The other day I published an article in which I made some claims that I suspected were true, but I ended up deleting it and posting a retraction because I felt I could not adequately prove that those claims were true. The last thing I wanted to do was add more noise to the nonsense already out there. The article was posted and then deleted in a span of about 20 minutes. The main point of the article was that the media, corporations, social media & influencers, political parties, colleges & universities, the entertainment industry, etc. are all connected and that is how they spin political narratives together.
Later that same day, AZ GOP governor candidate and journalist Kari Lake hosted a press conference, in which she critiqued the media for spreading fake news. She then used a clearly edited picture of a chicken breaking into an office as “photographic evidence” that her opponent participated in a break-in. She later posted to her instagram page a video of her encouraging her voters to vote however they could— even with mail-in ballots. For those who have followed her campaign, she has been an outspoken critic of election fraud and voter fraud. There were countless journalists and media at the conference who asked a variety of questions, and one of them asked Lake how voters would know the election results were real if she won, since Lake had spent so much time “casting doubt” on the election. Lake didn’t answer the question.
At this press conference, Kari Lake, her opponent Katie Hobbs, and every member of the media present— showed everyone the truth. Both parties are completely hypocritical and the standard of evidence in journalism at this point is incredibly low… borderline nonexistent.
In addition, FOX 10 Phoenix went on to show election “results” in favor of Katie Hobbs 12 days before the election.
The New York Post was then “hacked,” allegedly by a “rogue” employee who made wild statements including an assassination threat against AOC.
Then, The Washington Post published an article apologizing for not standing up and defending journalism on principle.
“Although the hollowness of the internal uproar against Bennet was immediately apparent, we responded with an evenhanded critique of the Times’s flip-flop, not the unapologetic defense of journalism that the situation required. Our posture was one of cowardice and midcareer risk management. With that, we pile one more regret onto a controversy littered with them,” the article stated.
The AP fact-checked a “digitally edited” video of the press secretary that was posted on the White House Twitter account.
So what happened to me, exactly? I published an article initially based on what I’d observed, and the conclusions I’d drawn, and then decided I couldn’t adequately prove it. So I retracted the article just minutes later. Ever since, there has suddenly been a litany of “evidence” that shows what I said was true.
The truth is— this is how all the “best” Pulitzer-Prize winning journalism is done. Claims get made, evidence gets manufactured, stories get published, and awards get won. Probably with a manufactured threat against the journalists’ life thrown in there somewhere. But it is all controlled, and always has been. This is how the machine works.
In all honesty, the real enemy of the country was never the media or the press or the politicians. Our enemy is, and always was, the person in the mirror. The fact of the matter is, the journalists and the media did tell you the truth. They told you the truth about how easy it is to create a narrative, no matter how ridiculous, and tear the country apart.
The fact of the matter is, the first amendment is first for a reason. The founders knew that freedom of the press to print anything they wanted, even if it is completely false, is the key to maintaining freedom.
Instead of blaming the press or anyone else, we instead ought to ask ourselves why it was so easy for them to divide us against each other. We let ourselves be divided. They didn’t make us do anything. We always had free will. If we want to live in a nation that is free, one where we can rule ourselves, then that freedom requires responsibility from each and every one of us. We are a nation of individuals, we are not a collective. It’s time to start acting like it. Think for yourself, ask questions, make your own decisions. Stand on principle, even if means standing alone, and don’t let anyone make you deny the “evidence of your own eyes and ears.”
There is an effect in psychology called “The Bystander Effect.” The theory goes that if a person is in trouble in a crowd of people, no one will step up to help unless one person steps up first. Then others will follow.
Don’t be afraid to be the one who stands up first. I grew up in a Republican household and largely held those views my entire life. But I’m standing up and saying that I am done with the Republican party and the Democrat party. Ultimately, there is only one team, and that is team humanity. It’s time for all of us to shirk the chains of “party spirit” as George Washington put it in his farewell address.
Washington was always a president that I admired, not because he was perfect, but because in many ways he was a failure. He was a human being. But despite being just a mere mortal like us, he took on the strongest empire in the world and won against all odds. He put everything on the line, because he believed in true freedom. That mankind shouldn’t be subjected to a life of slavery. Was he perfect in that pursuit? No. He did own slaves, that’s a fact. He was kind of a hypocrite too. In the end, we’re all hypocrites sometimes. But that doesn’t change the fact that without Washington, and his humanity, the Constitution of the United States would have never come to fruition. We would not have this country to love and defend and cherish without him.
Washington was a wise man, who after fighting an 8 year long war, accepted the presidency. He served two terms, and the new nation would have let him serve a third term, but he chose not to. He said, “I’d rather be on my farm than be emperor of the world.”
As far as the field of journalism goes, it isn’t dead. Far from it! In fact, this was the most important piece of journalism yet, and all of us collaborated on it. There was a conspiracy— and we were all conspirators. We didn’t tell you the truth… we showed you the truth. The press, the media, the independent journalists, and even the politicians. We did this together, America.
“The truth will ultimately prevail where there is pains to bring it to light.” -George Washington
All of us really did take great pains to bring this truth to light. It was an honor working with all of you.
P.S.
I wrote a poetry book. You should read it :)
GHOSTS. Available Oct. 31.
On Amazon → Click Here