Has Alex Jones lost the plot?
26 2011-03-28 by nocubir
Yeah, I realize that's saying something - the guy seems like a nutcase as it is, but...
It's always struck me that he's definitely intelligent - he may believe in some rather far out stuff (only a small percentage of which I can agree with), but he seems to come to his conclusions from his own intelligent investigations.
So recently he's been going on and on and on about some new film, "The End of America". I realize his station advertises some "related" subjects of interest to the conspiracy community - things like survival foods, and alternative products. But this one seemed a little bit different.
So when you actually check out the video - it is, as he promises, an hour long "film" (really just a narration with graphics) talking primarily about the supposed imminent collapse of the US dollar. The video uses all sorts of made up graphs and makes some ridiculous statements, but it draws upon fairly well known positions of "doomers" speculations about the fate of the US dollar in the next few years. Above all though, it spends most of the first 45 minutes or so trying to scare the SHIT out of the viewer. I'm watching and thinking ok I see where this is heading. Sure enough, the final fifteen minutes or so are talking about how this guy who made the video ("Porter Stansberry") knows the secrets of how people have survived currency collapses throughout history. Only HE knows the right things to invest in and "protect yourself" against the societal chaos and martial law that is imminent. But of course - he won't tell you - you have to subscribe to his newsletter (which of course, costs actual MONEY).
Now... I understand, at this point, it's a simple 'scare and profit' scam. But then, I did some digging into this guy. It turns out he's been associated with some pretty shitty stuff in the past - he's allegedly been associated with 'pump and dump' scams, and at one point, Stansberry was actually convicted by the SEC of securities fraud, for a really similar setup - telling people that he knew something massive about the future, and people need only purchase his "report" to get the answer of what stocks to buy etc,. He scammed something like 2 million dollars. Here's a pretty interesting expose of Porter Stansberry, including information about the fraud conviction.
So - to get to the point - I realize that Jones has at least partially always been in this for the money (even though he and his fans deny that violently), but even someone as him is surely intelligent enough not to so heavily associate himself with a CONVICTED fraudster? I mean, he's literally championing this guy during his talk show now - not just running his ads.
Even for someone like Alex Jones, it seems a little crazy and like career suicide.
134 comments
20 doublejay1999 2011-03-28
The vast majority of his fans don't have your critical mind, or worse, they had it and shut it off.
People who have learned that the Government tells lies often see it as discovering one great holy truth - an epiphany of sorts - which for some reason ends their search for other truths.
They view Jones and his ilk as trusted brethen in this grand realisation and are very receptive to all messages from him and his associates - so these guys get to avoid inital skecpticism that would normally be applied.
This makes them a grreat market for snake oil salesmen which Jones & his mates undoubtedly are.
For every pair of eyes he opens, he keeps another ten shut tightly.
4 nocubir 2011-03-28
While in principle I agree, I do think Jones genuinely believes in his own rhetoric. But with this last adventure, I'm thinking maybe not, maybe he is actually the single biggest troll in the "conspiracy" world.
6 tttt0tttt 2011-03-28
He doesn't believe a lot of what he says. He is not being sincere when he rants and shouts into the mike -- it's all an act.
4 nocubir 2011-03-28
Yeah, I figured that quite a while ago, but in the past he's tended to stick to "mainstream" conspiracy theories - this is the first time I've seen him associate with (and aggressively promote) convicted fraudsters.
3 jimjoebob 2011-03-28
He used to run ads for "The Nationalist News"-which is a white supremacy newspaper- all the time in the late 90's/early 2000's. This is not the first time he's dealt with scumbags, but perhaps the first time he's promoted convicted scumbags. :)
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
Thanks, good to know. I've always thought he was a closet racist. Not because he actively engages in racism (except if we're talking about Mexicans), but he almost NEVER talks about black people. I've always suspected he's just been holding his tongue.
3 [deleted] 2011-03-28
[deleted]
-4 nocubir 2011-03-28
KRS?
I thought his wife was British. But in any case I never said he was anti-semitic, just that he never ever mentions black people, and it seems the only times he mentions Mexicans is when he's ranting about illegal immigrants.
2 [deleted] 2011-03-28
[deleted]
-3 nocubir 2011-03-28
I see. I guess I stand corrected. Though a part of me has a mental image of Alex Jones, in his deepest Texan drawl saying "Well now, y'see, there's good nggers, and there's *bad n*ggers. KRS is one of the good uns' " :D
-1 gravelocity 2011-03-28
I have heard from someone who knows him personally that he likes Hookers and absolutely loves International House Of Pancakes. Not sure if this really means anything but thought it might be interesting.
2 nocubir 2011-03-28
I think it just means he's from Texas! ;)
12 gthagard 2011-03-28
I've been listening to Alex Jones for years. His regular guests are world class - Paul Craig Roberts, Catherine Austin Fitts, Max Keiser, Webster G Tarpley, Bob Chapman, Mike Adams, Joel Skousen, Ray McGovern, Marc Faber, Lindsey Williams and lately, Porter Stansberry. There are other great regular guests but I'm tired of typing.
There is one consistent theme with these people and that is that The United States of America is doomed. Porter Stansberry is only the latest person on the guest list to say so. I've listened to the evidence and I tend to agree. The End of America means the end of the US Dollar as the world reserve currency.
Already China, Japan, Russia and others have stopped buying out debt (Treasuries) because they realize its mathematically impossible for the USA to pay off its debts. If every US citizen was taxed at 100% it would not be enough to pay our current debt load.
This is why the Federal Reserve is doing this Quantitative Easing, as they call it. What this means in plain English is that The Treasury Department issues Treasury bonds. Treasuries are US government debt instruments that allow the US government to continue to function because our taxes taken in are less than our ridiculous spending level.
The Federal Reserve makes an accounting entry on their ledger to buy those Treasuries (in effect just running the printing press by printing money). This is a Ponzi scheme. The only difference between this Ponzi scheme and any others is that the Conman and the Victim are the same group. You see how crazy that sounds?
The only reason this is allowed to happened and the dollar hasn't gone under already is because we are the world reserve currency. That means that everybody else has to buy US Dollars to buy commodities, like oil, gold, wheat, porkbellies, etc. Everything is priced in Dollars.
When the world finally wakes up, loses all confidence in the US Dollar and the world starts buying commodities with a basket of currencies (Special Drawing Rights), the Dollar will need to be revalued, aka devalued, in order to go into the SDR basket of currencies, itself.
When that happens, you can expect for food and gas to become ridiculously expensive because your Dollars will be, for all intents and purposes, worthless. Even more exciting, when it happens it will happen quickly. The Banks will simply shutdown (banking holiday). When they reopen. Your dollar will be slashed in value 50% or more and you will be greatly limited to how much money you can pull out.
How do I know this? Look at Argentina. Look at Zimbabwe. Look at the Weimar Republic. This has all happened before. Stansberry is just the latest guy stating the obvious.
4 nocubir 2011-03-28
Glad you could join us, Porter.
I certainly wouldn't add Stansberry's name to that list of distinguished guests in your first paragraph. Most of the rest of them are pretty serious people, Stansberry is just a snake oil salesman, and a convicted fraudster actually. You're "tired of typing", yet you managed to type an entire page of stuff, which is just basically regurgitating information from Stansberry's video?
Information, which, by the way, is hardly revelatory, and any schmuck with half a brain is already talking about. You actually said it yourself : "Stansberry is just the latest guy stating the obvious."
And it looks like he's making lots of money doing it. I wonder what his "magical asset" is.
4 Uncerntropy 2011-03-28
I'm not sure if you really rebuked anything there. He explained why the dollar will not last as a world reserve currency, I don't think he really cares too much about this guy Stansbury.
You can have a hack tell you the truth and a prophet tell you a lie. Almost everyone is out to make some money, we all have to utilize our own skepticism and intelligence to discern what is right and wrong.
3 nocubir 2011-03-28
Because he not only runs commercials for this guy about 5 times an hour, he's now actually actively spruiking him during the talk segments of his show - last show I heard he was ranting and raving about how the commercial TV channels in the US had "pulled" their commercials, as if somehow it was a massive conspiracy to hide the truth - when I would bet you 100% it was because they looked into the product, and Stansberry's criminal history and decided they didn't want to get involved with a possible scam in the making.
2 Uncerntropy 2011-03-28
I was referring to gthagard, sorry about the confusion.
-1 gthagard 2011-03-28
Hmmm.
3 maelfyn 2011-03-28
Well said. I was pleased to see Greg Palast as a guest on the show recently. I know Jones thinks Chomsky is a puppet gatekeeper, but I still think it would be interesting to see him as a guest on the show. They actually overlap in a lot of areas. I've been listening to the show for a few years now too, and I'm consistently impressed with his guest interviews, though he interrupts a bit much.
1 Darrelc 2011-03-28
People have been preaching this for as long as society has existed. What happened to all the conspiracy nuts saying America wouldn't survive the recession, dollars will be worthless in 2009 etc.
There's just no accountability. But you can bet the 1/50 times someone is right they will parade it as if it makes everything they say true.
1 [deleted] 2011-03-28
Should we buy Bitcoins?
11 CaptainPuffy 2011-03-28
If you have something true, that you do not want anyone to know. Its best to have an Insane and Corrupt person announcing the existence of your secret. Reducing the credibility of the whole counter movement.
0 nocubir 2011-03-28
I'm having an extremely hard time making any sense of that sentence. I'm pretty certain it's not me.
11 CaptainPuffy 2011-03-28
lol I wrote that while waking up. My head is a lot clearer now.
I have always felt that Alex Jones is harmful to the conspiracy theory community in general. While some of what he says makes a little sense in the grand scheme of things, his messages tend to get "Over the top".
By appearing worked up, and emotional, and claiming some pretty terrifyingly insane ideas, he's causing the whole conspiracy theory movement to appear to be insane by proxy.
5 nocubir 2011-03-28
Right.. I always thought that was just his unique way of monetizing conspiracy theory - it's worked pretty well for him. The specific reason I made this post is that it seems with this Porter Stansberry stuff, he's about to kill the goose that laid the golden egg. So far he's stuck to advertising/selling predictable stuff, like water filters, home remedies, survival gear, and of course his videos and subscriptions to his sites. This Stansberry character has a proven history of defrauding his customers, to the tune of millions. So I guess that's why I was asking whether he'd lost the plot - Jones is making a lot of money through is existing (admittedly weird, but not illegal) franchises, waving the flag for this Stansberry guy just seems nuts. And I mean really nuts - that's saying something with Alex Jones.
8 jimjoebob 2011-03-28
I used to listen to him a lot when I first discovered him, and his rhetoric worked pretty well on me for a while. I was impotently enraged at how screwed we all are. Then I started to notice that he never offers any kind of solution, only more fear and anger.
Now I see him for what he is--the exact same as Fox News, only his boogeymen are different.
What finally clued me into how cynically he's gaming gullible folks, is how he talked repeatedly about how we need to "impeach Bush and Cheney for their war crimes"--while Bush/Cheney were in the WH. The very day Obama was inaugurated, his rhetoric changed to "impeach Obama, watch out for Obama, OMG look at these schoolkids singing their 'song of worship' to Obama!!"
now that it's actually easier to really prosecute Bush, Jones never talks about it, only "removing Obama", etc.
that all being said, I still think he's right to question 9/11; I just don't think he's all the way right, and he's cashing in on it.
4 nocubir 2011-03-28
I caught up with him during the Bush years, when he started preaching 9/11 truth. It seemed interesting, and definitely opened my eyes to a lot of those issues.
But I had the same revelation as you - in terms of him only offering more fear and anger. The other thing I noticed - and this is extremely telling - is that he NEVER, EVER admits to being wrong about ANYTHING, EVER. That right there is a great big red flag.
Even in the last few months, as all the world watches Charlie Sheen obviously unravelling and going down in a drug induced burning crash, there's Jones on "The View" swearing that Sheen doesn't take drugs anymore. The guy is either completely deluded, and arrogant, or an amazing actor - most probably all three.
2 jimjoebob 2011-03-28
Actually, I've heard him admit he was wrong a couple times, but it's never humble. it's always justified with some sort of chest-thumping righteous indignation, so in the end, it doesn't seem like he's admitted anything except "keen discernment". Plus, the way that he deliberately panders to whoever is talking to him says a lot, not to mention the method he uses to sell gold (which Glenn Beck has copied)---spin for about 25 minutes about how "the dollar is gonna collapse TOMORROW!", and "YOU CAN'T EVEN IMAGINE THE HELLSCAPE WAITING FOR YOU YUPPIES!!". Then he starts talking about how gold prices are shooting thru the roof, then he cuts over to "his friend" selling gold, and spends another 10 minutes letting his "gold guy" agree with him and shill his gold pieces.
it's like he and Fox news have a symbiotic relationship--they take cues from him, he takes cues from them, in terms of style/rhetoric/delivery/content.
2 nocubir 2011-03-28
Actually I hadn't thought about the gold shilling - that makes the Porter Stansberry business seem a little more in character.
1 Nobody_special 2011-03-28
Alex is not perfect. He has many faults. I know no one who has woken up as many people as him.
1 jimjoebob 2011-03-28
very true, as do Beck, Limbaugh, Blitzer, Williams, Scarborough, Jennings, etc. The problem with Alex is that he is, like Limbaugh and Beck, acting with a specific agenda that is diametrically opposed to a UNIFIED NATION. Blitzer, Williams, et al are just paid hacks reading a script, but Beck, Limbaugh and Jones write their own scripts based on the agenda of divisiveness, and reaping the dollars that they whip their glassy-eyed followers into a panic to spend. They are totally aware of what they're doing.
I do think that Jones, at one time, was on target, but he's spent so much time trying to "counter" what Fox news has done to the soul of our country, that he's become the same as Fox-- will not tolerate dissent, will not let people finish a fucking sentence, LOVES his high horse and rides it proudly, stoking impotent rage for profit.
it's like he stared into the "hellmouth" for too long and was sucked in by it.
1 Nobody_special 2011-03-28
He does have his faults. At times I think to myself, "Alex just shut up". But he has very good guests and is a good starting point. His staff is doing a very good job on their websites.
"will not tolerate dissent" This seems to be an epidemic in 2011, not just with him. Its sad and disgusting.
1 jimjoebob 2011-03-28
I agree that he wakes people up, his staff does a good job with the websites, but his guests are no better than he is, sometimes worse! god, when I listen to some of these people just make shit up on the fly while talking to him, it just makes my skin crawl! just yesterday he had some dude on crowing about how "the executive branch is NOW just declaring war and going!"--as if Bush, Clinton, Bush, Reagan, Carter, Nixon, Ford, and Johnson didn't fucking do that as well. it's shit like that, Alex.....
It's all about the fear and impotent rage. nothing substantive, no positive action, just fear and rage. what a PERFECT recipe for random bloodletting!
1 Nobody_special 2011-03-28
Yes I fear the violence he is inciting. It does remind me of a white supremacist.
7 AGATECH 2011-03-28
Concerning Alex Jones:
His primary motive/goal is to work steps 1-3 to keep his golden goose laying golden eggs. Whether or not something is true or accurate has no bearing on him advocating it. Having said that, he does say many things that are true, but there are much better sources for information.
3 learnmore 2011-03-28
I'm not a Jones fan, but what are your better sources?
2 AGATECH 2011-03-28
Too many books to list. Documentaries.
2 Nobody_special 2011-03-28
But Alex appeals to people who won't read the books. One size does not fit all. He has many personality faults. But dividing us over issues is what the enemy wants.
2 AGATECH 2011-03-28
No, the enemy wants to dirty the waters of truth with dishonest hucksters like Alex Jones to discredit everyone that believes in and informs others of true conspiracies and serious issues.
2 nocubir 2011-03-28
Well, I'd disagree insofar the goose will stop laying eggs if he gets caught up in some kind of criminal conspiracy. I say again, Porter Stansberry was convicted of SEC Fraud.
4 [deleted] 2011-03-28
Alex Jones makes a living from his show.
He does not do it from the good of his heart or for the empowerment of all people.
It is his job.
Alex Jones is a shill for the system, and always has been.
4 glacierfresh 2011-03-28
So anyone who sells dvds is suspect? Is that' what you're getting at?
4 TheRealHortnon 2011-03-28
But he doesn't only sell DVD's...
Just look at this comparison of the ad space on one of his sites I did...
http://www.reddit.com/tb/fd2gl
Imagine how much he makes just from that.
3 glacierfresh 2011-03-28
So selling pixels to pay for bandwidth makes him a shady guy? Someone has to pay the web host somehow. His other option would be to set up a paid subscriber wall like the New York Times, but that would probably make you even less happy.
1 TheRealHortnon 2011-03-28
It's the amount of ads that's ridiculous. He essentially runs an apocolypse supply store that happens to re-host AP articles sometimes.
4 glacierfresh 2011-03-28
I'd like to see the amount of ad space on AJ's site compared with other news outlets. But I get what you're saying. Doom-mongers always seem to be selling the very products that will save you from doom, so it's like they have an economic incentive to take the most pessimistic angle possible, which makes them not unlike the corporate news outlets that write content to please advertisers. Just be aware of it, and take the info with a grain of salt in all circumstances.
4 TheRealHortnon 2011-03-28
I picked FOX News, because they're likely regarded to be the "worst" of the competition.
http://i.imgur.com/GzpF5.png
Compare to the default landing page of Prison Planet:
http://i.imgur.com/6JNwi.jpg
0 Nobody_special 2011-03-28
No doubt he is in it for the money. I don't care what his motivation is if it slows down the NWO.
1 [deleted] 2011-03-28
No.
3 glacierfresh 2011-03-28
Yet you still drop in now and again to read the free content on the website? Don't get me wrong here. Alex could be a Jesuit/Mossad/COINTELPRO whatever. But most of the content on the site is coming from third parties, and someone has to pay for bandwidth and web hosting, and for people to update the whole apparatus. How should he fund it? Donations?
1 [deleted] 2011-03-28
I don't go to his site.
4 jambonilton 2011-03-28
Since I'm in the right place to make up conspiracy theories, I'd like to suggest that he's a government puppet delegated to engage and discredit government dissenters, like how the tea party was subverted to fuel a meaningless debate between libertarianism and socialism.
2 nocubir 2011-03-28
Wait, are we talking about Stansberry, or Jones? Anyway in principle your theory holds true. Governments have a long history of provocateurs, or indeed feeding dissenters with false information to muddy the waters.
4 jambonilton 2011-03-28
Yes.
And yes, psy ops (particularly in the US) is scary. They can dump thousands of dollars towards purposely misleading public opinion and they get away with it. With the advent of the social media though, I can imagine they really have their hands tied with manufacturing consent.
3 jimmyb207 2011-03-28
I have been listening to Jones for almost 10 years. At one time I thought the man was the cats ass cutting edge of hard core reality and truth. About three years ago I began to take notice of what he WAS NOT talking about. For one, he definately appears to be a gate keeper for Israel. When it came to 9/11, he was all about the truth. He was the first to declare "controlled demotion" and "inside job", but that is also where he stopped. The hardcore researchers and investigators kept on and soon found that Israel was HEAVILY involved, but Jones absolutely refuses to talk about it and insists that it was US government and British counterparts that were involved. I don't trust him anymore....there is something in his speech patterns and his "conditioning" people that America will be laid to waste that is not sitting right with me as well. Creating fear profit? Definately. Waking people up to the evils of the world? Only to a certain point. He dances around the Third Rail like a drunk chick at Mardi Gras. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDiqfFJP6ds&playnext=1&list=PL89E61566EDA9AFA5
2 nocubir 2011-03-28
So what you're saying is..
It was the JOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOS
2 jimmyb207 2011-03-28
Do you know what the difference is bewteen the Zionists and the Jews?? You appear ready to pull the "anti-semitism" card already...the truth is not anti-semitic.
4 nocubir 2011-03-28
Yes, I do. And I'm against Zionism. Unfortunately all too often people in the conspiracy community do NOT draw a distinction, and it brings the most nasty, antisemites out of the woodwork. That video you linked to, for starters, was borderline antisemitic - not anti-zionist.
0 jimmyb207 2011-03-28
I would have to completely disagree with you.
5 nocubir 2011-03-28
About the video? So you didn't notice that skinhead guy? And it's talking about "Israel", not "Zionists".
2 jimmyb207 2011-03-28
First, the guy isn't a "skinhead", so why throw that innuendo out there?? Secondly, and this one irks me the most...WHY do you equate Israel with Jew? When people say "Israel" did this or "Israel" did that, they are talking about the "Zionist" government of Israel NOT the Jews as a whole or as a religion or as a people...Israeli government is Zionist. And if you know the difference as you say, you know that not all Zionists are Jews.
-1 nocubir 2011-03-28
And you would also know that not everyone in Israel is a Zionist, and that not everyone working for the state of Israel is a Zionist. It cuts both ways, buddy.
3 clowncar 2011-03-28
Alex Jones is very good at compiling early news footage of events. For instance, the local newscasts of the Oklahoma City bombing are fascinating, speaking of finding more bombs strapped to pillors inside the building, of a more than one man leaving the Ryder truck in front of the building, etc.
But then Jones takes a shit on that good groundwork by speculating and beating his one note drum: New World Order, which is bullshit.
1 ADM1N1STRAT0R 2011-03-28
Makes you wonder, eh?
BTW, if you're really a fan of AJ, just try selling some of the gold coins you bought... You might find out the hard way that the gold coin market works quite differently from what is portrayed on AJ, or so I've been told.
3 [deleted] 2011-03-28
Alex Jones has always seemed to be in it for the cash and fame, not the enlightening of the masses. This seals the deal for me on Mr. Jones. I was weirded out when he had Charlie Sheen on his show recently (that's one hell of a red flag), but have long suspected Jones of being insincere and perhaps even intending malice. He's a fearmonger, his role being similar to Glenn Beck's role, just for a different part of society. Boo.
2 holla_at_me 2011-03-28
I concur with the your assessment of the Stansberry video, iirc, the video says you can get the 4 reports for free if you email them about a trial offer. Tried emailing and got nothing back.
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
From what I've heard, you get the free reports AFTER you've paid for the subscription. So even the video itself is completely false advertising. I sure thought it was saying you'd get them for free.
2 whatisnanda 2011-03-28
I think Jones sometimes says some good things, but less often of late.
2 tekrat 2011-03-28
Alex Jones is a borderline paranoid schizophrenic. But he's also an intelligent borderline paranoid schizophrenic. He knows how make a comfortable living by marketing himself, his products, his agenda and other with similar products and agendas to his audience.
Alex has made up his mind that guy is good and is persecution by the global elite no matter the evidence. So he will see this guy as a hero until the day he dies and make a comfortable percentage of the gross in the process.
2 nocubir 2011-03-28
Or ends up doing time with him - that's why I was wondering whether he'd lost the plot. Your description of AJ is actually the single most accurate description for him I've heard in a long time - which, as I said, makes me wonder why he'd ruin a good thing. But then again when you consider how he's so adamant that Charlie Sheen is not on drugs - then I guess his capacity for denial is almost unlimited.
1 Bearsinahospital 2011-03-28
I can agree with you, although he is also the kind of guy to read this and make it a topic of the day for one of his shows.
2 Darrelc 2011-03-28
Alex, If you read this, please please please mention me as a zionist shill. I'll send you the picturess of Obama flying into the WTC that the joos don't want you to see.
0 Bearsinahospital 2011-03-28
If he would actually drop the fear and just present the information and facts i think more people would take him seriously. Look at How Weed Won the West, great documentary although his whole fear mongering mentality totally turned me off of it, i only tell people to watch the union now.
0 nocubir 2011-03-28
Yeah, and he'll rant and rave, and call me a tool of the NWO and all that crap.
Meanwhile, if he ends up being busted in some kind of fraud or conspiracy case, the rest of us will be laughing all the way to 2012. :P
I actually do find Jones entertaining. I sure hope he doesn't fuck it up with this one though.
1 Popozuda72 2011-03-28
At the end of the day, paying the bills trumps the truth and accuracy of any of these guys. So it all ends up being- get scared, part with your money for protection/safety.
1 ToAllAGoodNight 2011-03-28
Alex Jones = Glenn Beck if George Bush = Hitler
1 plasmon 2011-03-28
Every broadcaster needs funding. His funding comes from his supporters. It's a business model that works, and it enables him to get the word out. Just what part of what he says do you think is false? Everything he says is on the news in one place or another, and he explicitly states this, encouraging people to go ahead and do their own research.
-3 nocubir 2011-03-28
I see you're another one of these crazy Jones supporter who's just assuming that I'm alleging that Jones has "said something false" - without reading a single thing in my original post.
Unless you take the time and intelligence required to do so, I'm under no obligation to answer your question, which is based on complete fallacy, and your readiness to blindly stand up for a demagogue, even when he's not actually being attacked by me.
IF in fact you're talking about Stansberry, then my answer to your question is that it's got nothing to do with what him saying as being false or not. It's got to do with his past history of operating a business in this way (pump up fear, dangle a false solution, then ask for money), one which has in the past resulted in a criminal conviction. The most obvious way to perpetrate a scam of this nature is to suck people in using easily available information (such as the talk about the crash of the dollar, and China's dollar denominated holdings), which they can then verify as being accurate, then take that to mean the seller must be telling the truth. This is exactly how conmen work - an all out blatant lie would be foolish. The entire reason for this thread is my assertion that Alex Jones seems smarter than to expose himself to "guilt by association", but his fans seem to blinded to the extent they don't get that.
0 plasmon 2011-03-28
Don't call me crazy you fucking jerk. Comments like that only make people angry, asshole. How do you like it?
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
Well, the fact you've not denied (or even intelligently addressed, for that matter) a word of what I've said, combined with the speed at which you resort to profanity and insults, kind of proves my point. I called you crazy because your comment clearly indicated to me that you haven't read a SINGLE word of what I said in this reddit post, and you're just blindly rushing to defend a demagogue against perceived attacks (which if you read the post, you'd know are nonexistent). To me, that seems like the actions of a crazy person.
Sorry to call it as I see it.
0 plasmon 2011-03-28
Well, I for one haven't purchased the packages promoted in the video, have you? The raising price of commodities such as gold, silver, and oil are indisputable, and while such price shifts signal fluctuations of the currency they are valued in, it is only logical to conclude that if the trend continues, such an increase would continue in the food markets, unless we have an exceptionally good growing season. Nothing in the video seems to not make sense, so learning how to prepare for the possibility of lost savings or things like preparing your own food is only prudent and a perfectly acceptable option for those who wish to exercise those options. Having a guide in helping prepare for those possibilities would seem to help, but because I have not personally purchase these materials, and I am assuming neither have you, further judgement on them is pretty stupid. Unless you've done so, I suggest you refrain addressing people on this particular reddit with your pompous, self righteous, prickish attitude. You know that's just being a troll.
And to address the previous history of Stansberry, I am don't know if the allegations are true or not. I can just say that a conviction doesn't necessarily mean guilty, and guilt in a previous situation doesn't necessarily mean he is conning this time around. All you can really do is keep watching the news over time, see if what he has predicted seems to be happening or not, and judge for yourself whether you should if you believe his conclusions or not. It really doesn't hurt to stock up on some food or think about what you would do in the event that it turned out to be true, just in case. And if you want to spend your money in buying his product or not is entirely up to you, just as it is with whomever else listens to the ads.
But making rash generalizations of Alex Jones' listening audience-- as you do in your reply above "another crazy Jones supporter"-- or the people who choose to heed warnings with guided caution instead of foolishly laughing at those who give them, even if they are selling a production the process of offering solutions, is totally uncalled for. At least know what the solution on the table is if you do that.
0 nocubir 2011-03-28
Glad you could join us, Porter.
No, I'm not a fucking idiot.
Commodities prices fluctuate in cycles. The last time food prices skyrocketed was before the global financial collapse, and Jones and his ilk were predicting similar disastrous food shortages. What happened? The world economy crashed and surprise, so did the price of food. The high cost of commodities has as much to do with rampant futures speculation as it does with how well a growing season is. There is nothing "logical" about a conclusion that predicts food riots and anarchy in the US, even with a crash or correction of the dollar. The last time around when food prices got high, much of the world DID suffer, and there WERE food riots - but they were in poor countries that were under the IMF and World Banks' thumb, such as Indonesia and Pakistan. The US did not suffer such a fate.
Sure - whatever floats your boat.
First of all, such information is FREELY AVAILABLE to anyone with more than even 1/4 of a brain. In the age of Google, such information is but a mouse click away - FREE OF CHARGE (remember this people). Secondly, if you watch the video, what you describe is NOT what the man is offering. He spends at least 45 minutes trying to terrify the viewer into believing that not even "normal" preparation of the kind you describe will suffice. That somehow, one has to invest (yes, he said invest) in particular items, or commodities, or something (we don't know, he keeps alluding to it as the ONLY solution, without describing what it is) in order to "survive the apocalypse". Already such tactics are the common tools of conmen, but let's move along.
You can go fuck yourself - I'll post whatever I goddamn please, and while you're free to argue against it, calling it arrogant, prickish or trollish just because you seem to be suspiciously defensive about it is simply childish. Look at the facts, not your ego.
The allegations that he was convicted of SEC Fraud? They are true. Verifiable, you know, facts, that sort of thing.
Um. Perhaps you misunderstand how the law works. YES IT DOES If you are "CONVICTED" of crime - that means that the court, or the jury, has determined beyond whatever standard of evidence that applies, that you are, by definition, "guilty".
No, but his previous associations with other scams - such as the company prosecuted for a "pump and dump" scam involving a phony cure for AIDS (pure class), would tend to indicate that he has a pattern of being involved in such behaviour. In short, on the basis of statistical probability, you'd have to be a moron to give this guy any money and expect to see any back.
You haven't watched the video, have you? You are so missing the point. The predictions are completely irrelevant. Sure - they're pretty spot on, and pretty well stolen directly from the mouths of at least half a dozen economists who are far smarter than him. But that information is simply being used to sway people to spend their dollars. If people look into it, they'd find that there is a school of thought out there that believes such predictions are credible. This is how pump and dumpers throughout history have always worked - they start with the truth, so the "mark" naturally thinks - hey, this person is credible. Then the conman hits them with the lie. Usually that lie is that whatever "incredible" investment being offered, is simply something that the conman stands to benefit from directly if it is sold en masse. It doesn't take a genius to work this model out.
Yes. And it's entirely up to you to do your due diligence, which I did, and it's entirely up to you to warn people if you believe your due diligence has turned up information that should be shared with the public.
Well, I guess you missed the thread in here where a guy spent seven or eight messages accusing me of being CIA, FBI, a COP, or "COINTELPRO" ? Did you also happen to catch all the people agreeing with me, with a nudge and a wink, then linking to all sorts of Anti-Jewish propaganda (but they're NOT anti-semitic - they're "anti-zionist" ;P ). I'm not generalizing about all his listeners, I'm generalizing about his most vocal and crazy listeners - of which there are quite a few.
Are you really.that.stupid ?
I don't believe it.
0 plasmon 2011-03-28
Wow. These kind of line by line retorts is just a waste of both our time. Gotta get back to work. Really don't care.
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
Are you fucking kidding me? You spend an ENTIRE PAGE defending a convicted fraudster, you call me an arrogant, prickish "troll" for stating verifiable facts, and when I refute your unadulterated bullshit, line by fucking line, you pussy out and say that I'm wasting your time?
You've only made a fool of yourself - is that why you're suddenly pretending not to care?
Or is it (more likely) because you have absolutely no comeback to any of my points, because you've learnt the lesson (probably not for the first time), that facts trump bullshit - every time?
Have fun working (gotta afford to get repeatedly ripped off by con men somehow!)
0 plasmon 2011-03-28
Sigh. There you go again with assumptions.
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
There you go again, with stupidity. What exactly am I assuming? If you can't be bothered engaging in the discussion, don't bother.
1 plasmon 2011-03-28
You assumed I pretended not to care, when I directly told you that I had work to do. Undetermined coefficients don't solve themselves. Yet you assumed I was lying.
Basically this is just a matter of opinion. Neither of us have a crystal ball and can tell exactly what will happen, so there's no point in arguing about the ad, it's contents, it's author, or its supporters. In a few years, when we can actually see how things play out, perhaps, but not now.
2 nocubir 2011-03-28
You're still blabbering on, rather than addressing a single point in my reply. And you're still going on about Stansberry's subject matter and content, rather than the fact he's not a reliable vehicle for that information - regardless of how much of it is or isn't true, he's using it to stoke fear and induce people to part with their money.
You're a moron. That's it. I've been (not) arguing with a moron.
Why did you even bother with your original stream of bullshit if you weren't willing to defend it? Now I know. Because you're a dumbass.
1 plasmon 2011-03-28
nocubir, whatever that means, I already responded to your points once. You refuse to acknowledge this. And I said that people can do whatever they want with their money. You act as if people will purely respond mindlessly when an ad comes on. And let me add that this particular advertisement plays on the cnn and msnbc xm radio channels as well. An ad is an add. You take it with a grain of salt. People know this, but you talk as just because someone says anything on the radio, everybody other than you is going to believe. Give the public, and the listening audience of all these channels a little more credit, and enough respect to make their own decisions. You just seem inclined on being continuously argumentative and unwilling even cite that irrefutable fact that what you're saying is just your opinion. In fact, I would even go as far to say that even all economics is opinion. As much as economists would hate to admit, the subject is not a science, and they have incredible physics envy. There are just too many unknown inputs. The only thing that can be done-- within an understanding that any prediction is just an opinion, is look to the past of trends of cause and effect. But like you say, America is different, yet we cannot possibly know the effects of all the subtle effects that today's different laws, world neighbors, etc have on todays events when so called dire previous trends occur in America presently.
Acknowledging that there is no re way to really know. One could either prepare or not prepare, right? It's just a cost/benefit analysis? Which has the worse risk, buying a stupid 50 dollar book? Investing a little in metals? Or doing nothing and possibly taking a loss and feeling pretty stupid for procrastinating on taking action? Sure Stansberry may have a record on the books, but as you cite the court "how things in the real world actually work", are past convictions, admissible when deciding this case, if this particular argument were in a trial? My guess is no, so you really shouldn't bring that up, though I know this isn't a court of law.
So that's all I'm going to say. I really don't like coming on reddit and seeing letters from you.
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
Wow. I see you have still completely missed the point.
Nice work at trying to look intelligent.
Unfrortunately you have revealed yourself to be the moron that you are.
Have a nice day.
1 plasmon 2011-03-28
In your OPINION. And that is MY point.
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
o_o
1 knerp 2011-03-28
I researched that Sansubuy guy and came up with the same results. He’s a scheming conman. So the question remains, why’s Alex working with him? Maybe Alex is giving him a second chance because he likes his shpeal in that it's aligns well with the Info Wars theme. That’s my best guess in favor of AJ. Of course I don’t agree with everything AJ says but I always like his attitude about 911 and how he stands up to police corruption. The dude has huge balls I’ll say that.
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
I suspect he just didn't do his due diligence. He hears Stansberry's message about the decline of the dollar, hears his doomsday rhetoric and figures he's found a like mind. Why would he need to ask any questions beyond that? Not to mention I'd say Stansberry is paying him a fairly decent chunk of change to spruik him on air at every opportunity. Money talks.
As for Stansberry, 'scheming conman' doesn't even do it justice. When you look into the earlier stock scams he was involved in (before he was convicted of fraud), it was some pretty despicable stuff.
It's completely tarnished what little reputation Jones had left, imho.
2 knerp 2011-03-28
I'll see if i can find the link to the Stansberry story I found and yes i read about his stock scams too, real nasty stuff. Also, I was wondering if this topic ever came up in the Info Wars official forums (of which i do not frequent). I for one would like to hear Jones's side of the story or if not his then maybe someone who works for him. An explanation is definitely in order. Perhaps someone should start a thread there if one hasn't already been created and if it has, keep bumping it until someone comes clean. And hey, do you have a link to the Stansberry story you found, I like to read that.
0 nocubir 2011-03-28
The link was in the post http://briandeer.com/stansberry/stansberry-investment-1.htm.
As for the infowars official forums, I used to post there many years ago, but it became obvious that Jones must have been employing a couple of monkeys who did nothing all day but sit there and censor anything (and I mean anything ) that was even remotely critical of Alex Jones or his contributors (particularly the "Watson Brothers"). So yeah, good luck with that.
Let me know if you have any success. I think the more obvious thing to do would be for somebody to call him during open lines on his radio show, and very politely ask him whether he knows anything about Stansberry's criminal history, and what he has to say about it. But once again, if the show is on a delay (which is more than likely), I'm sure they'd be cut off within seconds. Worth a shot though huh?
Somebody should do it. I would but I live in a completely opposite timezone to the USA.
0 knerp 2011-03-28
Ahh, that's the same one I read. Pretty damning evidence if you ask me but I'll still listen to and like the show. Alex is usually pretty likable even when I disagree with him. For example he doesn't believe in over population which denies simple mathematical realities of how growth works. or his stance on abortion but even with those things I still manage to like him, in fact the only time I've ever seen him act like a total asshole was when he interviewed Peter Joseph, the creator and narrator of Zeitgeist. There was no reason for those two to not get along but Alex just wouldn't let Joseph have his say in peace. I know this makes no sense but this interview made me dislike AJ more than anything. Joesph is basically a futurist and Jones is more topical so there's no reason for the conflict yet for some reason Alex appeared very threatened by the mans ideas. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9K6xzchl6M (5 parts)
0 phillyharper 2011-03-28
The only thing you need to know about the fate of the world is contained in Chris Martenson's crash course.
1 AGATECH 2011-03-28
Link?
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
The man is basically saying that the con artist I mentioned that Jones is promoting is not as good as the con artist that he is promoting.
0 glacierfresh 2011-03-28
http://www.chrismartenson.com/crashcourse
0 [deleted] 2011-03-28
[deleted]
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
Interesting perspective. So why would he align himself with somebody who would destroy his credibility? Doesn't make sense.
1 [deleted] 2011-03-28
[deleted]
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
The purpose of Emmanuel Goldstein in 1984 was a fictitious "Rebel Leader", much like "Osama Bin Laden" in our world. This served the dual purpose of having an boogeyman the state could use to scare the population into submission, and as a lightning rod to draw in any who might be rebellious or fifth columners.
Now how exactly would the short term goal of "money" outweigh keeping a "credible" agent like that in power?
I get what you're saying, I just think that until now, Jones has done a pretty good job of keeping the money making operations to those which fulfill a niche, but not ones which are actually borderline criminal. This thing could bring down the whole game, if it is, in fact as you suggest, a game.
0 [deleted] 2011-03-28
[deleted]
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
Oh wow, really? Do you have any sources for this? I would expect not since it sounds just like hearsay, but it wouldn't surprise me in the slightest.
I wonder if she's behind the obvious poor judgement in getting behind this Stansberry guy, with all guns blazing.
-1 glacierfresh 2011-03-28
What? You mean to say the SEC actually convicted someone of fraud? GET.OUT. I thought they were too busy ignoring Bernie Madoff and watching porn on their computers to prosecute fraudsters.
What if you looked at it this way: It takes a fraudster to know one, and being convicted of "fraud" by an institution that missed Bernie Madoff calls into question the legitimacy of the charges.
Henry Blodget, another "convicted fraudster" is picked up by Slate, Newsweek and Canada's Financial Post. Has it been "career suicide" for these news outlets to partner with Business Insider?
If you don't like Stansberry's conclusions, then talk to where his analysis has gone wrong. It does no good to pull the ad hominem fallacy and focus on an SEC charge that may have been dubious at best.
5 nocubir 2011-03-28
Bernie Madoff is in jail, serving a 150 year prison sentence, you fucking moron.
As for Stansberry - his conclusions are simplistic and not at all unique - dozens of analysts have been saying similar things for years. Where I take issue is where he builds them up into a boogeyman, then proclaims that he has the answer, and he won't reveal it unless the viewer parts with some of their cash. I would like to point out also that the reason he was convicted of fraud was in precisely the same situation - he lied to a whole pile of people in order to convince them to buy into something that he would profit off of. That's called theft! :P
As for your claim of the SEC's evidence (not "claims", as you put it misleadingly) - I'm sorry, but between the SEC, and some random fuckwit on the internet, I'll side with the SEC.
1 glacierfresh 2011-03-28
Wow you seem really bent out of shape about this. The fact remains that Bernie was only caught after people lost their entire life's savings. This Porter guy claimed that a stock would double, and it only went up 40%. Between losing my entire life's savings, and making a 40% return, I'd choose the latter.
As for Stansberry's arguement, you still haven't levelled any counter-factual claims to somehow prove the contrary - that the US is not headed for a brick wall. Your concern seems to be more about his business model, in which case you're free not to purchase his research if you feel the incentives are skewed, which is more of an objection to the business model than it is a disagreement with the conclusions of his research. If you think somehow that investment houses and banks are not immune to a conflict of interest, have a read of this, from 2001:
http://www.forbes.com/2001/10/22/1019inl101.html
-2 [deleted] 2011-03-28
[deleted]
1 [deleted] 2011-03-28
nail meet hammer.
1 [deleted] 2011-03-28
TIL Alex Jones is a racist douchebag.
-1 itsnotlupus 2011-03-28
ok, I'm used to the anti-zionist sentiments, but anti-jesuits, really?
What's wrong with Jesuits again?
-4 elacdcel 2011-03-28
The man's a fucking legend. This is more COINTELPRO BULLSHIT!!
4 nocubir 2011-03-28
You're kidding, right? Funny shit....
0 elacdcel 2011-03-28
I've spent seven years reading day in day out copper, I know whats going on. Jones is spot on anytime I listen, COINTELPRO horseshit as usual.
3 nocubir 2011-03-28
Righto then. I suggest you up your meds.
(and by all means, give all your money to Porter Stansfield ;P )
0 elacdcel 2011-03-28
Okay okay, tell me what Alex Jones is wrong about, and please don't give me a rant about the Jews, a favourite technique of the intelligence sevices.
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
You didn't even read this post. You are a troll.
But that's ok, to quote your earlier work, you apparently have a small dick, so I'll let it slide :
">All Forever Aloners have small penises, I know, because I am one :("
-1 elacdcel 2011-03-28
Yes but i'm a fucking genius, and Alex Jones is right 95% of the time. Plus that was a joke. I'm married with three kids. To a beautiful woman. So Mr Police Officer, tell me what Alex Jones is wrong about, don't dodge the question officer.
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
Lol what the fuck are you smoking dude..
Go away, troll.
-4 elacdcel 2011-03-28
C'mon copper, don't dodge the question. What does Alex Jones get wrong. Who are you NSA? FBI?
5 nocubir 2011-03-28
I see Alex Jones' listeners have turned up.
You're a fucking idiot. See all that text at the top of the post?
Read it.
0 elacdcel 2011-03-28
No no, I want YOU to explain what he's lying about.
2 kudoz 2011-03-28
That is him, you fucking idiot.
2 nocubir 2011-03-28
Well - and I can't believe I'm feeding a troll - for starters I never said Jones is lying about anything.
I say again, time for your meds.
1 elacdcel 2011-03-28
So Jones ISN'T lying then, then whats your fucking point asshole?
5 nocubir 2011-03-28
As I stated in the post, he is associating with and promoting the work of somebody convicted of securities fraud. Which for Jones seems to be a little bit insane. Follow the bouncing ball, 'asshole'.
1 elacdcel 2011-03-28
Go eat some fucking donuts pig, you've nothing on Jones, you cant give me ONE instance where he was lying, know why? There is none. Your an agent, a shit one at that. Jesus is a metaphor for the sun, thats why its behind his head, the twelve apostles are the twelve months of the year. Look at the crescent moon sideway and you'll see why the devil has horns on his head. I know my shit chief, so does Jones. COINTELPRO dirty tricks, infiltrate forums, message boards etc and spread disinfo. Seriously your scum, just hang yourself tonight, please. The world will be a better place, and you and I know it, your filth, a CIA scumbag who'll finally do the honourable thing tonight and look up how to make a noose. Cunt.
3 nocubir 2011-03-28
Oh wow this is too much fun.... :D
Yeah, I'm COINTELPRO dude. I'm in your BRAIN, IN AN IMPLANT!
:D
0 elacdcel 2011-03-28
No your a Fed.
3 Darrelc 2011-03-28
No, I'm a Fed. I'm watching you Kevin.
1 elacdcel 2011-03-28
I don't doubt it.
3 Darrelc 2011-03-28
I genuinely thought you were a troll too. Wow. Just Wow. Must tell Obama about this
1 elacdcel 2011-03-28
Then off you go.
2 Darrelc 2011-03-28
Few details please, for my own curiosity / dissident database, whichevers more comfortable.
Do you have a job?
Do you think the moon landings were faked?
Do you genuinely believe me when I say I'm a government agent?
All being fair you can have three questions back.
2 Darrelc 2011-03-28
Nice reply, internet badman.
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
I seem to recall tussling with you some years ago on an AJ forum on his website. Then again, it could be any number of the nutcases who thinks everyone who disagrees with Jones on a forum must be "a fed".
Either way, thanks for a damn entertaining show.
1 learnmore 2011-03-28
I think it's more likely Jones is COINTELPRO than the other way around.
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
Interesting perspective. So why would he align himself with somebody who would destroy his credibility? Doesn't make sense.
3 nocubir 2011-03-28
Righto then. I suggest you up your meds.
(and by all means, give all your money to Porter Stansfield ;P )
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
Thanks, good to know. I've always thought he was a closet racist. Not because he actively engages in racism (except if we're talking about Mexicans), but he almost NEVER talks about black people. I've always suspected he's just been holding his tongue.
5 nocubir 2011-03-28
Bernie Madoff is in jail, serving a 150 year prison sentence, you fucking moron.
As for Stansberry - his conclusions are simplistic and not at all unique - dozens of analysts have been saying similar things for years. Where I take issue is where he builds them up into a boogeyman, then proclaims that he has the answer, and he won't reveal it unless the viewer parts with some of their cash. I would like to point out also that the reason he was convicted of fraud was in precisely the same situation - he lied to a whole pile of people in order to convince them to buy into something that he would profit off of. That's called theft! :P
As for your claim of the SEC's evidence (not "claims", as you put it misleadingly) - I'm sorry, but between the SEC, and some random fuckwit on the internet, I'll side with the SEC.
2 Darrelc 2011-03-28
Few details please, for my own curiosity / dissident database, whichevers more comfortable.
Do you have a job?
Do you think the moon landings were faked?
Do you genuinely believe me when I say I'm a government agent?
All being fair you can have three questions back.
1 nocubir 2011-03-28
Oh wow, really? Do you have any sources for this? I would expect not since it sounds just like hearsay, but it wouldn't surprise me in the slightest.
I wonder if she's behind the obvious poor judgement in getting behind this Stansberry guy, with all guns blazing.
2 knerp 2011-03-28
I'll see if i can find the link to the Stansberry story I found and yes i read about his stock scams too, real nasty stuff. Also, I was wondering if this topic ever came up in the Info Wars official forums (of which i do not frequent). I for one would like to hear Jones's side of the story or if not his then maybe someone who works for him. An explanation is definitely in order. Perhaps someone should start a thread there if one hasn't already been created and if it has, keep bumping it until someone comes clean. And hey, do you have a link to the Stansberry story you found, I like to read that.
2 Darrelc 2011-03-28
Nice reply, internet badman.