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REAL WORLD EVENT DISCUSSIONS
Sandy Hook 'truthers' harass Newtown man, conspiracy theories go viral
Thursday, January 17, 2013 11:41 AM
NIKI2
Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...
Quote:With talk of a second shooter, Israeli death squads, and connections to “The Dark Knight Rises,” the Sandy Hook shooting has joined the ranks of other tragedies associated with conspiracy theories. Just days after 20 first-graders and six adults were shot and killed at the school in Newtown, Conn., alternative theories and wild claims began circulating. In recent days, one Newtown man who helped survivors of the shooting has come under attack. Some of the conjectures have arisen out of distrust of the government and media outlets. In other cases, they've gotten traction because they offer an explanation, when the "why" of the shooting has been elusive. A desire to deflect blame, for example away from guns, could also be at work. “The Web seems to be the new home of the conspiracy theory. It’s where conspiracy theories live, because the Web is so good at virally spreading around these kinds of little stories,” says Jeffrey L. Pasley, an associate professor of history at the University of Missouri in Columbia, where he teaches a class on conspiracy theories. Individuals questioning the mainstream account of events have already been dubbed Sandy Hook truthers. They're turning to websites like SandyHookHoax.com, questionable photos, and YouTube videos that take issue with reporting on the day of the shooting. One person the truthers have zeroed in on is Gene Rosen, a Newtown man who took in six terrified students the morning of the shooting. He gave interviews to various media outlets afterward, and since then, he's been accused of being an actor paid to play a part. Fake Facebook profiles have been created in his name, and footage of the interviews with him has been edited and reposted, purportedly proving that Mr. Rosen is an actor. “I don’t know what to do,” Rosen, a retired psychologist, told Salon. “I’m getting hang-up calls, I’m getting some calls, I’m getting e-mails with, not direct threats, but accusations that I’m lying, that I’m a crisis actor, ‘How much am I being paid?' ” The underlying theme in all the theories is that the media, the government, and Obama administration specifically either manipulated or orchestrated the shooting to move political opinion on gun control. In particular, a comprehensive truther video focuses on discrepancies in initial reporting about the number and types of guns used by Adam Lanza. Conspiracy theories are often used as a way of deflecting blame, Professor Pasley says. “If you’re a gun owner, you don’t want it all blamed on your group. So you adopt a conspiracy theory that blames it on someone else,” he says. Some truthers have questioned whether the shooting happened at all. On Dec. 20, James Tracy, a Florida Atlantic University tenured professor of communication, wrote a well-sourced blog post, and later gave media interviews, arguing that contradictions in initial reporting proved that the Sandy Hook shooting was simply a “made-for-television storyline.” He placed responsibility with the mass media, saying they blindly believed and reported what officials told them. After public criticism of Professor Tracy and the university, he backpedaled a bit, insisting his blog post was simply a way to encourage news consumers to think critically. But he still implied he takes issue with the basic facts that were reported about the shooting. Although other media outlets have reported the harassment of Rosen in detail, The Atlantic is one of the few news organizations to actually parse some of the theories and debunk them. It tackled the theory of a second shooter, reporting that a man whom police had initially pursued was most likely the father of a Sandy Hook student who was on the school grounds after the shooting. Other media outlets, notably The New York Times, apologized for inaccurate reports when news of the shooting broke. Much of the “evidence” cited by conspiracy theorists is reporting that was later clarified. While most observers understand that inaccurate reporting happens immediately after a chaotic event, the conspiratorial mind sees contradictions as "misinformation and lies," or holes in the official story. http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2013/0116/Sandy-Hook-truthers-harass-Newtown-man-conspiracy-theories-go-viral
Thursday, January 17, 2013 1:40 PM
JONGSSTRAW
Thursday, January 17, 2013 3:26 PM
CHRISISALL
Thursday, January 17, 2013 3:53 PM
KWICKO
"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." -- William Casey, Reagan's presidential campaign manager & CIA Director (from first staff meeting in 1981)
Friday, January 18, 2013 2:10 AM
FREMDFIRMA
Quote:Originally posted by chrisisall: If the government didn't barefacedly LIE to Americans throughout the decades about stuff, the conspiracy theory nuts would have nothing to work with. Just sayin'.
Friday, January 18, 2013 12:42 PM
Friday, January 18, 2013 1:31 PM
Friday, January 18, 2013 8:04 PM
Quote:Originally posted by Niki2: There IS validity to the fact that we've been lied to so many times, and enough actual conspiracies have been discovered, that it's not surprising some people distrust anything and everything, and see conspiracies around every corner. But it takes people missing something important to go to the lengths some of these do, and to believe virtually EVERYTHING is a conspiracy!
Friday, January 18, 2013 9:54 PM
PIRATENEWS
John Lee, conspiracy therapist at Hollywood award-winner History Channel-mocked SNL-spoofed PirateNew.org wooHOO!!!!!!
Saturday, January 19, 2013 4:09 AM
AURAPTOR
America loves a winner!
Quote:Originally posted by Kwicko:
Saturday, January 19, 2013 4:25 AM
Saturday, January 19, 2013 8:09 AM
Sunday, January 20, 2013 12:48 AM
Sunday, January 20, 2013 9:44 PM
RIONAEIRE
Beir bua agus beannacht
Sunday, January 20, 2013 10:54 PM
SHINYGOODGUY
Quote:Originally posted by FREMDFIRMA: Quote:Originally posted by chrisisall: If the government didn't barefacedly LIE to Americans throughout the decades about stuff, the conspiracy theory nuts would have nothing to work with. Just sayin'. Unfortunately that's too close to home for any kinda comfort - what started it in this case was them very deliberately lying to create the impression that Lanza used an "Assault Rifle", when in truth it was left in the back seat of the vehicle, and this without a doubt provoked the conspiracy theorists, as did the admittedly suspicious timing of it after an earlier mass shooting attempt FAILED, due to said "Assault Rifle" malfunctioning, an armed civvie present, and a security response that for once did the job completely right. What creates the mindset is when a person who has believed in the system comes up against something so mind-shattering that it blows the supports out from under their entire existence, the oh-god-what-else-did-they-lie-about effect, at which point their grip on sanity starts slipping, ESPECIALLY if this is then compounded by finding evidence of even more lies about things they once believed, and it can indeed spiral straight down into a form of mental illness, or at least near-permanent suspicion and mistrust... The worst cases usually come about by not just having that event, but witnessing/participating in, something so heinous, so awful, that it has a downright lovecraftian effect on their sanity and personhood, which often presents itself as an active MALICE towards folks whom they secretly envy for their ignorant bliss - Alex Jones and Pirate News are good examples of this. Of course, a different fate awaits those who knowingly plunge headfirst into darkness to wrestle the beast up close and personal, but the difference is in both intent and expectation, and in such a case usually the less nice/noble/decent a person is, the better they weather the experience, although no walks away from that unchanged. Anyhows, the endless barrage of lies is in fact the source of these things, but the initial spark is usually a specific one, rather than the plethora, that just compounds the damage, is all. -Frem
Sunday, January 20, 2013 11:01 PM
Monday, January 21, 2013 1:06 AM
Quote:Originally posted by SHINYGOODGUY: Rush to judgment comes to mind.
Monday, January 21, 2013 1:19 AM
Quote:Originally posted by SHINYGOODGUY: I heard one "theory" that Obama and the government set this up so as to "repeal" the 2nd Amendment. I mourn for this country. What braniac would come up with such a morbid thought?
Monday, January 21, 2013 2:17 AM
Quote: Is Being a Dupe a Mental Disorder? In order to save the children the entire country must be evaluated for mental disorders says the latest proclamations from our fearless leader. Got the flu? Your doctor must ask if you own guns. A high fever might send you over the edge and threaten the lives of everyone around you. Before the Tamiflu can be prescribed you must fill out a questionnaire developed by the best of our psychiatrists. Answer any of the questions incorrectly and there are plenty of anti-psychotic medications available to help. Of course the local police must pay a visit to your home and take away anything that may assist you in carrying out the latent violent tendencies you possess. The most relevant questions regarding one's mental stability will not be asked. Do you believe everything the government and mainstream media tell you? Do you trust your government to always work in your best interests? Are you dismissive of the ideas of false flag attacks, black op mass shootings and mind control or propaganda techniques to control you? Do you support the wars of our empire, surveillance of your every move, detention without charges and even assassination of American citizens perceived by government to be terrorists or threats to the status quo? Is security, even if based on dubious intentions, more important than rights? Would you turn in your neighbor who expresses anti-establishment thoughts for thirty pieces of silver? If you answered yes to any or all of the above questions you may be a dupe. It is not illegal to be a dupe but is it a modern mental illness? Current medical authorities may say no but others may disagree. In our upside down world answering no to these questions puts you at risk. Group-think must be the norm. We should not be too judgmental. All of us are duped at one time or the other. Calling people names never works. Encouraging others to read between the lines and come to their own conclusions may be about all we can do. http://kennysideshow.blogspot.com/2013/01/is-being-dupe-mental-disorder.html
Monday, January 21, 2013 6:41 AM
SIGNYM
I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.
Monday, January 21, 2013 6:50 AM
Monday, January 21, 2013 9:53 AM
Monday, January 21, 2013 6:09 PM
Quote:Active Shooter Crisis Actors Target Mall Shootings via Visionbox Active Shooter Crisis Actors Target Mall Shootings via Visionbox DENVER, CO, October 31, 2012 -- A new group of actors is now available nationwide for active shooter drills and mall shooting full-scale exercises, announced Visionbox, Denver's leading professional actors studio. Visionbox Crisis Actors are trained in criminal and victim behavior, and bring intense realism to simulated mass casualty incidents in public places. The actors’ stage acting experience, ranging from Shakespeare to contemporary American theater, enables them to "stay in character" throughout an exercise, and improvise scenes of extreme stress while strictly following official exercise scenarios. The actors regularly rehearse scenarios involving the Incident Command System and crisis communications, and appear in interactive training films produced in both 2D and stereoscopic 3D. Producers Jennifer McCray Rincon and John Simmons formed the group to demonstrate emerging security technologies, help first responders visualize life-saving procedures, and assist trainers in delivering superior hands-on crisis response training. For example, with a large shopping center, the producers review all security camera views and design dramatic scenes specifically for existing camera angles, robotic camera sweeps, and manually-controlled camera moves. The producers then work with the trainers to create a "prompt book" for the actors so that key scenario developments can be triggered throughout the mall shooting simulation, and caught on tape. The actors can play the part of the shooters, mall employees, shoppers in the mall, shoppers who continue to arrive at the mall, media reporters and others rushing to the mall, and persons in motor vehicles around the mall. Visionbox Crisis Actors can also play the role of citizens calling 911 or mall management, or posting comments on social media websites. During the exercise, the producers use two-way radio to co-direct the Crisis Actors team from the mall dispatch center and at actors’ locations. Within this framework, the exercise can test the mall's monitoring and communications systems, the mall's safety plan including lockdown and evacuation procedures, the ability of first responders and the mall to coordinate an effective response, and their joint ability to respond to the media and information posted on the Internet. Security camera footage is edited for after-action reports and future training. For more information visit www.Visionbox.org and www.CrisisActors.org. Visionbox is a project of the Colorado Nonprofit Development Center. Crisis Actors is a project of the Colorado Safety Task Force established by Colorado State Senator Steve King. Contact: Nathan Bock Amanda Brown (720) 810-1641 info@visionbox.org www.CrisisActors.org
Monday, January 21, 2013 9:45 PM
Tuesday, January 22, 2013 5:43 AM
GEEZER
Keep the Shiny side up
Quote:Originally posted by FREMDFIRMA: Unfortunately that's too close to home for any kinda comfort - what started it in this case was them very deliberately lying to create the impression that Lanza used an "Assault Rifle", when in truth it was left in the back seat of the vehicle, and this without a doubt provoked the conspiracy theorists, as did the admittedly suspicious timing of it after an earlier mass shooting attempt FAILED, due to said "Assault Rifle" malfunctioning, an armed civvie present, and a security response that for once did the job completely right.
Tuesday, January 22, 2013 6:12 AM
Quote:Originally posted by Geezer: Also interesting that the video I've seen of cops finding a long gun in the trunk of a car does NOT show a Bushmaster. The officer clearing the weapon is pulling a charging handle on the right side of the receiver, where it'd be on an AK clone, whereas the charging handle on a Bushmaster, or any M-16 clone is at the back of the receiver.
Tuesday, January 22, 2013 8:15 AM
Tuesday, January 22, 2013 8:38 AM
M52NICKERSON
DALEK!
Tuesday, January 22, 2013 9:01 AM
HKCAVALIER
Quote:Originally posted by m52nickerson: ...it make no sense that the shooter would take the AR-15 to the school and than not use it.
Tuesday, January 22, 2013 11:32 AM
Tuesday, January 22, 2013 11:48 AM
Quote:Originally posted by m52nickerson: The medical examiner identifies the injuries from a "long rifle". The AR is the only thing the shooter had that fits that. Second the shear number of rounds suggests the rifle and it's larger capacity mag. Third, it make no sense that the shooter would take the AR-15 to the school and than not use it.
Tuesday, January 22, 2013 12:21 PM
Quote:Originally posted by Geezer: Quote:Originally posted by m52nickerson: The medical examiner identifies the injuries from a "long rifle". The AR is the only thing the shooter had that fits that. Second the shear number of rounds suggests the rifle and it's larger capacity mag. Third, it make no sense that the shooter would take the AR-15 to the school and than not use it. But per the L.A. Times: "When Adam Lanza left the house, he took a Bushmaster .223 rifle and two handguns -- a Glock 9-millimeter and a Sig Sauer semiautomatic, law enforcement sources said. He left the rifle in the back seat of his mother's car, which he used to drive to the school. Both handguns were fired in the attack, sources said." http://articles.latimes.com/2012/dec/15/nation/la-na-nn-sandy-hook-gunman -tried-to-buy-rifile-days-before-20121215 (I put a space in the link so it'd wrap around) "When your heart breaks, you choose what to fill the cracks with. Love or hate. But hate won't ever heal. Only love can do that."
Tuesday, January 22, 2013 9:04 PM
Quote:Sandy Hook Mystery Man Identified; Why Did This Off Duty SWAT Officer Armed With A Gun Run Off Into The Woods Instead Of Helping The Students? The mysterious man shown being pursued by the police after the Sandy Hook shooting in this video has been 'identified' as an off-duty AND ARMED tactical squad police officer from another Connecticut district, according to the Newtown Bee.: "A man with a gun who was spotted in the woods near the school on the day of the incident was an off-duty tactical squad police officer from another town, according to the source." This development brings up more questions than it answers: why was a SWAT team officer armed with a gun in the vicinity of the Newtown shooting PRIOR to the shooting AND WHY is he running away from the shooting as A COWARD would do, instead of running in to the school seeing that he was armed with a gun? I guarantee this, my martial arts instructor, a former police officer, would have been inside that building in two seconds flat if it were him, especially being armed with a gun, rather than running away from the scene. Something is very fishy here and this newly released information from the Newtown Bee only adds fuel to the fire. Is this the smoking gun? A SWAT Team officer was at the school with a gun and he ran away into the woods? If that's typical behavior of SWAT in Connecticut, who needs them? That’s pure baloney. Notice that they say “spotted” when, in fact, he was taken down and arrested. If he really was police, he would have shown officers his credentials and police would not have been led him away in handcuffs. We can probably expect more lame excuses like this as police concoct more false stories to cover for these arrests. Wow...in fatigues and armed...."hancuffed and sitting in the front of a police car."
Wednesday, January 23, 2013 3:03 AM
ARLO
-.-. ..- -- / -.-. .- - .- .--. ..- .-.. - .- . / .--. .-. --- ... -.-. .-. .. .--. - .- . / . .-. .- - --..-- / - ..- -- / ... --- .-.. .. / .--. .-. --- ... -.-. .-. .. .--. - / -.-. .- - .- .--. ..- .-.. - .- ... / .... .- -... . ..- -. -
Wednesday, January 23, 2013 3:06 AM
Quote:Originally posted by AURaptor: 3 things are confusing here ( and I'm not screaming 'conspiracy'! Just things that don't add up... 1. How'd the ME determine the wounds were made from " the long gun " ?? 2. How'd the rifle end up in the trunk of the car ? Did he use it, put it away, then come back w/ just the hand guns ? 3. Why is there so much confusion as to the make of the rifle ? Seems to me, on the last one, law enforcement would be competent enough to know what gun they had, and then simply report that to the media. How anyone could confuse something seemingly so straight forward ... is baffling.
Wednesday, January 23, 2013 10:46 AM
Wednesday, January 23, 2013 12:57 PM
Quote:Originally posted by m52nickerson: Quote:Originally posted by AURaptor: 3 things are confusing here ( and I'm not screaming 'conspiracy'! Just things that don't add up... 1. How'd the ME determine the wounds were made from " the long gun " ?? 2. How'd the rifle end up in the trunk of the car ? Did he use it, put it away, then come back w/ just the hand guns ? 3. Why is there so much confusion as to the make of the rifle ? Seems to me, on the last one, law enforcement would be competent enough to know what gun they had, and then simply report that to the media. How anyone could confuse something seemingly so straight forward ... is baffling. I would think that the medical examiner could tell from the wounds. Now the video are we sure that is the Bushmaster rifle used or is it another gun? Are we even sure the news report got it right? I'm sure what you mean about confusion to the make of the rifle. The Bushmaster is a make of the AR-15. I do not fear God, I fear the ignorance of man.
Thursday, January 24, 2013 12:10 PM
Quote:Originally posted by AURaptor: How'd the rifle end up in the trunk, if that's the weapon which was used, per the ME ? The Bushmaster is a make of the AR-15. They're not the same gun, though, are they. There's lazy journalism or lazy police work. Not sure which. Minor detail, perhaps, but still...
Thursday, January 24, 2013 3:04 PM
Thursday, January 24, 2013 9:49 PM
Quote:Originally posted by m52nickerson: Oh, the gun in the trunk was a shotgun. http://www.snopes.com/politics/guns/newtown.asp I do not fear God, I fear the ignorance of man.
Friday, January 25, 2013 7:46 AM
Quote: Crazy 20 year old kills 20 kindergarteners and 6 adults and we're ruling out things he might have done because they make "no sense?"
Friday, January 25, 2013 9:23 AM
Quote:Originally posted by m52nickerson: The M.E. would not determine the specific gun used. That would be ballistics experts. Bushmaster is a Firearms company. They make an AR-15. Regardless of who makes it, it is still an AR-15.
Saturday, January 26, 2013 4:18 PM
Quote:"Information intended for foreign audiences, including public diplomacy and Psyops, is increasingly consumed by our domestic audience. Psyops messages will often be replayed by the news media for much larger audiences, including the American public. Strategy should be based on the premise that the Department of Defense will 'fight the net' as it would an enemy weapons system." -U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld Kosher Knight of the Brtitish Empire, Information Operations Roadmap, SECRET/NOFORN, 30 Oct 2003 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/27_01_06_psyops.pdf http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4655196.stm "There's going to be a Marxist revolution in Amerika. We need to be organized and grow the movement." -Barack Hussein Obama Soetoro, member of the Young Marxist Club at Occidental College http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/02/meeting_young_obama.html "If the people knew what we had done, they would chase us down the street and lynch us." -President George HW Bush Knight of the British Empire, CIA agent in Dealey Plaza when JFK was shot "Half of writing history is hiding the Truth." -Capt Malcolm Reynolds
Saturday, January 26, 2013 6:05 PM
1KIKI
Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.
Saturday, January 26, 2013 6:07 PM
Saturday, January 26, 2013 6:11 PM
Saturday, January 26, 2013 6:12 PM
Quote:Originally posted by 1kiki: Whacko crazy groups with whacko crazy ideas persist b/c they support a set of assumptions/ beliefs that people are loathe to give up (aside from organically schizophrenic people).
Saturday, January 26, 2013 10:07 PM
Quote:Care to name names?
Quote:"But that The Powers That Be are CAPABLE of such atrocities ? Oh hell yes." But only b/c we let them.
Saturday, January 26, 2013 10:22 PM
Saturday, January 26, 2013 10:28 PM
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