Good question, although I suppose there are bigger things to worry about
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Oh, C’mon, man
PJ Media: Why Is the Right Making Kyle Rittenhouse a Celebrity?
Margolis has, so far as I’m concerned, impeccable right-wing nut job credentials, like me, and he doesn’t diminish them by questioning this faux beatification [I’m sure FWIW’s official New Mexican mackerel snapper will point out that beatification is reserved for the dead, but whatever; I’m playing the Red Queen card on this one). The silly teenager should go home and stay there for a while.
This weekend, Turning Point USA will be hosting AmericaFest 2021 in Phoenix, Ariz. ….
Dubbed the “biggest freedom party of the year” and the “biggest event in the conservative movement,” this brand new annual event sounds like a lot of fun. It will feature such distinguished conservative speakers as Charlie Kirk, Tucker Carlson, Kayleigh McEnany, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Don Trump Jr., Dennis Prager, and others.
On Tuesday, TPUSA announced a new speaker had just been confirmed to speak at America Fest 2021: Kyle Rittenhouse.
Seriously? Kyle Rittenhouse? Are we seriously seeing him become a celebrity of the right? While I’m glad he was found not guilty, I see little sense in him making the rounds on the conservative movement circuit. Even though Rittenhouse acted in self-defense, what he went through was still a traumatic experience, and he should be in therapy, not hobnobbing with conservative VIPs and speaking to large crowds like a celebrity or a hero.
PJM’s Megan Fox said last month, “Kyle, if you’re reading this, take a vacation and focus on school and let your mom handle this. Be a kid and leave this far behind you.” I guess he’s chosen to go the other route.
His trial indeed brought the issue of gun rights and self-defense to the front pages, but does that mean we need to lionize him? I don’t think so. Instead, his primary focus should be getting back to his normal life the best he can, not exploiting his fifteen minutes of fame. And shame on those enabling his exploitation.
… After having his life-altering trial, he doesn’t need to be making appearances at conservative conventions like a rockstar. It just feels wrong.
He shouldn’t become the Greta Thunberg of the right. Conservatives rightly criticized Thunberg’s handlers for making her a celebrity face of the radical environmentalist movement. Is flying Kyle Rittenhouse around the country to speak at conventions any different? What does he have to say about conservativism? Why should we care? He’s just a teenager. I don’t begrudge him the occasional media interview to discuss his trial and what happened, but what’s he going to talk about at AmericaFest?
Conservatives can celebrate Kyle’s verdict without elevating Kyle to celebrity status.
