RWW’s Paranoia-Rama takes a look at five of the week’s most absurd conspiracy theories from the Right.
Before the Internet becomes censored by our Chinese-Islamist overlords, right-wing figures would like you to know that America is being destroyed by feminism, gay rights and President Obama (who may or may not be the Antichrist). Not that any of that matters anyway, because it is all really a distraction from Benghazi.
5. Gay Rights Lead To Economic Collapse
Family Research Council president Tony Perkins has been dismayed by growing calls within the GOP to “agree to disagree on social issues” like marriage equality. Perkins insists that treating gay people equally under the law will have dangerous, unforeseen economic consequences.
He explains that gay rights will weaken America in the eyes of the world, encouraging countries like Russia to move against the US Dollar and throw the economy into chaos. “So there goes the economy all because we ignored the morality of the issues of this administration,” Perkins warns.
4. CIA Ruined Feminism
InfoWars host Alex Jones warned this week that “true feminism,” which he explained is all about preserving the patriarchy and maintaining high fertility rates, is under attack by Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and secret CIA agents like Gloria Steinem.
Feminism, Jones added, has become “a top down system of control used to divide and conquer and is run by powerful individuals who care little for actual women’s rights.” He also blamed “establishment feminism” for things such as genetically modified foods, vaccines, estrogen mimickers and metrosexual men.
3. Obama Giving China, Islamists Control Of The Internet
A decision to relinquish federal control of the Internet has sparked outrage from Republican politicians and Fox News pundits, who argue that the move will empower countries like China and Russia. As it turns out, the decision, which has been in the works since 1998, actually limits the influence of other governments and the United Nations.
But the world of right-wing conspiracies seem impenetrable to such facts. Take for example a recent warning from Center for Security Policy head Frank Gaffney, who predicted that “stealth jihadist groups” will now have increased control of the Internet.
2. Antichrist Alert
It turns out that Hillary Clinton isn’t the Antichrist after all, as it is Barack Obama who really has been the Antichrist all along. Mark Creech of the Christian Action League, which is the American Family Association’s North Carolina chapter, wrote that America will soon be destroyed like Babel for putting Obama, whom he seems to think is the Antichrist, in the White House.
Religious Right columnist Michael Bresciani didn’t go as far as Creech but noted that the Antichrist will look a lot like Obama: “Being the incarnation of the Devil himself means that his view is always the exact opposite of God and is always wrong. A perfect type of the antichrist is Barack Obama.”
1. Missing Plane Coverage Is A Distraction From Benghazi
Since the sad and cynical politicization of the 2012 Benghazi attack will never end, conservative media personalities are now charging that coverage of the missing Malaysia Airlines plane is a media strategy to distract from Benghazi. Of course, repeated reports — including a GOP-led House study — have discredited the conspiracy theories surrounding the attack and its aftermath, but Fox News is intent on incorporating Benghazi into its Malaysia Airlines reporting.
Bill O’Reilly said the press is only covering the Malaysia Airlines incident because it “doesn’t want to cover important stories like the IRS and Benghazi” while Peter Johnson Jr. wondered why “newscasts don’t focus on things like Benghazi, Fast & Furious, and IRS.” Fellow Fox News hosts Andrea Tantaros and Ralph Peters compared the missing plane to the Benghazi attack.
