Hello, Planet. I apologize for our recent absence.
You may have noticed that we’ve been away for a few weeks. This is entirely my fault. The Daily Planet is a startup. I launched this digital enterprise in 2014 and have been diligently working to establish it as a self-sufficient media platform for over a decade. It’s been a long journey, and I’ve been gradually refining this brand while also living my life.
However, burnout has become a real issue for me, and I’ve been experiencing it more frequently this past year. My struggles with mental health are well-known, and I’ve written numerous editorials detailing my journey. The past few weeks have been particularly challenging for my anxiety and depression, and I felt the need to take a step back. Unfortunately, the Daily Planet is not in a position to allow me that luxury without notice.
There have been many factors contributing to my distress in these past weeks. The Minneapolis shootings, the death of Charlie Kirk, the political mudslinging, and the ongoing conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine have all taken a toll on me. I’ve felt so powerless. I needed to take a breather and recharge, and I needed to focus on my physical health as well. A constant stream of negativity from my community, my country, and the world had me losing hope. People are more divided than ever, and I wanted nothing more than to just talk to my mother, but she was gone.
Day after sleepless day led me to wanting to rest for life. To be perfectly candid, there was a time just this past week when I was tempted to take one last step off my balcony and end my distress for myself. But then I looked down at my wide-eyed dog, into my apartment at pictures of my family, and out at the city I’ve grown to love even more than I had before.
I leaned on the plant-covered rail and quietly cried, then I walked back into my home and watched some videos of Lois Lane. What would my hero do? How would she cope? I told myself that even she felt overwhelmed at times, which reminded me that everyone has been feeling that way. I went to church this weekend and watched as the pastors I worked with taught about love. A certain part of their teachings talked about love, compassion, and forgiveness. Then it hit me.
Now, before we proceed, I want to remind readers that the Daily Planet strives to publish facts when it comes to news. Any blatant bias is surgically and meticulously removed from works that we make or receive before publication. In contrast to our news section, we hold great honor in allowing the world a chance to speak their minds and let their opinions be heard in our “Voices” category. This editorial is an opinion piece penned by yours truly, not that of the Daily Planet brand as a whole.
So, let’s move on with a little childhood context, shall we?
For those who don’t know, I was raised by my grandparents on a hobby farm in rural Northern Minnesota in the countryside of Hibbing. My grandparents were complicated people who enjoyed their traditional way of life but learned to adapt to changes around them. For instance, my grandmother was so understanding of my sexuality because her older brother was gay as well. She still voted for Donald Trump in 2016, though… but I digress. My parental figures were very patriotic people. They erected an American flag in our yard after 9/11, decorated our homestead with red, white, and blue paraphernalia, and always stayed well-informed on current political events.
My grandmother also took us to church almost every Sunday, trying to show us how our creator loved us. Unfortunately for my gay ass, I received some mixed signals. My grandparents also instilled some conservative values into my two sisters and me growing up, but they also taught us one important lesson that I feel people are missing today. And that’s how to be empathetic to every single human on this earth. Their lessons taught me to love my neighbor and my country, so I did.
Let’s fast forward to the present, where I now identify as a Democrat. Earlier this summer, I faced a difficult time when Minnesota was shaken by the tragic assassination of Democratic Representative Melissa Hortman, along with her husband and dog. Throughout the year, I have grappled with the violence occurring overseas and have attempted to understand how such blatant disregard for human life can lead someone to commit even more horrific acts.
I coped with all this through the Daily Planet up until lately. A few weeks ago, I was determined to establish a steady flow of content for the Daily Planet this fall. I planned to announce the magazine, incorporate an audio feature for articles, and register the Daily Planet as an LLC in Minnesota. But then, the shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis occurred.
For the past four years, I’ve made the City of Lakes my home. I’ve shopped and hung out in the very neighborhood where the shooting happened. That day weighed heavily on my heart, causing a tear-filled next few days as I saw yet another school shooting brushed over by so many people. I couldn’t handle the mudslinging on my various social channels, as literal praying children were dead and injured from such a violent attack. I didn’t care about the shooter; I cared about the kids. Little bodies riddled and scarred by bullets that shouldn’t be so readily available for villains to access and use against our sanctuaries of community.
The United States has been plagued by gun violence for decades, but 2025 has already seen over 300 mass shootings. By common definition, mass shootings occur when four or more people are injured or killed in a single incident, not including the shooter. That means, on average, America has witnessed more than one mass shooting every single day this year. With the recent shooting at an unhoused encampment in our city, that means Minneapolis has seen multiple in just two weeks. The numbers are staggering, but worse is the normalization.
Upon this realization, and amid my mourning, I slipped into a depressive state and buried myself in work from my day job to cope, but I continued to mourn these students and the lack of empathy in my country, which I was once so very proud of.
I grew tired as another week of bad news trudged by. Then, Charlie Kirk was murdered at an event at a Utah campus. He may have spread hatred while sharing some extreme perspectives I definitely disagreed with, but Kirk didn’t deserve to be killed in such a horrific way. Nobody truly does. This politically conservative commentator was shot dead, and I really believed that this was it. This would be the moment where conservatives who stated that shootings were a necessary evil for preserving Second Amendment rights would realize that heavy artillery shouldn’t be so easy to obtain. Maybe they’d agree that some level of gun reform was needed, and Americans would come together once again.
But that wasn’t the case. As the days after Kirk’s death marched on, his murder was being conveyed as an act of war against the political right. Politicians from the Republican party contested against their Democratic counterparts on the House floor, conservative cabinet members gave their opinions on silencing what they deemed hateful speech, and neighbors once again turned against neighbors. My naïve self thought nothing of it. It was just yet another day of discourse in the “United” States of America. We’d emerge as a community once again, I hoped. But if his killing proved anything, Kirk’s death only drove a wedge further into the rift between the country.
I was trying to wrap my head around all of this discourse when an authoritative attack on free speech occurred. Jimmy Kimmel did what all late-night hosts and comedians do: he criticized politicians, in this case conservatives, for trying to deflect blame after Kirk’s murder. He mocked President Donald Trump’s response, noting that when asked how he was holding up, the President brushed off the question and quickly pivoted to boasting about the construction of a new White House ballroom. Kimmel said this wasn’t how an adult grieves a friend’s death, comparing it to “how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish.” President Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance both attended Kirk’s funeral with thousands of other mourners in Glendale, Arizona, at State Farm Stadium.
A day after his monologue, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” was suspended indefinitely by ABC. The decision came under pressure from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chair Brendan Carr, who suggested there could be regulatory consequences if the network failed to act. Affiliates dropped his program, and a chilling message was sent across the industry: criticize the government too harshly, and your platform can be stripped away.
This emboldened political figures warn: If you say something we disagree with, you’re cancelled.
“These companies can find ways to change conduct and take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead,” Carr said.
Carr, who once tweeted “The FCC does not have a roving mandate to police speech in the name of the ‘public interest’” in 2019, also warned of potential “consequences” for shows with hosts or content perceived as politically partisan or unfair. For example, after contentious remarks by Joy Behar on The View, Carr suggested that shows which continue with perceived bias may need “course-correction.”
Carr once said political satire is one of the oldest and most important forms of free speech.
“It challenges those in power while using humor to draw more into the discussion,” Carr continued in 2022. “That’s why people in influential positions have always targeted it for censorship.”
However, he seems to have changed his tune lately. But guess what? He has the freedom of speech to do so! If only he allowed the same for the rest of us.
Meanwhile, outside the White House this past week, Trump told ABC News’ Jonathan Karl that he would “probably go after” him and ABC over what Trump claimed was institutional “hate” toward his administration. Trump and other politicians also stated that they’d go after any group they deemed dangerous, including anti fascist movement, Antifa.
Later, NPR asked the president how he would go after Antifa since it’s more of an ideology than a formal organization. He said, “We’re going to find out,” and then asked their reporter if Antifa had anything to do with NPR.
This is how it starts. To quote The Washington Post, “democracy dies in the dark.” During his first run for office, and later during his first term in office, Trump sowed mistrust in the media among Americans, claiming those whom he didn’t like were fake news. Now, he’s threatening the very fabric of our society… freedom of speech.
Yet the suppression of free speech didn’t stop there. The Pentagon’s recent restrictions on journalists are a blatant attack on the First Amendment. By requiring escorts in previously open areas, revoking dedicated office space, and forcing reporters to sign a pledge not to report on certain unclassified information, the Pentagon is stifling transparency and accountability. These measures, justified as a means to prevent leaks, are nothing short of censorship, granting the Pentagon excessive control over the press and undermining the fundamental right to free expression. The White House, which has already placed restrictions on some outlets, is expected to follow suit.
These attacks on free speech are outrageous. The American people have a right to be informed… to be heard. When a country’s populace is not allowed to speak up, power-hungry dictators take over.
My grandparents taught me that, though very flawed, the United States is a beacon. I still think we can be. We’re nowhere near perfect. Hell, we’re a country full of human beings. But something I’ve always admired about this great nation is our ability to hope. To persevere against those who do wrong.
Sure, we’re currently a divided people. Maybe we have been all along? But I think it’s time to fight back against that narrative. Stop the hate, and dig deep into our hearts. We are not designed for violence. We are not made for constant anger and cruel hate. That’s why so many of us are angry and heartbroken. We’re created to love one another and fight against the villains. The tricky thing is, they don’t want us to connect. They are sowing seeds of discord, so we’re too busy fighting amongst ourselves to notice the wolves that have been at our door.
Well, the wolf isn’t at our door. He’s in our house, and he’s cutting the wires of communication one cord at a time. It’s time to protest. It’s time to stand up. This issue will not fade away. We need to remember who we are as a nation. A place with a complex history where we’ve done some bad, but we’ve also done some good. We’re a nation of second chances and helping hands. At least, that’s what I believed as a child.
We need to not only use our words but also understand those of our neighbors with empathy. Fight against the taught hate and communicate with love and forgiveness before it’s too late. It won’t be easy. There’s so much hurt, but I believe we’re meant to use our words to heal. Words. Words are meaningless… until we give them meaning. I found meaning in my words at the Daily Planet. Other Americans found their words in their freedom. I don’t know why people think we can just hit a reset button and omit our freedoms from society. I mean, we can’t truly go back. People have had a taste of their liberties and grown up in an America with rights. They won’t just let them go.
Personally, I’m done hiding. I refuse to live in fear in my home. I will be using this platform just like Lois and Clark would. We must be better. We have to be better. But we can’t be better if speech is suppressed.
