They say that a time of crisis truly shows who people are. 

And in the last week, there have been many different reactions to the slaying of Charlie Kirk. 

But no matter their wording, they all fall into three basic categories.

And the logic behind the last these categories tells us exactly why we are in the state we are in today. 

THE RESPONSE 

On the Right, there has been genuine fear…

“If people are celebrating the killing of a guy who held the same beliefs as me, then that means they’d celebrate the killing of me!” 

On the Left, there has either been elation…

“Charlie had it coming! Karma is a b****!” 

Or a denial and quick pivot to political talking points…

“While I don’t support the killing of Charlie, everything the Right has done is far worse than this killing!” 

And then there is “Middle of the Road Crew”…

“Most people are in the Middle! They just want to be left alone! 

“But a small number Left and Right are being radical and billionaire fat cats are using them to divide us and pit us against each other! 

“We have a mental health crisis in this country! 

“We need to have more dialogue!”

SECRET PREMISES  

At first glance, it seems like the “Middle of the Road” talking points make a lot of sense. 

They look like the simplest, most rational, and most American of all the talking points to comprehend.

Quite simply, they look right. 

However, they are built on a number of secret premises hidden to the naked eye.

And these premises are sick, insidious, and driving all the problems in our Country today. 

So just what do we mean by Middle of the Road? 

WORK & CONSUME

Well, Middle of the Road people only do two things…work and consume. 

The reason that they work so thanklessly is so that they can pay to consume so passively. 

The passive consumption is the big pay off for the thankless toil, because the passive consumption is the only value they hold. 

The Men passively consume Professional Sports…which is just Reality TV for Men.

The Women passively consume actual Reality TV…or, if they consider themselves to be “refined”, the Hallmark Channel. 

Both do this while consuming massive quantities of booze…

Your average joes consume beer, your edgier joes consume whiskey.

Your average janes consume wine, your edgier janes consume vodka. 

The edgier of all of them consume weed, and the edgier still consume magic mushrooms. 

And the Goal of the Middle of the Road people is to actively expand this passive consumption at all costs. 

PAIN & PLEASURE 

It is important to note this passive consumption is built purely upon sensory pleasure. 

And in order to actively expand this sensory pleasure, you have to avoid any kind of pain at all costs.

Any kind of pain…whether sensory or spiritual…is seen as the devil to be itself. You don’t want to touch it with a ten foot pole. 

That’s because if you’re in any kind of pain, you can’t enjoy your sensory pleasure…which is the only thing that you value most. 

So to achieve their goal of actively expanding passive consumption at all costs, the Middle of the Road crew has to minimize any kind of pain as much as possible.

And any kind of pain they can’t eliminate is used as a justification for even more passive consumption to unseen heights. 

Usually, that unavoidable pain comes in the form of having to work thanklessly to be able to afford the passive consumption of sensory pleasure. 

The passive consumption is the blessed pay off for the unutterable curse of thankless toil. 

WHAT IS DEEMED RADICAL  

Note that this pleasure is coming solely from the senses…there is nothing spiritual about it.

That is because what is spiritual is deemed as radical…and what is sensory is not. 

Why? 

Because while the sensory merely demands passive consumption, the spiritual demands active creation…and subsequent, same-time destruction.  

And say what you will, both the Left and the Right are spiritual.

ONE IMPORTANT POINT

Now the Left and the Right have different spiritualities. These different spiritualities have different goals. They are ultimately incompatible. 

But fundamentally, they both share one important point that differs them from the Middle of the Road: 

They are both active and creating…and subsequently destroying at the same-time. 

When we say that “the radicals on the Left and Right are pitting us against each other!”, what we are really saying is: 

“The Left and Right are calling us to lay down our sensory pleasure and join one or the other competing spiritualities…

“And in choosing one of the two spiritualities, we would have to actively create and actively destroy at the same time.” 

WHAT IS TRULY TABOO 

Because spirituality is active, that means that it demands creation and subsequent same-time destruction. And that is why it is seen as radical. 

It is seen as radical because active destruction cannot be divorced from active creation…and this together is the very essence of the active. 

The problem is: there is nothing seen as more taboo today by Middle of the Road people than destruction of any kind. 

And so, passive consumption is seen as the way to go, because it does not destroy and subsequently harm anybody or anything!

But that’s a lie

It destroys your soul.

The proof?

“We have a mental health problem in this country.” 

DID YOU EVER STOP AND THINK? 

How in the world do you think you are going to get mentally healthy?

By passively consuming more and more sensory pleasures at a faster rate than you already are?

Did you ever stop and think that maybe this is what is causing the Mental Health problem everyone loves to speak of?

Did you ever stop and notice that the more sensory pleasure we passively consume, the bigger the Mental Health Problem gets? 

Did it ever cross your mind that maybe your solution is actually causing the problem that we speak of? 

And why does no one ever have a dialogue about that?

PEACE & SAFETY  

While the Middle of the Road seems kind, loving, and safe, it is the ultimate path of destruction. 

It is best described in the words of St. Paul in 1st Thessalonians 5:3, NKJV…

“For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.” 

There is no hope in this path. 

To escape its destruction, you must choose a spirituality for yourself. 

THE CENTRAL PRINCIPLE   

Choosing a spirituality doesn’t mean that you don’t get to have any fun anymore, or live in a cave and deny any kind of pleasure. 

In fact, there are spiritual pleasures bought at the price of both sensory and spiritual pain, and there are spiritual pleasures that make sensory pleasures even more meaningful and fun. 

I think Julius Evola said it best when he defined what it means in his book, The Doctrine of Awakening. 

He explained that spirituality is “placing all the energies of the human being under the control of a central principle.”[1]

That central principle is what you use to determine your spiritual activity to replace your passive consumption.

That central principle you choose is what determines what you actively create, and actively destroy. 

And that’s just it.

It’s your choice.

But when you choose, the Middle of the Road is far behind you. 

As Jesus Himself said in Matthew 7:13-14, NKJV:

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.

“Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”

And if you’re in the Middle of the Road?

Well, you’re just walking right down the center of that broad way.

Sincerely,

Richard Barrett

09-18-2025

Written at 5:53 PM, somewhere in the USA…

Sources Cited 

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[1] “The Doctrine of Awakening Quotes”. Goodreads.com. https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/413361-la-dottrina-del-risveglio.