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Breaking News
Jared Loughner’s Zeitgeist Obsession
Did a conspiracy cult film inspire the Tucson shooter?
The two-hour video is anti-Christian, anti-American and anti-capitalist, and Jared Lee Loughner became obsessed with it. Zeitgeist, a conspiracy-theory documentary released in 2007, has spawned its own cult following. According to Loughner’s friends, the accused Tucson gunman was one of the cult’s most zealous converts. And many of Loughner’s otherwise inexplicable obsessions — from his fascination with currency to his rantings against illiteracy to his paranoid fears of “mind control” — parallel ideas promoted in Zeitgeist.
The first disclosure of the movie’s influence on the mass murder suspect’s beliefs came in an interview Wednesday with ABC News. “I really think that this Zeitgeist documentary had a profound impact upon Jared Loughner’s mindset and how he views the world that he lives in,” Zach Osler, 22, told ABC’s Ashleigh Banfield. Osler’s father confirmed that influence in an interview published Sunday by the Arizona Republic. “He wanted to watch [Zeitgeist] all the time,” George Osler told the Phoenix newspaper. “It was cool at first. But then it got weird. It was all he wanted to do.”
The Zeitgeist connection may be the most crucial clue to understanding the bizarre ideas that seemed to crowd Loughner’s disordered mind in months leading up to the Jan. 8 shootings that left six dead and 12 wounded in Arizona. By the time he latched onto the conspiracy-theory film, Loughner was already a very troubled young man. Described as quiet and awkward, Loughner had been a promising saxophonist, playing in a student jazz group, but began using drugs and alcohol in high school. Some friends have traced the start of his decline to his sophomore year of high school in 2005, when he broke up with a girlfriend. He dropped out of high school after his junior year and thereafter lost touch with many of his former friends, including Caitlyn Parker. On the day of the shooting which targeted Democratic Rep. Gabby Giffords, Parker was one of the first of the accused gunman’s acquaintances to push back against speculation that the crime had been perpetrated by a right-winger. No, Parker said in a series of Twitter messages, the Jared Loughner she remembered was “quite liberal,” even “radical” in his politics. But Parker hadn’t been in contact with Loughner in more than four years. Could it be that, in the interval, Loughner’s orientation had changed? After all, some observers said, his disjointed online messages about currency could reflect the kind of anti-Federal Reserve views of many free-market purists on the Right.
Loughner’s Zeitgeist fixation help clears up that confusion. Zach Osler and Loughner remained friends after high school, until late 2008, and what Loughner absorbed from Zeitgeist certainly wasn’t conservatism. Jesse Walker of Reason magazine has called the movie’s worldview “New Age paranoia,” a fringe that is also beyond the range of mainstream liberalism, but its assertion that the 9/11 attacks were conspiracy orchestrated by the U.S. government clearly makes it a phenomenon of the Left. And while Zeitgeist has been associated with the so-called “Truther” movement — like the 2005 movie Loose Change, of which Loughner was also reportedly a fan — it adds other ideas that make it far more complex.
Divided into three parts, Zeitgeist begins with a half-hour assault on Christianity as a myth. The film asserts that Jesus is “a literary and astrological hybrid… a plagiarization of the Egyptian sun-god Horus.” This is a thesis promoted in a series of books, including The Christ Conspiracy (1999), by author D.M. Murdock, who writes under the pen-name “Achyra S.” Murdock served as an adviser on Zeitgeist, and the film’s popularization of her “Christ-myth” ideas has brought it to the attention of Christian writer James Patrick Holding of Tektonics Ministry. He notes that many viewers of Zeitgeist claim it has “shown them the truth for the first time,” and that it evidently appeals to those “disaffected with the status quo.” Holding said Zietgeist “also seems to have appeal among what I call ‘fundamentalist atheists’ who are deeply hostile to Christianity.”
Deeply hostile, indeed, as the film tells viewers: “Christianity, along with all other theistic belief systems, is the fraud of the age.” This idea of fraudulent mythology is then carried over into the film’s second segment, about the 9/11 attacks: “A myth is an idea that, while widely believed, is false. In a deeper sense, in the religious sense, a myth serves as an orienting and mobilizing story for a people.” That 35-minute segment ends with audio of a speech by John F. Kennedy talking about a “ruthless and monolithic conspiracy.” Of course, JFK was talking about communism, but after a half-hour of claims that the U.S. government was responsible for the 9/11 attacks, Kennedy’s words about “infiltration” and “subversion” take on a different meaning for the intended audience. And that segment ends with scenes of Kennedy’s 1963 assassination in Dallas.
What follows in the third segment of Zeitgeist is a mélange of conspiracy-theory stuff about “ruthless banking interests,” in which such usual suspects as the Rothschilds make their appearance. The narrator declares the income tax “completely unconstitutional,” despite the 16th Amendment, which specifically authorizes it. U.S. involvement in World War I, World War II and Vietnam are all denounced as the results of secret plots, and Prescott Bush — father and grandfather of presidents — is portrayed as a Nazi collaborator. Finally, Zeitgeist pushes fears of a government scheme to implant communications chips into people to track their whereabouts, and concludes by warning of a “surveillance society,” a future “where everyone is tracked, everyone is on camera and everyone is subordinated.” Indeed, the film’s narrator tells viewers in the closing monologue, “social manipulation” has already “completely inhibited the culture,” creating “a controlled population utterly malleable in the hands of the few.”
This is the paranoid worldview that Jared Loughner absorbed as he watched Zeitgeist obsessively. He was not the only one obsessed with it. The film has created a worldwide “movement” with thousands of followers, in which the director, Peter Joseph, has joined forces with Jacque Fresco, promoter of the utopian “Venus Project” that promises a currency-free “resource-based” future.
“They do not want you to think too much.… You had better wake up and understand that there are people guiding your life, and you don’t even know it,” says one of the film’s “experts,” anti-Masonic conspiracy theorist Jordan Maxwell, near the end of Zeitgeist, after the narrator has denounced “the stupefying downward slide” of American education. A few minutes later, while images including Jesus Christ, Bill O’Reilly and Saddam Hussein flash across the screen, the narrator says: “The last thing the men behind the curtain want is a conscious, informed public, capable of critical thinking, which is why a continually fraudulent zeitgeist is output via religion, the mass media and the educational system.”
Did Jared Loughner imagine himself part of that “conscious, informed public”? Did he believe his demented rantings represented “critical thinking”? These are questions that those trying to understand the carnage in Tucson may need to begin asking.
About the Author
Robert Stacy McCain is co-author (with Lynn Vincent) of Donkey Cons: Sex, Crime, and Corruption in the Democratic Party (Nelson Current). He blogs at The Other McCain.
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Booger | 1.17.11 @ 6:11AM
Transcript of Countdown With Keith Olbermann from January 17, 2011
Keith Olbermann: Tonight, live from Tucson, Arizona, we are once again joined by the absolute zenith, the paragon, the creme de la creme of American law enforcement, Sheriff Clarence Dupnik! Sheriff Dupnik, thanks for being on the show again. I understand that you have unearthed more evidence in the Tea-bagger attack that took place there, and now believe it may be part of a broader conspiracy linked to a previous attack.
Sheriff Dupnik: That's right, Keith. The crack investigative squad at my office has been doing non-stop research for days using the latest in technology and criminal justice technology. In this case, that means we've been following up on a long list of leads that have been forwarded to our e-mail account from the Huffington Post. If that ain't high tech, I don't know what is. After all, we're using computers.
K.O.: With you so far, sheriff. Okay, what have you learned from the Huffington Post?
S.D.: Well, it turns out that the shooting here in Tucson is connected to another shooting that took place last year. We've been getting all kinds of leads on this, and we think we've got an air-tight case. It looks like we're going to be able to tie the Tea-bagger movement to another rampage, and expose them for the violent conspiracy they really are.
K.O.: Sheriff Dupnik, I hardly know what to say! Sounds to me like you're the man to save America! Tell me, who are these intrepid citizen journalists coming forward from the Huffington Post to provide you with this information?
S.D.: Well, Keith, unfortunately I really can't say because they all send me these posts anonymously. Unless "Red Diaper Dandy in Berkeley" is somebody's real name, but I think it's just a alias. At any rate, these folks don't want their names out there, which I can understand, since they're so scared of the Tea-baggers.
K.O.: Absolutely, sheriff, absolutely. But at least you know the information is legitimate since it's coming from the Huffington Post. Tell me, what is this other shooting?
S.D.: Well, it turns out that Nadal Hasan fellow who shot up Fort Hood last year was actually a member of the Tea-bagger movement. That makes two connected attacks by the Tea-baggers in two states, which ought to get the FBI involved in hunting down Palin and her terrorist army asap!
K.O.: Nadal Hasan? But I thought he was a......
S.D.: Exactly, Keith, exactly. That's just what they wanted you to think. The Tea-baggers got one of their own to pose as a Muslim, which is of course the religion of peace, and then commit this crime to turn Americans against the poor peaceful followers of the religion of peace. The whole Fort Hood attack was a plot by Sarah Palin, and Nadal Hasan is actually a secret member of the Tea-bagger movement. See, Palin, along with her co-conspirators Glen Beck and Rush Limbaugh, figured if they could get some guy to pretend to be a follower of Islam and kill a bunch of soldiers, it would get Americans all fired up for George Bush Jr.'s illegal wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
K.O.: Incredible! So Palin was not only behind the shooting in Tucson, she was behind the Fort Hood attack as well! Sheriff, it's all coming together for me now! I can't believe I didn't see it earlier! You've got to be the most incredible detective in the history of the world! Tell me, what kind of hard evidence do you have at this point?
S.D.: Well, mostly e-mails from the Huffington Post. That and my own gut instincts, which is quite a bit when you've been in law enforcement as long as I have. I think we have enough here to forward to Eric Holder at the Department of Justice to get a warrant for the arrest of Palin, Beck and Limbaugh right away. I also think there's a good chance we can get the Tea-bagger movement declared a conspiracy against the government and have the FBI, Federal Marshals, BATFE and IRS move against any and all Tea-baggers immediately. This may even give us enough ammo to go back and retroactively impeach Bush!
K.O.: Sheriff Dupnik, what can I say? My legs are tingling! Keep up the great work, and feel free to come back and update us here on the program as soon as you have more info!
More here.... http://beautifulletters-bls.blogspot.com/
JoshINHB| 1.17.11 @ 10:54AM
Bravo.
hawkeye| 1.17.11 @ 4:06PM
ROFLM@O
TJ Monster| 1.18.11 @ 2:08PM
This is pure propaganda. The shooter was a liberal democrat and had nothing to do with the tea party and nothing to do with the zeitgeist movement. The ZG movement is about finding new ways to improve society through intellectual means. Not with riots or violence. The ZG is NOT a political movement and has nothing to do with politics other than to inform people of the traps its uses to control society. Solutions in the ZG movement make politics irrelevant and useless. Violence would only strengthen political views. SO it would be against the ZG movement to commit and act of violence.
inge| 1.20.11 @ 6:12AM
You are naive!
Just to use a metaphor: Do you think Satan would come right out, and tell you his intent to own, and destroy you?
Of course not, Satan will use 'sweet words rapped into deception' and seduce you. When he's fooled you, he'll come after you with a smile for his original intent.
Are you really that naive to believe, we can do away with worldwide borders, sit down with Osama Bin Laden, Ahmadenijad, Mullar omar, and sip tea? The whole world siging 'kumbaja'?
That is basically Zeitgeits objective!
Zee| 1.20.11 @ 2:13PM
This article only proves theories described in the entirety of the 3 Zeitgeist movies, which are the MOST WATCHED ONLINE FILMS IN HISTORY.
The media is just a form of control, as is organized religion. It is obvious that the general public will point fingers at any target, rather than take into account the enviroment that this sick Jared was brought up in. Another example of a similar situation is when the media tried to blame Marilyn Manson for the Columbine disaster. Pointing fingers is always easier than looking for real answers, and that is what the media is here to do.
I personally recommend Peter Joseph, Jacque Fresco and Roxanne Meadows for an award greater than the Nobel Peace Prize. All of their efforts have opened my eyes to see what our world could be.
*facepalm*| 1.22.11 @ 7:27PM
The second thing I see in the comments section of this ridiculous, libel, article is someone comparing a group of critical thinking people to "the morning star"/"the desolate one"/"Diabolus" ie: a fictional character who was invented by catholic zionists as an excuse to convert/execute pagans/"witches" in the dark ages.
What really saddens me is whenever someone picks up a gun and SLAUGHTERS a bunch of people America sits back and discusses who's to blame, and usually turns it into an attack on something totally un-related.
This is like Marlin Manson being blamed for the Columbine massacre.
Is it so hard to accept that maybe Loughner was just plain bonkers nuts???
It sounds to me like he was just a ticking time-bomb, and anything would have eventually set him off.
If he would have been obsessed with the bible, like Eric Rudolf, he probably would have done the same thing.
It's interesting that you use Satan as part of your argument, and then mention Osama Bin Laden ect. These are also people who follow a religion with tremendous zeal, and look what they like to do...
Perhaps, instead of trying to twist un-related things into objects of blame here, Americans should cut-to-the-chase and maybe demand better mental healthcare and gun control.
5words| 1.18.11 @ 4:05PM
You forgot Palin's psychopathic paranoid parasitic puppet master, John Hagee.
Quit Feeding The Damn Parasites!
john| 1.17.11 @ 7:11AM
http://www.facebook.com/note.p.....=519510494
john| 1.17.11 @ 7:13AM
This is the response from Peter Joseph, the maker of "Zeitgeist: moving forward" (the new film breaking world records around the would).
http://www.facebook.com/note.p.....=519510494
Appleby| 1.17.11 @ 8:10AM
Oddly enough, Mama and Daddy never fell for the assertion that Society Is To Blame -- and it was not Society that got grounded for six months for trying to sneak up the fire escape in a New York City hotel to meet the Rolling Stones, believe me.
KyMouse| 1.17.11 @ 9:25AM
I guess it's true, then -- you can't always get what you want.
Steve A| 1.17.11 @ 9:43AM
Ky, Nice!
Vern Crisler| 1.17.11 @ 11:43AM
Peter Joseph is almost as much of a nutty creep as Loughner is.
you neocon morons| 1.17.11 @ 7:36AM
9/11 was done by Israelis and Americans and is NOT "anti-american" to point that out you jingoistic morons. Dov Zakheim,9/11-google that to learn more about an ACTUAL 9/11 terrorist. Loughner was a lunatic, the THOUSANDS of architects and engineers who call BS are not. AE911truth.org
Jack Daniels| 1.17.11 @ 8:49AM
The "Truthers" are among us~
Vern Crisler| 1.17.11 @ 11:47AM
Properly speaking, they are "troothers" -- to borrow the spelling TV's own Andy Levy uses in another context.
Eric Cartman| 1.17.11 @ 9:05AM
Well, I googled Dov Zakheim and the first thing that I got was "grassy knoll and the Twin Towers". I clicked on that and was rerouted to "Area 51 and the Grassy Knoll". This redirected me to "9/11 Truth and the Bilderbergers" I clicked o the "Who are the Bilderbergers?" and was redirected to "Build-A-Bear location finder." I knew I was on to something, so I clicked on that. I was soon redirected to "Build-A-Bear and the Twin Towers" but it was a phone number. I called it and and man code named "G.I. Bear" answered. He told me to meet him at the Local Build-A-Bear and stand next to the filler machine. I did and G.I. Bear on the shelf started to talk:
GB: Eric, is that you?
EC: Yes. Yes, it's me.
GB: Where you followed?
EC: No, I don't think so.
GB: Good, here is the proof . . .
Just then, about 20 Police Bears and F.B.I Bears pulled up, tackled G.I. Bear, ripped off his "uniform" only to expose he really was Wikileaks Bear, beat him mercilessly, through him into the Polic Bear Car and drove away. So I STILL don't know who did it. But one thing I do know, I'll never . . .NEVER . . trust those Build-A-Bears again.
Eric Cartman| 1.17.11 @ 9:12AM
Damn! The Transcript Machine was sabotaged! It wrote "Where" when I said "were" ! I blame the build-A-Bears. They will stop at nothing! NOTHING I TELL YOU! To keep the message muddled. Bastards!
Vern Crisler| 1.17.11 @ 11:50AM
LOL, "G-d damn them all to hell" to quote Charlton Heston.
missbosslady| 1.17.11 @ 12:46PM
Thanks Cartman. Message received.
Excellent ruse to use the "typo" to forward message.
We begin Phase II.
Nick| 1.17.11 @ 3:19PM
Mr. Cartman,
The chair is against the wall, the chair is against the wall.
John has a long mustache, John has a long mustache.
All you Build-A-Bears, and Red Dawn fans, know what I'm talking about.
Lullabys, Legends and Lies| 1.17.11 @ 5:48PM
You made me have a flashback to J. Geils Band's Love Stinks album.
This is the story of a young couple in Portland, Maine.
While waiting for her husband Don to return home from work, she reaches for a can of anchovies. As she spreads the tiny fish across a piece of lettuce, she notices a small note at the bottom of the can. Written on it is a telephone number. Curious, she dials, and is told, "Don't move, lady, we'll be right over." Placing the phone back on the hook, she turns to see three smartly dressed men standing in her kitchen doorway. Before she realizes what is happening to her, she is rolled tightly in long sheets of cellophane, transported to an international airport, and placed on a waiting jet-liner. All this being too much for her to comprehend, she passes out.
Upon awakening, she finds herself in a strange, foreign speaking nation ("Dalas nekcihc dna tihs nekcihc neewteb ecnereffid eht wonk ot suineg a ekat t'nseod ti."). Alone, fearing her escape impossible, she seeks comfort in the arms of a confidential agent. With the trace of her kiss still warm upon his lips, he betrays her to the hands of three scientists who are engaged in diabolical, avant-garde experiments previously performed only on insects and other small, meaningless creatures. Using her as their subject, they are delighted with the results. For the first time, a human being is transformed into a ("shhh... it's secret").
Meanwhile, back in Portland, Maine...
Her husband Don, now chain-smoking 40 packs of cigarettes a day, sits at a local bar and has a few beers with the regulars. Bored, everyone's attention turns to the television set that just hangs from the wall. ("Welcome to Bowling for Dollars"). Suddenly, crazy Al says, "S-say, Don, there sure is something familiar about that bowling ball." To which a terrified Don replies, "Oh my God! That bowling ball! It's my wife!"
And the lesson we learn from this story is, next time you place your order, don't forget to say, "No anchovies please."
Appleby| 1.17.11 @ 7:46AM
Yesterday while waiting to see The Kings Speech, which by the way I recommend unconditionally and which has been playing to sellout crowds around here, I saw a trailer for something called The Adjustment Bureau which follows this same zeitgeist: that Sinister Guys (they are all guys) are following us around making sure we Follow The Plan.
Since the audience for this nonsense spends all its time with its head buried in the two-inch screen between its thumbs, it would be very easy to make sure they stayed Adjusted if anybody had time to bother. But how anybody could possibly believe such stuff is beyond the likes of me.
Samprindi| 1.17.11 @ 7:50AM
Good Morning America was NOT "the first" to disclose Loughner's interest in Zeitgeist. The only reason GMA was interviewing Osler was because front-line reporters at other news organizations had identified him as one of Loughner's closest friends. Nothing Osler said on Wednesday, Jan. 12, broke any news.
Mike Taibbi of NBC Nightly News reported on the Zeitgeist connection on Tuesday, Jan. 11:
“And did they know his other influences? -- allegedly smoking pot and the over-the-counter hallucinogen, salvia; and ingesting the government conspiracy themes in movies like Donnie Darko, and documentaries like Zeigeist and Loose Change.”
Amanda Lee Myers and Justin Pritchard of the Associated Press also reported on the Zeitgeist connection on Tuesday, Jan. 11:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/.....07479.html
“The boys listened to the heavy metal band Slipknot and progressive rockers The Mars Volta, studied the form of meditative movement called tai chi, and watched and discussed movies. Loughner's favorites included little-known conspiracy theory documentaries such as ‘Zeitgeist’ and ‘Loose Change’ as well as bigger studio productions with cult followings and themes of brainwashing, science fiction and altered states of consciousness, including ‘Donnie Darko’ and ‘A Scanner Darkly.’ ”
As these reporters pointed out, there's more than just Zeitgeist to talk about, but on his personal blog, McCain makes it clear why he's focusing on Zeigeist: he identifies The Zeitgeist Movement as socialist, and is pushing the narrative that liberal ideas motivated Loughner. He links the murders to liberalism through Zeitgeist:
"His friend Caitlyn Parker, who knew Loughner from his middle school years up until about 2007, has said his politics when she knew him was 'quite liberal,' 'left wing' and 'radical.' So then we follow through 2007-08 with Osler and find that Loughner was deeply interested in Zeitgeist. It was in that time-frame (August 2007, to be exact) that Loughner first encountered Rep. Gabby Giffords."
McCain even floated the rumor that Zeitgeist was financed by George Soros:
http://theothermccain.com/2011.....n-shooter/
And that's the unstated background for McCain's assertion here that Zeitgeist is "the crucial clue" to Loughner's actions: Loughner was a leftie.
Vern Crisler| 1.17.11 @ 11:55AM
No, he's simply showing that the leftwing mantra of the guilt of the Tea Party and Sarah Palin -- infamously paraded on the newscasts by miscreants like Sheriff Dopenik -- was not only false, but just the opposite of the case.
*facepalm*| 1.22.11 @ 7:48PM
So, according to the media, anyone who smokes pot, listens to Slipknot and watches underground/arthouse films is going to pick up a gun and commit mass murder?
Dunno, doing all these things sounds like pretty normal adolescent behaviour (except for the mass murder part).
Actually, come to think of it, the ONLY thing that Loughner did that was out of the ordinary was start shooting people.
How about: Loughner couldn't cope with a bad breakup, he cut himself off from his support network, tried to find meaning in his life or a "higher meaning" through conspiracy theories (which he could have done through anything really; if he read the old testament he may have thought he was the messiah, for example) and then went stark-raving bonkers & shot a lot of people, all because he didn't have a support network to deal with the initial breakup with his girlfriend???
Makes a lot more sense than trying to attack movies and music.
Mind you, since when are journalists, bloggers and television reporters qualified in psycho-analysis??? Maybe those guys should the the psychiatrists do their job, and just stick to reporting the news.
Chris| 1.17.11 @ 8:38AM
Cute article, but where's your evidence? The evidence you point to is based off second hand information from people who merely mention the film. How long have you had this hit piece ready without actually watching the film?
"Zeitgeist begins with a half-hour assault on Christianity as a myth" Yet nothing you say leads me believe anything different. The "plagiarization of the Egyptian sun-god Horus" isn't factually correct, because Peter says this is "one of the oldest" myths that it was LIKELY based off. Then, you look at the facts, the stars, the translation, the illusion that the sun is dying while above the southern crux IN THE SKY. It was a really cute attempt at a paragraph though.
"conspiracy-theory stuff about "ruthless banking interests," in which such usual suspects as the Rothschilds" There is so much fail in this sentence, let me help you. "Stuff" you reefer to is the systematic destruction of the middle class by debt forced by politicians and given priority over all other forms of economics. Why are 30 year mortages so popular? BECAUSE THE GOVERNMENT SUBSIDIZES THE CRAP OUT OF THEM. Who loves this? Bankers. Like drug dealers, first hit is free, addiction isn't their fault right? The Rothschilds aren't some boogiemen, they've been in the business since before America existed, it would be naive to talk about banking without mentioning them, like what your writing is doing.
"Did he believe his demented rantings represented "critical thinking"?" That takes an understanding of the human brain that I don't think anyone here has. It's probably true, but don't you also believe your demented rantings represent critical thinking? How do I know you're not next?
Vern Crisler| 1.17.11 @ 11:58AM
See the Wikipedia entry for the film. Even the liberal, Darwinist editors at Wikipedia smell a rat when it comes to these nonsensical attacks on Christianity.
missbosslady| 1.17.11 @ 12:52PM
"How do I know you're not next?"
Uh, back at ya Chris.
Your screaming in type, that is what I will call my first clue.
proreason| 1.17.11 @ 1:36PM
Interesting that this article is drawing so many kooks out of their basements, isn't it
Ray| 1.17.11 @ 1:44PM
"Why are 30 year mortages so popular? BECAUSE THE GOVERNMENT SUBSIDIZES THE CRAP OUT OF THEM. Who loves this? Bankers."
No, it's the homeowners who love them because most of them are FIXED INTEREST RATE loans (hence the subsidies) and "bankers" love the variable rates that gives them far greater profits.
Nick| 1.17.11 @ 3:25PM
Chris,
You sound like a true believer.
Quick, AmSpec Moderator, report this guy!
He sounds like another Jared Loughner.
Paul| 1.17.11 @ 9:12AM
Mr. McCain makes far too much of "Zeitgeist" in this article. The film is aptly named, for its "paranoid worldview" is one which Westerners, Americans not excepted, have been primed to accept since at least 1918. Without reviewing the history of Western belief in the "hidden hand," as Daniel Pipes put it in his book on the parallel phenomenon in the Near East, it is sufficient to say that it is hardly suprising that this sort of belief flourishes among a society dominated by a libertine, egalitarian modernism which has, contrary to its self-understanding and confident claims, failed spectacularly to produce steady and unstinting progress.
"Zeitgeist" itself is unexceptional only in its production value and lack of subtlety. Does anyone recall the film "JFK," or the popular television series "the X-Files?" The list could be indefinitely extended with quite recent examples, but the idea that world events are controlled by a covert and sinister cabal is very common, regardless of the specific details of a particular belief. Even the non-conspiracist man on the street can easily be provoked into saying that the wealthy, the elite, big business -- whomever he prefers to resent -- orchestrates everything to oppress the innocent masses, of which he is, of course, a member.
Of course, this isn't to say that various elites don't use their positions to extract immoral advantages. But the idea that this is centrally directed by a unified and secret organization is the key fallacy of political paranoia, on the right as well as the left. Anyone who has real personal experience of secret government operations in a modern Western society understands that the larger their scale and the greater the mass controversy that they might engender, the shorter the time that they remain concealed. A massive campaign of secret action by the highest echelons of all institutions would quickly be revealed by an untrustworthy flunky or a disaffected lieutenant -- perhaps a Rothschild third cousin who lost out in the competition for promotion to Senior Conspirator.
Sean| 1.17.11 @ 9:39AM
Someone kills people. Afterwards everything that person did or was a fan of is demonized. Why maybe he watch too much CBS News. This is getting a little ridiculous.
Cal Martin| 1.18.11 @ 6:26PM
Admitting your recognition of the "Hitler Liked Dogs" effect, there are some things bad people like that are actually bad things, which leads us to the "Hitler Liked Euthanasia" argument.
Your argument, if valid, might work a little better if you have evidence to provide that renders Mr. McCain's judgments of Zeitgeist as poor.
Redstateboy| 1.17.11 @ 10:18AM
Is Anyone else troubled that, as far as I know, No one in the Media is asking..... Where the F! did his Money come from!!? A Glock is not cheap! Ammo is not cheap, the Motel Room, the Cab ride.. where the F! did he get his money for all this? Did he steal it from his parents? Was he on Welfare? He didn't seem to work.. I would really welcome anyone's thoughts on this
Redstateboy| 1.17.11 @ 10:39AM
I Googled.. where did Jared Loughner get his money from? and nowhere could I read a substantial answer. Sort of gives the label: "Lame Stream Media" more weight.
Deborah D | 1.17.11 @ 4:41PM
I'm sure it was his parents who provided him with money. They had an adult child who couldn't support himself. Unless he was drawing two year's worth of unemployment, which wouldn't surprise me if he was fired, but if he quit his job (which I seem to have read somewhere) -- Ma and Pa were probably stuck with supporting him.
hardcard| 1.17.11 @ 11:12AM
Is any body investigating dupnik's ties to the loughner family ties to Pima County nepotism the mother is a county official, and deeply involved in county politics. The killer has been kid gloved for years.
Seek| 1.17.11 @ 11:31AM
Jared Loughner is disturbed. Certifiably. The fact that he's seen "Donnie Darko" -- Jake Gyllenhaal's breakout film and a deserved cult classic -- makes no difference in his emotional makeup. At least 20 million people, including me, have seen "Donnie Darko" on DVD or cable TV. They didn't turn into anti-social loons. Loughner's problem was himself, not the larger culture.
proreason| 1.17.11 @ 1:39PM
If you have been watching Donne Darko obsessively for years, and its ideas dominate your waking thoughts, please turn yourself into your local police station immediately.
Ditto for any other movie or book.
Seek| 1.18.11 @ 1:25PM
Suppose I haven't been watching "Donnie Darko" obsessively for years, and just think it was a witty indie flick. Should I turn myself in anyway?
Mr. 3 Times| 2.2.11 @ 1:16PM
The Zeitgeist movement suggest proper mental health care as oppose to imprisonment.
Roughcoat| 1.17.11 @ 1:17PM
"Donnie Darko," heh! I have no idea what that movie is about, what it is trying to say. I remember an enormous, sinister rabbit--and that's all. I wonder: is its incoherence due to editing the original for theatrical release, or it the incoherence deliberate?
Cpm| 1.17.11 @ 2:37PM
It made sense to Loughner.
GavInTucson| 1.17.11 @ 9:41PM
Hey, I know a thing or two about sinister rabbits. :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCI18qAoKq4
brad | 1.17.11 @ 1:20PM
Please note, anyone reading this with a hint of interest in this, check out an excellent refutation of a very evil movie, be careful of what you watch. http://www.holybibleprophecy.org/
Confused | 1.17.11 @ 5:56PM
Thanks! This was very helpful!
TJ| 1.18.11 @ 3:16PM
and just for the record, that refuted video has been refuted and completely debunked with facts.
here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ycd4lWuZoDg
Ned the Red| 1.17.11 @ 1:54PM
From the Booger: "That and my own gut instincts, which are quite a bit when you've been in law enforcement as long as I have."
Does the sheriff’s gut instinct increase proportionately with the amount of donuts consumed?
Oldefarte| 1.17.11 @ 1:58PM
In addition to this outstanding editorial, you will futuristically be informed that this kid, like most all children today, was highly indoctrinated and brainwashed by television, movies and video games. The violence, unlimited sex, alternative lifestyles, etc now being subliminally protrayed in these Hollywood productions irrationally effect all viewing and inpressionable children. Parents today use these Hollywood agenda items to babysit/coddle their children while their adult parents pursue other interests [ie latchkey kids]. The movies produced by Hollywood today are most pure filty, ponography and abhorant techniques of violent behavior, and the sad part is that these producers are even allowed to produce and distribute this garbage. Anyone watching the Hollywood awards show last night on TV could not help but view this Sadaam/Gamorrah atmosphers. If/until society ever wakes up to this humongous problem within our society and begins to take steps in dealing with same, sadly these type events as in Arizona will only increase in occurrance!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
LarryG| 1.17.11 @ 3:04PM
Amen. People need to to look into Edward Bernays, Sigmund Freud and Saul Alinsky. All relevent to your comment.
Confused | 1.17.11 @ 3:51PM
Is the linked video from Stanford Scientist, BJ Fogg valid science?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_Pyy6NsP5s
Misplaced Trust
Seduction
Persuasion
*facepalm*| 1.22.11 @ 8:07PM
I listen to much heavier (better) music than Slipknot, watch a LOT of horror movies, I've seen Donnie Darko a few times, read a lot of articles that could be deemed as "conspiracy theories" and I smoked dope all through highschool.
Yet, I have never, ever, decided to commit mass-murder.
Actually, I'm married, I hold a steady job as an engineer and I am the proud father of a 5 year old son, despite my viewing of alternative movies and my love of Deathmetal \m/.
On that note, if you want subliminal political/social messages in popular culture, read the Dr Seuss books, they're rife with them. I'm sure most people read those books when they were kids and turned out normal.
I really think you're barking up the wrong tree here.
LET'S MAKE, HANDGUNS, SEMI-AUTOMATIC AND AUTOMATIC WEAPONS ILLEGAL.
^^^ how's that for an idea???
I mean, seriously, who actually NEEDS to use these things other than law enforcement and the military??? The only civilian who actually NEEDS a gun is the farmer who needs to keep wildlife from eating his livestock.
*facepalm*| 1.22.11 @ 8:21PM
Also, violence in entertainment is a lot better now than it has been for the entirety of human history.
Just 500 years ago, the regular activity for entertainment was to go to the town square and throw rocks at someone until they died, or watch a decapitation. And this was something you'd take your kids to!
I honestly, whole heartedly, beleive that "violent entertainment" is not the problem here.
*facepalm*| 1.22.11 @ 8:26PM
And the entertainment that ACTUALLY tells you that you should pick up a weapon and kill people is a hell of a lot harder to find than the stuff Hollywood pumps out.
emily| 1.17.11 @ 4:19PM
I think that just because one person does something horrific, does not mean that one single film is to blame. I also think that this is giving the movie/movement a bad name. This movie is a very well put together documentary, with lots and lots of evidence backing all the theories it proposes. People need to stop making their opinions based off of politics/religion/, and just make up their own minds/look at all the facts before tootin' their horns. A lot of these comments are so ignorant that it gags me.
Ryan| 1.17.11 @ 4:57PM
I'll make my mind up off of history, thanks, and see that Jesus really existed.
quinoa| 1.18.11 @ 4:11PM
Thats just the point isn't it.
The TRUTH of the matter is Jesus as a physical person never existed and if you would study the historical facts this truth would be revealed to you.
Jesus was a pagan god usurped by Jews. Gnostisism is the origional Christianity put down like a rabid dog by power hungry Rome. Beware the dark sorcerers of Rome as they wield as much global influence as the Gnomes of Zurich. Hahahah
Cal Martin| 1.18.11 @ 7:02PM
Well, uh, not exactly, Quinoa (is it "Quinoa" or "quinoa"?). Jesus Christ - the person - did in fact exist: here's a small list of secular references - [[http://www.agapebiblestudy.com/documents/Historical evidence on the exhistance of Jesus.htm]].
"Jesus was a pagan god usurped by Jews."
Uh, no. If Jesus was a pagan god, he was most certainly not usurped by the Jews - the Jews wanted him very much dead (many's the time where Christ earned himself the position of being most hated man in the room). A better formulation of your argument might be that the CHRISTIANS usurped Jesus the apparently pagan god, though I must ask - why? Why on earth would these men and women go to such lengths to promote what you seem to refer to as an outright LIE? This kind of lie had no possible use except for selfish reasons - heinously stupid selfish reasons, especially considering that the only result for several centuries was that Christians were hated beyond compare - _especially_ in Roman-controlled Judea. Further, that same lie went on to fascinate the whole world for the next two thousand years - while convincing some very brilliant people of its veracity (Sir Isaac Newton, father of CALCULUS, was a Christian - I don't suppose you'd willingly call him duped, would you?).
"Gnostisism is the origional Christianity put down like a rabid dog by power hungry Rome. "
Well, no. Gnosticism is a perennial movement that latched on to Christianity when it came around. As Christianity has been falling out of favor in recent decades, its distanced itself and taken on the name "New Age."
*facepalm*| 1.22.11 @ 8:34PM
So? How popular is Santa Claus?? Why do we lie and tell our children he is real???
So that they're good all year right? Because Santa is watching, and if they're bad, he won't give them presents.
And how popular is Jesus?? Why are we told that he was a real person??? Why would so many generations lie to themselves????
So that we're good all the time, otherwise Jesus won't tell St Peter to let us into heaven.
(and yes, I know Jesus has been around a lot longer than Santa, but it really is the same concept)
Nick| 1.17.11 @ 4:40PM
Darn!
I should've bought stock in whoever makes Reynold's Wrap today!
The tin-foil hat brigades are going to come to this thread in force, after word spreads.
Paul| 1.17.11 @ 6:11PM
As a duly accredited member of T.H.E.Y., I can tell you that the 9/11 truthers are actually from outer space. My organization has mostly been able to keep them quietly going about their business like human beings until something about the DNA of George W. Bush drove them crazy. We haven't yet been able to treat the problem, and we now fear our whole "undocumented alien" program will be uncovered as they wreak havoc on the planet.
Mr ED| 1.17.11 @ 7:44PM
Since the actual facts are coming out about the crazed murderer and Leftist (very informative and well written article btw) it's time for the MSM to drop anything but in-depth examinations of the feelings of those who were shot or relatives of those killed. This is no time for the MSM "journolistas" to get religion and actually tell the truth with the spin and distortions. It's best now to completely ignore the false accusations, libel and slander and get on with the business of "healing". That way we get to pretend one more day that we are real journalists and not just biased political hacks. Using a completely non-political tragedy as a pretext for wide ranging political character assinations, especially when the facts are well known to refute the story line desired by the Leftist attack machine would be, well, demented.
rob| 1.17.11 @ 9:37PM
This guy was a nut case. Just watch zeitgeist and you can see what these idiots are watching. BS the federal reserve.. waaa waaa , all of our currency is debt. Yea right. what is this crap talking about. Hey everybody, Andrew Jackson was against central banks!!!! He said that the banks were controlling the country with our currency. BS!!! He was an American! And a great president. I can't believe these people believe this crap. I never learned this stuff in high school OR COLLEGE!!!! I believe in the first amendment and everything, but maybe this country needs to "suppress" or maybe "neutralize" wink wink these people. Do your research people. "Modern Money Mechanics" is what they claim. All money is made by debt. They say that the government issues bonds to the Federal Reserve for actually US $$ currency. That can't be right. Would someone please research this and explain to the American people how the system actually works. Yea, there is no money without debt. This pot smoking hippy liberal right wing nutcase.... Thought that all of our money!!!!!! Is created out of thin air, by debt.... then there is interest involved which makes it impossible to pay off the initial debt. This is impossible, and I can't believe that our government would actually let some crap like this be published on the internet. How can people just make stuff up like this and post it on the internet. F you commies!!!!
jetdrvr| 1.18.11 @ 1:07AM
Where'd you get you advanced Economics degree, robbie? Out of box of Kraker Jacks?
jstwndring| 1.20.11 @ 3:51AM
Probably Princeton. Looks like he also minored in American History as well. I also like his take on the First Amendment which applies to himself, and those he agrees with.
Vince| 1.18.11 @ 7:45AM
Well, since we are in the demonizing game, why don't we simply accept the fact that he was really brain washed and mind controlled at school?(like all of us). Isn't it a fact? Anyway, isn't it what they are paid for? He shifted from an accepted common "real world"(rational combination of lies) to another whatever "real world" fitting better with his mood and genetics. He did not kill because of madness, but because he felt like killing. He probably feels fine having killed so many people but having been arrested, being prosecuted. We have to call it madness and find fake causalities so as to keep some social order, and stay behind our curtains.
Mary G.| 1.18.11 @ 11:45AM
Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. Voltaire
Jay| 1.18.11 @ 2:38PM
The most critical observation this article fails to make is that "Zeitgeist" was NEVER intended to be a film in its original conception. It was a personal, artistic work by Peter Joseph that was originally a live performance, not a film. He tossed it up online and it exploded with interest. Since then, he has grown dramatically in his understandings, and the views put forth in the original Zeitgeist film really have nothing to do with the Zeitgeist Movement. They are separate entities. Watch Zeitgeist: Moving Forward (the new film that was just released) if you care enough to actually look into what the movement is about.
Kingofthenet| 1.19.11 @ 8:34PM
I am not sure what 'fundamentalist atheists' even means?
I consider myself an Atheist, but I view people of faith similarity to people who go to 'Psychics' or buy Crystals and such, it's a harmless interest UNLESS it takes over your life and you obsess over it, whither it's 'Spiritually' or Financially.
Peter| 1.20.11 @ 12:49AM
Mr McCain says "The narrator declares the income tax "completely unconstitutional," despite the 16th Amendment, which specifically authorizes it."
He is correct, but there is more to the story, as described by director Aaron Russo (Trading Places, The Rose) in his film "America, Freedom to Fascism". Russo investigates and finds that there is nothing in US tax law requiring citizens to pay an income tax; in addition, it appears that the 16th amendment was not properly ratified. Details: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NpTVXitOQk
Jacob Richard| 1.24.11 @ 9:03AM
Is the American Spectator's budget bigger than NYT's?
If you had transposed this story onto the right it would have been the first ten stories I saw when I brought up Google News.
Michael| 1.28.11 @ 1:47PM
Sweet f****g jeezaz!! This article, if u can call it that, is the most blatant full of crap stuff I have ever come across! ZM is NOT anti anything, just the stupidity in this world.
Adidas | 8.11.11 @ 5:32AM
is good
gold price per ounce | 1.21.12 @ 4:55AM
zeitgeist..has anyone seen this? What do you think of it?
العاب بنات | 4.11.12 @ 2:31PM
Properly speaking, they are "troothers" -- to borrow the spelling TV's own Andy Levy uses in another context