This is interesting. It is an article by Justin Raimondo describing the interaction he had with Alex Jones at a conference they both spoke at. Raimondo is not a fan.
I get Raimondo’s point, but as I have observed before, when you reside on the political fringes as we do, conspiracy theorists are a fact of life. I’m sure all of us believe things that many mainstream conventional wisdom types would consider conspiratorial or otherwise “out there.” So I don’t know how you police this kind of thing. How conspiratorial is too conspiratorial? The way I see it is we should make common cause with people when we can and don’t when we can’t. And when our enemies say that the presence of conspiratorialists among us taints the whole, we should call them out for their simple-mindedness.
Conservative Heritage Times 
Alex Jones, as I’ve said before, is the Art Bell of conspiracy theories. He’ll give them all a hearing just as Bell gave any alleged paranormal event a hearing. (Bell has some successor on late night radio; I don’t remember the guy’s name.) But whatever the elusive truth of Saudi, US gov or Israeli involvement is in 9/11, Raimondo is mistaken to assert that Jones (either Walter or Alex) would be prosecuted for a felony for revealing the contents of the redacted pages. Such a prosecution would give instant nationwide prominence to allegations which are at present known only to a small number of people who are paying close attention. To sort of paraphrase Pat Buchanan, our rulers are malicious; they’re not stupid.
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I agree with you that Raimondo is being too harsh in his criticism.
I’m familiar enough with Jones to know he isn’t the type who believes in every anti-government theory out there. I’ve had run-ins with the kind of people who quite literally believe everything is some sort of government orchestrated conspiracy, and those people are indeed insufferable fools. Jones, in comparison, is much more measured. Perhaps he used to be more of the hyper-conspiracy type, but if so he’s tempered his views since I really became aware of him a few years back.
What Raimondo and other high-minded, ivory tower libertarians/conservatives need to keep in mind is that Alex Jones is not for them. I don’t mean to sound condescending when I say this, but Jones is the kind of person who does a good job reaching the more non-intellectual blue collar class. He’s a voice for the unsettled masses, those who are aware enough to see that something is seriously wrong with the present order but not quite keen enough to put their finger on exactly what it is. Jones is, ultimately, a populist. He’s traditionally right-wing enough to win over conservatives and libertarians while also being anti-establishment enough to reach more open-minded liberals and leftists (Occupy Wall Street types). And unlike Limbaugh, Hannity, Levin and the other “respectable” conservative radio jocks, Jones isn’t afraid of challenging the status quo of approved opinion — even Republican flavored approved opinion.
Sure, the man isn’t perfect (who is?): his style certainly isn’t for everybody and, yes, he can get a bit “out there” at times. But as long as he’s waking people up to the tyrannical nature of our single party government, I see no reason why we should go out of our way to alienate him. As for being smeared with guilt by association, hasn’t Raimondo realized yet that his enemies are going to do this no matter how careful he is?
The hope, of course, is that some will use Jones’ platform as a stepping stone to a more balanced and comprehensive political and philosophical worldview. Many others won’t go beyond whatever Jones offers them — and that’s fine, for the most part. As long as they understand the seriousness of the situation and are able to see the big picture, it’s OK if they’re off on some of the less important specifics. I think Lew Rockwell understands this, which is why he isn’t afraid to make semi-regular appearances on Jones’ show.
Lastly, Raimondo’s just plain wrong in his outright dismissal of alternative 9/11 theories. Perhaps Jones’ presentation of what really took place on that day wasn’t as coherent as it should have been, but that hardly means the official story isn’t itself full of holes. I don’t know exactly what happened that day or who exactly are the responsible parties, but I do find it extremely hard to believe that simple office fires could cause the entire Building 7 to collapse at free-fall speed into its own footprint, as if it were triggered by controlled demolition. If that makes me a conspiratorial nutjob, then so be it.
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“but not quite keen enough to put their finger on exactly what it is”
Joel,
You’re right, but another reason is some are in denial about race (or something else) and want help believing in their delusions/interests.
I’m just adding that in, because I think the IQ/education/time argument is overplayed by some people (not you).
Anyway, I don’t actually know about Alex Jones. I expect there’s some truth to Raimondo’s comments, but Joel might be right in arguing that the appeal works.
Pat Buchanan used to be rough, albeit not in this way. He was never crazy. From Joel’s comments it sounds like Jones could have been rough early on but might have found his path.
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I have never known exactly what to make of Jones. I do think he is probably a conspiratorially minded guy with conservative/libertarian sentiments, but I suspect there is a lot of showmanship going on. He has a product to sell and he knows his audience, so something like the Boston Marathon bombing happens and I’m sure his mind starts churning about how to spin it to his audience. So how much is “this is what will play with my audience” and how much is what he really thinks, is the question.
Of interest, check out the Richard Linklater movie Waking Life (2001). It is animation over real life actors for a strange effect, but it is a series of interlinked vignettes a lot like Slacker if you saw that Linklater film. Linklater is from Austin, and one of the vignettes focuses on an Alex Jones like radio personality played by Alex Jones. This was before he was much of a national celebrity and was mostly an Austin phenomenon. It is the same ol’ Alex Jones even back then, so if it is all an act, it is a consistent one.
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I didn’t like the way Raimondo kinda draws you in thinking he might have something nice to say about Alex Jones and then lowers the boom on him. The tease makes the criticism sound more harsh.
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Transitioning from believing in your Government to having large skepticism is not a comfortable move for the most. (Neither was giving up Santa Clause and wondering how it would impact your gift program?) I am a conspiracy theory person, and listen to all with an open mind. One person say’s “it was a duck that crossed the road, quacked like a duck, looked like a duck, walked like a duck, entered the water and swam like a duck, and flew like a duck!”………..The other person say’s “Let us try to get a DNA sample?”…………………Common sense rules IMO. What is the motive? Who benefits? What are the facts? Etc, Etc.
My common sense tells me that those that think we faked the Moon Landing hasn’t done their homework? (We were in the middle of a Space Race/Cold War with the Russians and they NEVER denied our moon mission?) They watched it closer than any average US Citizen!……….On the other hand, with a background in welding, steel, and metallurgy, I laugh in horror at the ridiculous 911 Commission Report………..Each case is unique.
I think Alex Jones is “Controlled Opposition.” (He states the well known, then adds the nutty stuff to benefit his handlers.)………..Justin is simply closed minded, waiting on a DNA report.
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Some of you are confusing rival–and successful–entrepreneurs with ideological,even philosophical debate. To borrow from Godzilla 2014, “let them fight” and don’t worry too much about it. It’s healthy.
Alex is pretty bad about letting bygone era ‘entrepreneurs’ sell their point of view on his show, and he is also a bit star struck by famous names–but he holds it all together with a version of American Prot conservatism/patriotism.
Raimondo is a fighter, looking for a fight, who went from very little, to running major pieces of politics (Pat Buchanan campaign manager for California in 1996) and in 1994, headed up San Fran to bar welfare bennies to illegals (Prop 187.) What has Alex done? Raimondo is simply protecting flanks.
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The problem with Alex Jones is he buys into EVERY conspiracy theory. He also infers a great deal more from things from some small detail. A lot of his articles are clickbait for this reason. They have bombastic headlines, but when you read the actual article there’s nothing concrete there to base his conclusions on.
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