Who Will Get the Last Laugh in The Onion’s Shady Purchase of Alex Jones’ InfoWars?
As many may be aware, the corporate media was ecstatic upon its reporting that The Onion had purchased Alex Jones’ InfoWars, but of course, it failed to mention that what was being done was both a violation of the concept of free speech and an illegal sale. Yet, so many on the left side of the American political aisle cheered on the authoritarian move, because to them, getting rid of speech that they arbitrarily deem as disgusting or disinformation is more important than allowing the free flow of discourse in the public domain. Because of this witch hunt against Donald Trump and his supporters and anyone who espouses a view that runs contrary to the government-approved narrative, Alex Jones has become a victim of bullying and political targeting by his enemies.
Jones, who is probably the most well-known conspiracy theorist in the United States, did what he normally does: make claims (sometimes exaggerated) that government is involved in agendas that are detrimental to the interests of citizens and beneficial to the aristocracy of our society. However, one such claim was considered more heinous than the others. It was not that he presented evidence that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) assassinated or attempted to assassinate John F. Kennedy, Jr. and Donald Trump or that the government is putting fluoride in our water systems to poison us or that the federal government had its hand in killing thousands of citizens during the September 11, 2001 “al Qaeda” attacks (I have put together a few blog articles showing some of the evidence of what happened on 9-11, here, here, and here). No, he made the argument that the victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting and their families were crisis actors and that the government created a false flag operation as a basis to move along the process of gun confiscation in this country (I have never once made that claim, so do not look at me for a lawsuit). Although Alex Jones is correct on a lot of his analysis, he got this one wrong (even the best gets things wrong from time to time).
Liberals and progressives, who are supposed to be tolerant and more loving than their Make America Great Again (MAGA) opponents, hate his guts so much that they spit in his face and rejoice that one of their top ten enemies has had his career ruined and his finances destroyed. In reality, people on the left are some of the most hateful people that you will ever come in contact with, as I have experienced this personally online several times, and many of these blind followers of leftist talking points (not everyone on the left) truly believe that they are morally and intellectually superior to everyone else (their condescending attitudes were challenged this past election cycle). In this case, they firmly and erroneously believe that Jones harmed the families by expressing some incorrect words, but he never once told anyone to threaten the families or spew hatred toward them. They also argue that he lied about this to make money, but if you genuinely believe something, it is not a lie. Also, where is the proof that he profited from this one particular claim? Did he make money overall on his content, yes, but can you specifically quantify how much of that money came from people who would not have supported him financially unless they heard him utter the story about the Newtown, Connecticut hoax? In reality, liberals and progressives just hate free speech and want to silence anyone who challenges the status quo and our institutions (it is ironic, being that they act more like the conservatives in our society and want to preserve the sacred bureaucratic oligarchy that we have put into place over many years).
As a result of the civil lawsuit brought forth by the families in Connecticut, the judge awarded the $1.5 billion (not million) in award money, and because Jones was not able to pay back this sum (he is not a billionaire), he was forced into bankruptcy and to sell his $2.8 million ranch and $9 million in personal assets. Since it was a defamation case, there were no criminal charges, and in addition to the Connecticut judgement, a judge in Texas awarded the families $49 million. All of this was because Jones mentioned a few times (it was not a common theme) on his podcast and radio broadcast that the school shooting was fake, and because the families of the kids who were slain were allegedly subject to “torment, threats and abuse by people who believed the lies,” he was sued into oblivion. Yet, the families treated Jones like he pulled the trigger on the kids himself (they are more outraged by the words that Jones said than with the act by the assailant, which is pathetic), and if you were truly offended by what Jones said or what his listeners did (Jones cannot control what people do with the information that he presents), why would you not sue the people who made the threats instead? No, they preferred to go directly after Jones and tried to silence him and destroy his career. It was not about seeking justice, but rather, this was a ploy to censor a man who the powers that be considered to be a nuisance to their agendas.
This was more or less admitted by both the families of the victims and a representative from the CIA (yes, you read that correctly). Instead of taking their reward money from stealing someone’s personal assets and causing someone to be stripped of his company and livelihood, the families agreed that some of the money that Alex Jones needed to pay them could be abandoned if it meant that The Onion would have a better shot at acquiring InfoWars (the satirical company even wanted the website’s customer list, and was it planning to sell this data and information to the government to track and monitor Jones’ followers?). Even the trustee who oversaw the auction, Christopher Murray, admitted that The Onion did not have the highest bid, but because of what the families agreed to do with their reward money, it became the most attractive. Yes, folks, this lawsuit was not about the money or justice. It was simply a campaign to rid the world of Alex Jones’ “lies” and “disinformation” (the families were seemingly more concerned with silencing a dissenting voice than with receiving compensation).
In addition to Alex Jones’ free speech being violated, it appears from his announcement to sue the CIA and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) that the deep state (bureaucratic oligarchy) was behind the lawsuit by the families of the victims. A contracting officer for the CIA, Gavin O’Blennis, is alleged to have “nudged” the families and informed them that suing Alex Jones would be an easy win in our corrupt court system (the officer claims that he did not “encourage” them, though this seems like a very fine line). O’Blennis admitted that the goal of the CIA was to bankrupt Jones but that the agency would “let the families do it.” Basically, the deep state wanted Jones gone from broadcasting, and according to the officer, something close to “entrapment is regularly practiced by the agency.” The operation against Alex Jones runs deep, and the families should be ashamed of themselves for agreeing to participate in bullying someone with whom they disagree on narrative. You either have free speech, or you do not. Again, Jones never incited violence against the families or pulled the trigger. He simply offered his opinion in front of a large audience. Last time I checked, that is not a crime or morally wrong (you should not have to hide what you believe).
The corporate media spread what turned into misinformation about how The Onion had purchased InfoWars, but in reality, the satirical website may have illegally acquired Jones’ company, thus the sale has been put on hold for the time being. Jones called the process a “private sale masquerading as an auction.” United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas Judge Christopher Lopez suggested that the auction lacked transparency and did not disclose offers to the other bidders (a violation of auction procedures), and he was not at all “comfortable with the process.” First United American Companies, which helps manage a supplemental store for Alex Jones, actually bid $3.5 million, which was higher than The Onion’s offer (and significantly lower than what Jones was personally ordered to pay), but as written previously, the website was given to The Onion because of its support from the Sandy Hook victims’ families (as well as from billionaire Michael Bloomberg via Everytown for Gun Safety).
Because of the shenanigans that took place during the auction, InfoWars, which had been shut down temporarily, is now back up and running (under Jones’ control) until further notice. Another hearing will take place in the future, but for now, the bullies trying to strip Alex Jones of his livelihood have another obstacle in their nefarious plan to silence a dissenting voice. The bad guys may end up winning in the end, but the ultimate irony and karma would be for Donald Trump to select Alex Jones for a cabinet position (such as press secretary). Then, the people who participated in and cheered on the censorship would have to listen to him every day. As you may know, Alex Jones was an integral part of my political transformation years ago, and I may not have the viewpoints that I have today and the awareness of events if it were not for him, so this lawsuit, in addition to being morally and constitutionally unsound, is personal to me.
Thank you for reading, and please check out my book, The Global Bully, and website.