Wednesday, January 09, 2013

Just when you thought that NOBODY could be crazier than Alex Jones!


Courtesy of Raw Story:  

A communications professor from Florida Atlantic University isn’t backing down from his theory that the mass killing of 20 children in Newtown, Connecticut may have never happened. 

Writing on his Memory Hole blog last month, Professor James Tracy asserted that it was “not unreasonable to suggest the Obama administration [had] complicity or direct oversight of an incident that has in very short order sparked a national debate” on gun control. 

“While it sounds like an outrageous claim, one is left to inquire whether the Sandy Hook shooting ever took place—at least in the way law enforcement authorities and the nation’s news media have described,” he declared, noting that no surveillance video of photos of bodies had been released by authorities. 

“Moreover, to suggest that [President Barack] Obama is not capable of deploying such techniques to achieve political ends is to similarly place ones faith in image and interpretation above substance and established fact, the exact inclination that in sum has brought America to such an impasse.” 

On Tuesday, WPTV caught up with Tracy, who also doubts the official versions President John F. Kennedy’s assassination, the Oklahoma City bombing, the Sept. 11 terrorists attacks and the mass shooting at a theater in Aurora, Colorado last year. 

“In terms of saying that Sandy Hook — the Newtown massacre — did not take place, is really an oversimplification of what I actually said,” he explained. “I said that I think that there may very well be elements of that event that are synthetic to some degree, that are somewhat contrived. I think that, overall, the media really did drop the ball. I don’t think that they got to the bottom of some of the things that may have taken place there.” 

As for the deaths of 20 elementary children, the professor said, “I think that most likely that took place.”

So to be clear he is NOT saying that the children are not dead, only that President Obama was the one that killed them. Oookay.

And believe it or not the Professor has company on his "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride of Conspiracy."

This from Salon:  

But in the crazy world of Sandy Hook conspiracy theories, this one may be the worst yet. (Maybe you’ve already heard some of the others, like the one about fantasy ties between the gunman’s family and the LIBOR banking scandal and a related theory about the Aurora shooting and the “Dark Knight Rises.”) Most of the theories are really pieces of a larger meta-theory: that the Sandy Hook shooting was a hoax, perhaps by the Obama administration, designed to stir demand for gun control. 

In the latest angle, theorists think they have found “absolute proof” of a conspiracy to defraud the American people. “You reported in December that this little girl had been killed,” a reader emailed Salon in response to a story. “She has been found, and photographed with President Obama.”

Do you remember how we all joked that after President Obama's reelection that certain Teabaggers and fringe conservatives were going to lose their shit? Well folks I think this is what "losing their shit" looks like.

In other, reality based, news here is Slate with the number of gun deaths that have occurred SINCE Sandy Hook and here is a portion of Diane Sawyer's interview with Gabby Giffords and Mark Kelly as they discuss taken some common sense approaches to dealing with gun violence in this country.

You know I knew this debate would get crazy, but even I was not quite prepared for this level of crazy.

P.S. In case some of you are just now joining us, and don't know who this Alex Jones character is that I am referencing in the title. Here you go.

51 comments:

  1. It is truly nut-bag a go-go now days..

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous3:58 PM

    While the internet has opened a lot of doors and been a means of providing and sharing information that can be highly beneficial, it has its darker side - and that is the ease with which loonies can spread their crazy ideas. I wonder if the "professor" watched Jon Stewart last night. My guess is that he did not.
    Beaglemom

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous4:56 PM

      Thank you!

      These moron shit-heads used to have to at least spend money Photo-copying their ridiculous memes!

      Now ANY moronic idea gets traction *simply because OF* the 24-hr. "news" cycle, which has taken any ingrown hair of any pseudo-celebrity and attempted to make it HEADLINE NEWS!

      If there was no Internet, America would *never* have had to deal with the moron that is Sarah Palin.

      It is a way for carefully manufactured pieces to show up, and due to the lack of REAL, TRUE Journalism (okay, in fairness, i think "real reporters" prefer "real" news...like war zone coverage, vs. Beltway gridlock and issues) they are able to parade around as "Real" news.

      The Mass Media has blended with the GOSSIP media, and I fear there is no going back.

      Delete
  3. Clearly the mental health issues in the country need to be address - and quickly. This makes my blood run cold.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous4:03 PM

    As for the deaths of 20 elementary children, the professor said, “I think that most likely that took place.”
    ==============
    !!!!most likely!!!!

    What an evil piece of sh*t this professor is!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous4:03 PM

    The guy is a college professor?
    Well that explains much of the fuckery that comes out of Florida.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous4:20 PM

    "Communications professor"???

    Oh dear God.

    ReplyDelete
  7. This amount of crazy could give one an aneurism (sp?) if one got too close to it.
    M from MD

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous4:31 PM

    They forgot the X in the acronym......FAUX University.......

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Faux University sure cranks them out, doesn't it.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous4:55 PM

      FAUX brains.......

      Delete
  9. Anonymous4:36 PM

    OT Hey, Gryphen, be sure to check out Sarah Palin's latest Facebook post. Believe it or not, she and Bristol are the victims of bullying. In fact, the conservatives have been bullied by liberals like us. Shame on us, picking on those poor helpless people.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous4:56 PM

      I want to shit in Sarah's hat.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous5:21 PM

      Seems like SP couldn't stand the fact that Gabby Giffords was getting some attention this week. She probably also saw Letterman's comments about her. She is one vile, spiteful person, and of course her handful of supporters at C4P are so gleeful that she posted something. The lunacy continues (unfortunately)!

      Delete
    3. Anonymous6:05 PM

      " I still find it highly ironic that the supposedly “tolerant” left has done nothing but bully, demonize, and judge my daughter Bristol for making the right decision to keep her baby and work so very hard as a single mom to care and provide for him. I don’t know of any conservative “war on women,” but I sure have seen the left’s war on conservative women!"

      No one ever said anything about whether Bristol should keep her baby or not-- except for a story that Levi told about Sarah asking him and Bristol to let her adopt their baby. The one thing that Bristol told Greta in a TV interview that it was HER decision to keep her baby.

      Seeing as most of us didn't know anything about Bristol being pregnant or anything else until Sarah was chosen as McCain's running mate, the only people who would have weighed in on the issue would have been friends and family in Alaska who DID know about Bristol's pregnancy (pregnancies?).

      As far as bullying and judging Bristol, that's the price of having a TV show. People judge your show and what they see on the show. If you can't stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen. The same applies to Sarah. If you spout off on Fox or Facebook, then people can respond with criticism, too. Disagreeing is not bullying or demonizing anyone.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous6:42 PM

      Ah, judging and bullying from Esther.

      SO appropo you chose THIS day, Queenie, to crawl out of your mole hole since Gabby gets the press partly due to your bullying and judging? Gunsights anyone???

      So your promiscuous daughter, whom you PARADED, got knocked up and you cry "victim." BAH! How does that compare to being shot in the head?

      DUMBASS JEALOUS BITCH.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous4:37 AM

      It seems to me that the Palin family is very good at "bullying" others. Sarah Palin can't garner any sympathy on this matter. If Sarah Palin and her family lived normal lives OUT OF THE PUBLIC EYE and didn't spend an inordinate amount of time bullying everyone else, people might be more kindly towards them. That said, remember President Obama back in 2008, when the news came out about Bristol's pregnancy, said that no candidate's children should be the subject of public discussion.
      Beaglemom

      Delete
  10. Maybe he didn't get enough attention as a child or his ex-wife hates him and his children aren't speaking to him.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous4:57 PM

      I understand the need to "shine light" on dangerous people,

      but honestly,

      he's just a fucking moron who I don't care about.

      FUCK. HIM!!!

      Delete
  11. Anonymous4:43 PM

    Good interview of a teacher on the Ed Show tonight with a teacher in Utah who wants to pack heat into her kindergarten classroom. She says that teachers there have been allowed to do it for years. She also says that there have been no shootings in those schools. Maybe she has a point?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous4:58 PM

      Uh, no.

      Was there a shooting in her school?

      No.

      ...ANd people aren't allowed to "pack heat" there, correct?

      What an absolutely ASININE conclusion.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous5:08 PM

      Oh, my gods. :::exasperated::: HOW MANY SCHOOLS IN THE US DID NOT HAVE A SHOOTING LAST YEAR?

      Jesus fucking christ on a crutch. These events hit the news because they are so rare and horrific. How many news stories have you seen: "Utah teacher shoots down assailant in classroom"? None, right? So why on earth would the teacher carrying a gun have any effect? Most schools are not invaded by crazed killers. They are, however, crowded with small people who cannot be trusted to leave guns alone if they see them, which is why having any gun in a school is so fucking dangerous!

      Ivyfree

      Delete
    3. Anonymous6:29 PM

      Columbine had ARMED GUARDS and at least one of them was aware of the fact that the school was invaded and still a load of people died.

      Delete
    4. Dear Anon 4:43:

      You do know that "Post hoc ergo propter hoc" is a fallacy, don't you?

      If I thought you were posting in good faith, and I do not (your lunatic fringe is showing) I would merely direct you to volumes of articles about how difficult it is for trained professionals to respond to an armed assailant without putting innocent bystanders at risk.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous7:03 PM

      So a teacher at the blackboard or in the back of the class leaning over a student's shoulder checking his work, looks up in surprise when the door flings open and an armor wearing, Uzi carrying person with anger/mental problems opens fire, with hundreds of rounds spent in seconds.

      Yeahhhhh, right.

      How about the middle-aged teacher, terrified at what COULD happen, when one of his 3rd graders pulls a little surprise "BOO!" on him when he pops in after recess?

      Delete
    6. Anonymous12:52 AM

      If you believe that, I have a stick to sell you that keeps away elephants. I've been waving it around for years and...no elephants! Imagine that!

      Delete
  12. Jesus, I think the nutty people are being showcased on purpose, but there are some real concerns, and I almost didn’t post this.

    The way the towers fell on 9/11 (including one that wasn’t hit); I’m old enough to recognize implosions.

    The Tuskegee experiment; yes, that sucker happened!

    Blankets full of smallpox for native people; yes, that sucker happened!

    Pat Tillman (seems like an assassination since he was getting uncooperative).

    Man walked on the moon, there are rovers on Mars, most conspiracy theories are nuts, pick your battles, but some unbelievably horrific things are true.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous6:35 PM

      Wow it's amazing how many "experts" in explosives there are. Oh you know about implosions? Hmm. Have you ever done a study to see what happens when massive projectiles filled with jet fuel hit skyscrapers of more than 100 stories? Oh, you didn't...but Im sure you "know" what you're talking about.

      Delete
    2. comeonpeople3:22 AM

      anon 6:36 no, I personally haven't done these experiments, but I believe the physicist who have and who know that the towers came down via controlled demolition. Keep your head up your ass all you want on this issue. I trust pilots and architects and physicists for truth on this, just like I trust myself and my colleagues as a nurse about Palin faking her pregnancy. Trust the experts on this. Hint: the experts were not the 9/11 Commission lol!

      Delete
  13. Anonymous5:05 PM

    Gryphen, I wonder if anybody is investigating the possibility that insanity may be contagious. Perhaps viral in nature.

    There seems to be way too much insanity out there. It has to exceed the statistical norm.

    Ivyfree

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous4:10 AM

      My favorite conspiracy theory is that everyone's going nuts because of chemtrails. Or, maybe it's the unintended consequence of all the wifi and cell phone waves in the air. Or both?

      Or, maybe people have always been this nuts and we just didn't know it without the internet. :(

      Delete
  14. Sally in MI5:52 PM

    And Ryan has signed onto a bill to make a zygote (that is a one-cell being) a human with all the rights granted to a person born in a hospital alive. So a sperm finds an egg, and before it even attaches to the uterine wall and starts the long process of becoming human, these morons want to give it everything but the vote...which means ALL birth control is gone, all abortion gone even to save the mother. But, hey, the GOP is all about jobs. For lawyers to fight this insanity!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous2:21 AM

      Sally - two things that help prevent all birth control from being outlawed: Griswold v. Connecticut, 381 U.S. 479 (1965),[1] was a landmark case in which the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that the Constitution protected a right to privacy. The case involved a Connecticut law that prohibited the use of contraceptives. By a vote of 7–2, the Supreme Court invalidated the law on the grounds that it violated the "right to marital privacy". You can find a longer discusion in Wiki.
      This will not be overturned. I really can't believe that it could be possible.
      The protection of a zygote, if passed, which I also don't believe can happen, the idiots still have a Senate and a President to get it past and that just won't happen. All of this is just political posturing to the wing nut base.
      Second thing - combination oral contraceptive pills, Depo-Provera (3 month shot) and the new arm implant (Nexplanon) all work by preventing ovulation, 99 % of the time. Those eggs are sleeping and staying out of trouble!
      So, should that nonsense go through, there are still contraceptive options.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous4:11 AM

      Ryan also voted against aid for Hurricane Sandy victims. He said it was because the one-page, roughly 3 paragraph bill was full of pork.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous4:29 AM

      Next they'll want zygotes to be given weapons (of their choice) so that they can be ready to be "rill Amuricans" from the moment of their birth.

      Delete
    4. comeonpeople7:00 AM

      I say we women should start insuring these people each month, and then when they don't implant or we miscarry them, we can collect life insurance. Even a small policy can add up month after month after month. After month. Right? :)

      Delete
  15. Anonymous5:57 PM

    Enough with the small percentage of crazies getting all the attention in the debate, are there no REASONABLE gun owners - the ones that know you don't need to own a freakin' machine gun - to interview? Why do we focus on the crazy minorities (like the Tea Party) in these discussions? When my son was little and took a temper tantrum I IGNORED him.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Did anyone actually read his blog post? What I read was a questioning of how the media have failed to report on this beyond the superficial information they found or were fed by officials. He didn't say it didn't happen, but rather it probably didn't happen the way it's been portrayed in the media.

    "With the exception of an unusual and apparently contrived appearance by Emilie Parker’s alleged father, victims’ family members have been almost wholly absent from public scrutiny.[3] What can be gleaned from this and similar coverage raises many more questions and glaring inconsistencies than answers. While it sounds like an outrageous claim, one is left to inquire whether the Sandy Hook shooting ever took place—at least in the way law enforcement authorities and the nation’s news media have described."

    He then goes into detail about inconsistencies and missing information.

    He's doing what we do every day - question how the media have presented a major event. This is not a crazy. He's using a current event to raise the questions a good journalism professor might, to get his students to think critically about the narrative they are getting from the media.

    This post starts off saying the professor won't back down from saying:

    "the mass killing of 20 children in Newtown, Connecticut may have never happened."

    Reading his blog, I saw nothing even close to that. All he said was it didn't happen the way the media portrayed it. It's even hard to tell what political perspective he's coming from, but it's a rational, relatively calm, academic inquiry with links to sources.

    Perhaps the links are questionable - I tried to follow up on the claim that an Emergency Services Exercise was taking place in the area that day, but they seemed to trace back to the same questionable website. But then, instead of calling him wacko, show where he's wrong.

    His basic premise - that what we've been told about the massacre by the media probably is not completely consistent with what actually happened - is undoubtedly true.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous1:30 AM

      Yes, I read his blog post and all the comments that followed.

      The Professor certainly has attracted a host of conspiracy theorists.

      He's a professor of Communications, presumably and expert on how the media conducts itself when there a story to be covered. Yet, he doesn't give much weight to how the 24-hour news cycle is getting more and more desperate to report any and every detail as quickly as possible without confirmation, leading to...you guessed it, misinformation during chaos that then is altered as new details emerge.

      This guy's a Communications professor. Me? I'm a Criminology/Criminal Justice professor. We both (should) understand that details of a crime don't always come out immediately and the police should want to keep careful control during an ongoing investigation.

      I'm still shaking my head at some of the insanity in that comment thread on his blog. People actually suggesting that that this was staged by Obama or that Lanza was drugged and dragged by a couple other guys to the scene where they committed mass murder and left Lanza there to be the (conveniently) dead patsy. And all because, as one commenter observed, it sure does seem like when Liberals start talking about gun control, one of these events happens.

      Your last paragraph is low hanging fruit. Of COURSE, what we've learned from the media is not completely consistent with what actually happened. They rely on the often unreliable memory and observational skills of people willing to talk to them and whatever they can get from the police (not much this close to the event).

      Delete
    2. Anonymous3:30 AM

      Good points all, thank you. The villifying of people who question anomalies in any mass tragedy is like 9/11 (Bushie saying "you're either with us or against us"). It is so horrific that no questions are allowed.Even rationale questions. People need to pay attention to patterns (planned exercises, changes in daily routine, pulled security, whatever in these occurances). Sadly, sadly, it is possible for horrible murders to happen for agendas we are not privy to. Read 9/11
      I am NOT saying that Sandy Hook was a government program, I AM saying that the government HAS planned these things in the past. Most of us don't know. But, google operation Northwoods to get yourself started. We need to be able to question without people getting their panties in a wad. The professor may have some valid points, and he didn;t get to his mindset without serious prior precendent
      I'm sure I'll be slammed for this but, whatevs.
      Wag the Dog.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous8:44 AM

      Rational questions are fine, but let's not go off the hook.

      As it happens my kids' elementary school in another state entirely had a planned security drill the day before the Sandy Hook shootings.

      And, I'm ready some really crazy shit from these conspiracy sites, including the idea that kids aren't dead, just relocated with new identities (does this mean that the families of all the "dead" kids will up and leave with no forwarding address as well or are they willingly giving up their children, never to see or speak of them again?).

      Oh, another guy claims the Arizona shooting was accidental; it was a hoax perpetrated by whomever perpetrates these hoaxes (the gubment; the illuminate; ???) and Holmes shot Gabby Giffords accidentally. Gabby was in on it, apparently. And, nobody else was actually killed or, if they were, it was either accidentally or to further the cause, whatever that might be.

      Lay down with crazy dogs, wake up with crazy fleas.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous8:45 AM

      Oops, meant to write Lautner, not Holmes (I wouldn't want to add to the conspiracy that the same actor/shooter was involved in both incidences).

      Delete
  17. Anonymous6:09 PM

    Sarah's Facebook comes on the second anniversary of the Arizona shooting, the one that Gabby Gifford had noted was targeted by cross hairs and violent language used by Sarah Palin during the November 2010 election. Sarah took aim at some 18 Democratic candidates, including Giffords. After the shooting, Roger Ailes told Sarah not to respond, and we know how well Sarah listens to advice from other people. Well, somebody has finally gotten to Sarah because now she won't retreat but she didn't mention that other word, "reloading." And, her Facebook hasn't had much activity, either. Ah, silence is golden!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anita Winecooler6:21 PM

    Is there any empirical, scientific study/studies that show a direct correlation to wigs/bad toupee's and T.M.F.(terminal mind fuck)? The Professor and Baldy seem to be prime candidates for a reality check.
    Education reform is next...Why is this idiot teaching "Communications" at an institute of higher learning that refuses to recognize the man is nuts?

    ReplyDelete
  19. A wretched 2nd Amendment fanatic has just proved yet again that the studies were correct: gunowners are more likely to die from their own guns.
    http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33220258/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/t/gun-toting-soccer-mom-found-shot-dead/#.UO5TFnfheBF

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous9:11 PM

    You know, Tracy may be right. We have perfect examples right here with the media being controlled as to not do any investigative reporting (e.g fake Palin birth). Most certainly, the media was in consortium to deceive the public on the events of 9/11 and many other conspiracys. The deepest sin against the human mind is to believe things without evidence. So it appears Tracy has a mind and some guts to go with it. Perhaps a little more respect from the no-mind, half wits is an order here. The media is playing you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous1:42 AM

      Tracy has a mind and some guts? Then so does Donald Trump.

      I don't understand your comment about there being no evidence. Evidence of what? There is evidence that the shooting occurred at least to some degree the way it has been presented. There is also evidence that there are holes in the accounts (which is normal in these situations).

      Sure, it takes a leap of faith to believe the media reports (one that I won't take, at least not completely at this point and probably not ever completely because the media is imperfect).

      It also takes a leap of faith to believe the media is conspiring to cover up a government-sanctioned mass murder of children and teachers in order to enact gun control laws.

      Out of the two choices, I'd say that's a much larger leap with much less evidence.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous3:31 AM

      And ,it's SOP to make you feel unpatriotic or like an evil babyeater to question these horrific events.

      Delete
  21. Amy in Juneau9:17 PM

    Crazy. Wayne LaPierre is cookoo. Boehner's nutty. Bachman's batshit insane.

    Props to Gov. Cuomo today for his speech. Way to go White House for addressing the public that something will be done.

    ReplyDelete
  22. There is no cure for stupid or crazy!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous12:51 PM

    unreal! Like you say, just when you think crazy can't get any crazier, another nutcase comes out proving the original crazy isn't as crazy as he is.

    ReplyDelete

Don't feed the trolls!
It just goes directly to their thighs.