise.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/360824731/simplicity-boss-apologises-after-backlash-charlie-kirk-post
Neither Charlie Kirk nor Sam Stubbs have freedom of speech.
So, the Institute of Israel was investing in Sam Stubbs?
That could be the case but I just see from the last 10 years people no longer have the freedom to state their personal view without them being “held to account” and receive some kind of schooling retribution by an employer, customer, investor, colleague, supplier, internet mob.
Nz needs to call out the current wave of hatred for people who dont fit the mold of shrinking group who think they are supreme because they are white christians .Just look at the war being waged against Te REO and the Treaty in our schools along with the white washing of our history .
The good thing is that the younger generations have a more open mind than the over 40s here in NZ .So long term all of this hate will be kicked to the trash where it belongs .
MAGA is a tool, Charlie Kirk was a (well paid) tool. Their job is/was to divide the people, therefore undermine the ability of the people to push back against the powerful – against ruling class interests. Today’s genocide, today’s wars, all serve ruling class interests. These interests and the people behind them all need protecting…this issue and its undermining of free speech and divisiveness, helps do just that.
Hatred and abuse are the issues. Players and bloggers on the right and left are as guilty as each other. The irony of either – including Martyn –
passing judgment on the offensive Kirk or his misguided murderer should be lost on no one. They are all part of the same issue. Bradbury is an abusive bully. That is the example he sets. Him and those like him cultivate and ultimately breed violent haters. Just like right wing haters do the same. One can see it in many of the comments on this blog – which should be called the Daily Bully. It’s very sad.
You sanctimonious little prick Sammy, we get you are a Zionist quisling, and it’s so funny you shit on Bomber, but aren’t you the one who always quotes him when it suits you? He’s not the problem – you are. Fuck off clown
You are such a coward and a bully to keep deleting my replies
Sammy – Martyn Bradbury here – the editor of TDB. The mods have directed me to your continuous whining, so allow me to spend 30 seconds on you, because after that, I don’t intend to spend 1 more second thinking about you ever again. You constantly quote me saying “I support the people of Palestine AND Israel’, you use that quote to further your Zionist lies. You know it, I know it and the Mods know it because they’ve seen you attempt it numerous times. Now fuck off you smarmy little Zionist apologist. The Mods aren’t interested in constantly cleaning up after you and I have zero interest in having a Zionist apologist twist my words into justifying whatever bullshit you are promoting daily. Goodbye, I have zero interest in wasting any more time on you.
I think we should not be giving this man a platform who cares what he thinks he is not one of us he does not live in our country, and we don’t need imported shit here we need to clean our own shit up. I had never heard of him until now and personally I am not interested.
I think we should not be giving this man a platform who cares what he thinks he is not one of us he does not live in our country, and we don’t need imported shit here we need to clean our own shit up. I had never heard of him until now and personally I am not interested. People get shot in America all the time this is no different they even shoot children in schools so what do you expect with their gun culture and amendment saying they have a right to bear arms.