Yesterday, a friend shared with me this link: “Charlottesville: Alex Jones claims white supremacist protesters were ‘just Jewish actors‘”” and asked what I thought? My countenance dropped when I discovered the source was “the Independent”. I cast my mind back to many years back when the Independent first came out and I was a fan, but in recent years I have stopped being a fan as I believe there to be a bias that inclines it toward the Fake News category. Fake News is a pejorative term and gives rise to accusation and counter accusation by opposing factions. Strictly speaking “fake” is that which is claimed as true yet knowingly false, and is intended to mislead, although more often or not those accused of propagating fake news are selecting and commenting on material according to their beliefs and agenda, and most of us are prone.

I considered the matter a few months back in my blog article titled: “Conspiracy Theories and Fake News” and as for Alex Jones, subject of my friend’s share, some of my thoughts are in my “Open letter to Alex Jones (Infowars)”. I am not an apologist for Jones although I confess to watching highlights of his shows by means of a corrective to what mainstream news fails to cover. Being a seeker after the truth / glutton for punishment, I also follow shows like Rachel Maddow’s, Jones’ nemesis. In my skepticism I consider one needs to examine different and sometimes contradictory sources in order to arrive at a true and balanced position. As for Jones, he can prove remarkably insightful, touching stories not covered elsewhere and proven later to be true, that is if you can live with his cussing, histrionics and slagging people off he doesn’t like, which his show is full of. He is unashamedly open as to his new (not alt) right and anti-globalist position, and doesn’t give much credit to other views. While I urge caution when listening to Jones, as I do with all news outlets, I also believe he has something valid to say.

As for the suggestion (I think rather than claim) those purporting to be KKK supporters were Jewish actors, I am undecided (although I am given to believe he has good reasons for holding those views) and agree he really needs to back this up with hard evidence. Even regarding the point rammed home that the violence we saw on Saturday was not just instigated by the white supremacist marchers but by anti-fascist protestors also, while I believe that to be the case I would much rather he spend time proving the case. But I do think he is too often vilified. In the case of Sandy Hook (mentioned also in my letter) I don’t believe he was denying the atrocity took place but rather that not everything that which was presented as fact was, a point his detractors conveniently overlooked. I threw in “gay frogs” in my letter because it referred to a conspiracy theory Jones shared over 10 years ago about the way our rivers are being polluted by chemicals thrown in. I believe there is now strong evidence that this is the case and it affects the sexuality of animals living in those waters. As for the KKK (an organisation incidentally he has been out-rightly critical of), I quite get it that this is part of Jones’ belief of a Deep State involvement in what has been happening in Charlottesville. If you think that is fanciful, check out the article (there is several of that ilk) “Historians find ‘proof’ that Nazis burnt Reichstag”. There have been many subsequent false flags and who is to say what we have recently seen in Charlottesville isn’t one. As I feared, the Independent article was more by way of casting dispersions on Jones rather than objective reporting.

My brand of Christianity lays great store to seeking out and fighting for truth. In the last couple of years as I have embarked on an exercise of finding out what is really going on in the world, I have been astounded (even by my standards) that the truth (of the what really matters variety) is too often distorted or ignored altogether. The greatest truths are contained in the Bible. While I like the advice of Billy Graham we need to read the Bible and our newspaper in tandem, the problem is finding out which newspaper, for sadly great integrity is often the missing jewel. I suspect grains of truth can be found everywhere, including Alex Jones. My quest continues. Along with it is my consternation what people see and hear in the media, which too often promotes a false narrative, has a profound affect on our culture. If they are sold falsehoods that is what they will believe and this will influence their actions. Therefore exposing lies and proclaiming truth is a noble pursuit; it is the truth that sets us free.

Update 18/08/2017: Checking out yesterday’s Alex Jones broadcast, I note Jones denies the claim in the above story, although he admits in years gone by there have been Jewish actors posing as KKK members, for Deep State instigated false flag purposes. It is a matter of checking one person, who some are suspicion of, story against that of a newspaper known to have published fake news. I suspect in Jones case, rather than present like a clever lawyer, carefully choosing his words, he is more inclined to shoot from the hip and sometimes his words may be injudicious. The newspaper claim brings to mind the words of Kipling: “If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools“. While I am inclined to believe Jones, the moral is before making any claim, one must check out facts and argue accordingly.