Our last issue featured the story "9-11 at Nine: The Conspiracy Industry and the Lure of Fascism [2]" by World War 4 Report editor Bill Weinberg, calling out the growing embrace of right-wing and virulently anti-Semitic conspiracy theory by the left-wing blogosphere and alternative media. Weinberg also had to issue a statement [3] dissenting from the right-wing conspiranoid drift at New York's non-commercial WBAI Radio, where his program, the Moorish Orthodox Radio Crusade [4], has been exiled to 2 AM and stripped by 30 minutes as a punitive measure in response to his protests. Our September Exit Poll was: "Is World War 4 Report editor Bill Weinberg an agent of the Illuminati, pawn of the Bilderbergs, Mossad operative and/or shape-shifting reptilian?" We finally received the following responses:
From Joseph Wetmore of Autumn Leaves Used Books [5] in Ithaca, NY:
Your shape has changed over the last 30 years, so maybe you are a shape-shifting reptilian.
But you rig the question by feeding us a finite set of answers. Why not:
Propagandist of the New World Order?
or
Pawn of the Federal Reserve System?
or
Member of the International Communist Conspiracy?
Perhaps you work for one of these organizations:
* Ashmedai's 2069
* 1001 Club
* Bohemian Grove
* Committee of 300
* Council on Foreign Relations
* Freemasons
* Le Cercle
* Majestic 12
* Men In Black
* Nine Unknown Men
* Pilgrims Society
* Royal Institute of International Affairs
* Skull and Bones
* Trilateral CommissionThe list of possibilities is so large, it is hard to know where to start!
Bill Weinberg responds: You forgot the Shriners. Hey, my shape hasn't changed THAT much!
From Josh Garey, in Berkeley, California:
I call bullshit on your article "9/11 at nine"—Icke is clearly mad at Israel, but no more so than the UK, the US, Saudi Arabia, the Vatican or any other power-grubbing, fear-mongering institution. His most known phrase is "infinite love is the only truth, everything else is illusion" and I think he truly believes that. You intentionally left out that the crux of his reptilian argument lies on the Windsors, not the Rothschilds, not Jews even a little bit.
Being half-jewish, I know when jews hide behind the anti-semitism rap, and that is exactly what you are doing. Jews can be evil or good, just like anyone else.
Also, if you doubt Icke’s research, try Pullitzer Prize-winning Dr. John Mack, PhD, Harvard (deceased) who also agreed, before his untimely and suspicious death, that Reptilians seemed to be real indeed.
Bill Weinberg responds: I call bullshit on your calling bullshit, and very vile bullshit at that. If David Icke doesn't have a particular hard-on for the Jews, why does he promote [6] the Protocols of the Elders of Zion? If you buy his "infinite love" rhetoric, can I sell you a bridge in Brooklyn? If you are half-Jewish (as I am, by the way), why do you put "Jewish" in the lower case? Would you treat whatever ethnicity your other half is the same way? Most importantly, what do you perceive that I am "hiding" behind the "anti-semitism rap"? I'd be most interested to know.
From Anonymous, somewhere in cybersapce:
Please remove me from all email lists.
Your opposition to exposing 9/11 and support of the global warming lie indicate you are a Rothschild shill.
Good bye!
Bill Weinberg responds: Good riddance, conspiranoid crank.
From Judith Pasternak of the Political Landscape [7] blog, in New York City:
Something more sinister, so to speak: A journalist of the left.
Bill Weinberg responds: Thank you. There are still a few of us left...
From Janet Martell, somewhere in cyberspace:
Bill, I find it curious that you are so witheringly contemptuous of conspiracy in what was such an obvious, in-your-face kind of event that even a child could see had nothing at all to do with the official "facts" -- but you have advanced a conspiracy theory about the origin of AIDS that is intriguing and far from obvious.
Bill Weinberg responds: What the hell are you talking about?
From Kim Alphandary in (we think) San Diego:
Thank you very much for your article: "9-11 at Nine - The Conspiracy Industry and the Lure of Fascism." Your reporting is GREAT.
In some way, I feel most moved by an article like the one mentioned above. Or, occasionally I will go back and re-read the Jan. 17, 2005 article: "WELCOME TO WORLD WAR 4 [8]"
Suggestion:
First, you mentioned Chris Hedges, another fellow comes to mind, Derrick Jensen. These two fellows seem to have made a niche for themselves as leading thinkers, book writers, prophets of the LEFT. Especially their debates about violence vs non-violence, or more simply put -- promotion of a violent solution to the catastrophic state of world affairs as seen through the lens of economic and ecological degradation.
Second, the suggestion. Write more brilliant analysis. Perhaps you're thinking, "I do it all the time." I don't think you do. Your ability to analyze events is downright incredible, where being a simple journalist in your case seems like a waste of your greatest talents. For folk like myself, I feel seized by the desire to understand what in the heck is going on in this world. In this, you have been an occasional assistant. I know. You think I'm silly. Anyway.
Thanx for you great work.
Bill Weinberg responds: Kim, many thanks for the kudos. In light of all the abuse I take, they mean a lot to me. However, I have no desire to be another Leftist Talking Head like Chris Hedges. Call me old-fashioned, but I believe in letting the facts speak for themselves. I spend more time on reportage than analysis because I believe that an insightful analysis can only arise from a comprehensive grasp of the facts. Alas, nothing is less fashionable in this age of gas-baggery, and holding to this ethic has manifestly hurt my career.
From Peter Jakobsson in Glasgow, UK:
I am generally left-leaning, non activist regular, professional male living in Glasgow Scotland. I am an occasional reader of WW4R.
I have a technical background in aviation (an Honours Degree in Aeronautical Engineering and a Commercial Pilot's Licence), and have felt for a long time that the official explanation given for the events of 9/11 is fundamentally untrue.
I'm afraid I do not recognize myself in Bill's commentary of September 1st, 2010 (9-11 At Nine) and would like to voice my objection to your journal characterising these views as essentially political fascism or any other type of extremism.
If Bill wants to reconcile skeptics of the official account of 9.11 with causes in the public interest, he can start with the fact that it is not possible (and was not possible before 9/11) for members of the public to 'steal' airliners in mid-flight and navigate them unhindered around US airspace. The fact that this did allegedly happen on 9/11 has never been appropriately accounted for.
The pursuit of truth with regards to the events of 9/11 is a cause which falls squarely into left wing ideology, being that the impact of the resulting geo-political fallout is being felt mainly by working people around the world.
How many adverse political labels & soundbites can Bill cram into one article without informing the reader as the genuine nature of the issues that people such as myself have with the official account ? That's the question left on my lips after reading. Talk about being blinded by political dogma.
I don't think it serves the interests of genuine enquiry (or those of any left wing ideology for that matter) for WW4R to be carrying such examples of simple, uninformative nonsense and I wish to register this view with you in the strongest possible terms.
World War 4 Report responds: You missed the whole point of what I wrote. I stated that I wasn't interested in the minutiae of 9-11, about which there has been plenty written, God knows. I am certainly not interested in baseless assertions that the mid-flight seizure of airliners is not "possible." Do you think it is a matter of no import that some of the most prominent figures in the 9-11 conspiracy milieu (like David Icke) are slimy fascistic types?
From Save the Roaches, somewhere in cyberspace:
Hey Bill,
Personally, i don't think you're involved with the illuminati, bilderbergs, mossad, or the reptiles or any other ridiculous conspiracy besides possibly being a reporter (some people may think that's enough to make you a reptile, but in a 'cold blooded, crocadile tears' kind of sense). But the 'shape-shifting' reptile thing is just hilarious (and very sad at the same time). I've heard it referenced a few times but had no idea how ridiculous it really was. Thanks for some interesting insights into how 'conspiracy theory' has been evolving
By the way, I reposted your article into infoshop news [9] (anarchistnews.org [10] too, but it never appeared there). Hope you don't mind, I thought it would be appreciated, and it seems to have been. It struck up an interesting conversation which i just noticed, but some people think you put it there, so maybe you should check it out? I linked it to your site as well (well, i tried to, i'm not the best at stuff like that). Sorry I didn't tell you earlier, I meant to but it slipped my mind as I moved again
Bill Weinberg responds: Thanks for spreading the word.
See our last Exit Poll results [11], and our last posts on conspiracy industry [12] and the rise of the radical right [13].
Please leave a tip [14] or answer our new Exit Poll [15].
