Chillicothe
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- Feb 14, 2021
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This morning's online Politico newsfeed has an interesting view of the trial in San Francisco of the RWNJ who attacked Speaker Pelosi's husband.
The aspect they address is.....how does law enforcement address folks who have become totally absorbed in online conspiracy nutjobbery?
I provide a link to the whole article below, but here are a couple of taster paragraphs.
I offer them as we too frequently on this venue --and to be fair to the owners & mods of USMB, it ain't just this forum that the RWNJ-universe displays their paranoias. Plenty of other 'discussion' chatrooms do too. Anyway...... fringies often contribute on this forum in their convoluted justifications for their QAnon, MAGA, Tea Party, Alex Jones, Don Trump allegiances.
From Politico:
SAN FRANCISCO — The man who attacked the husband of Rep. Nancy Pelosi came armed with a hammer, zip ties and fevered delusions about her role in a make-believe plot by elites to destroy the nation.
"David DePape’s attorneys say, he sought to hold her captive over her ... role in a bizarre conspiracy theory. They are effectively claiming that he was living in an alternate reality where her role as speaker of the House did not factor into his thinking.
"The defense’s argument reflects the growing prevalence of a certain kind of extremism in American politics — internet fever swamps, supercharged during the Covid-era as many isolated and marginalized Americans scoured fringe message boards. Now, many of those who pursued fantastical plots to violent ends — including the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol — are asking judges and juries to factor in those breaks from reality when they render judgment."
"..... high-profile cases of political violence that gripped the nation, are emblematic of America’s descent into online and social media-driven conspiracy theories. That trend has created a more complicated path for prosecutors, who must prove criminal intent to convince juries to convict DePape and the Jan. 6 rioters on more severe felony charges that carry longer prison terms."
"DePape’s attorneys have focused heavily on the far-right podcasts and internet echo chambers that influenced him in the months before the attack. He testified Tuesday that he spent most of his free time playing video games while listening to fringe podcasters like Tim Pool, Jimmy Dore and Glenn Beck.
The defendant said the podcasts convinced him that Pelosi and other Democratic officials were smearing Trump with lies and protecting a cabal of pedophiles. DePape is a follower of the QAnon conspiracy movement, an evolving series of allegations against celebrities and political figures that attempts to tarnish them with false allegations of pedophilia and other crimes."
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I thought the article was insightful and added a perspective for the majority of USMB posters & lurkers to view some of the fringies who are prolific posters here.
www.politico.com
The aspect they address is.....how does law enforcement address folks who have become totally absorbed in online conspiracy nutjobbery?
I provide a link to the whole article below, but here are a couple of taster paragraphs.
I offer them as we too frequently on this venue --and to be fair to the owners & mods of USMB, it ain't just this forum that the RWNJ-universe displays their paranoias. Plenty of other 'discussion' chatrooms do too. Anyway...... fringies often contribute on this forum in their convoluted justifications for their QAnon, MAGA, Tea Party, Alex Jones, Don Trump allegiances.
From Politico:
"Prosecutors grapple with alternate reality defense of the political fringe in Paul Pelosi trial
The trial has become something of a test of what happens when certain far-out strains of digital-age American radicalism collide with the criminal justice system.SAN FRANCISCO — The man who attacked the husband of Rep. Nancy Pelosi came armed with a hammer, zip ties and fevered delusions about her role in a make-believe plot by elites to destroy the nation.
"David DePape’s attorneys say, he sought to hold her captive over her ... role in a bizarre conspiracy theory. They are effectively claiming that he was living in an alternate reality where her role as speaker of the House did not factor into his thinking.
"The defense’s argument reflects the growing prevalence of a certain kind of extremism in American politics — internet fever swamps, supercharged during the Covid-era as many isolated and marginalized Americans scoured fringe message boards. Now, many of those who pursued fantastical plots to violent ends — including the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol — are asking judges and juries to factor in those breaks from reality when they render judgment."
"..... high-profile cases of political violence that gripped the nation, are emblematic of America’s descent into online and social media-driven conspiracy theories. That trend has created a more complicated path for prosecutors, who must prove criminal intent to convince juries to convict DePape and the Jan. 6 rioters on more severe felony charges that carry longer prison terms."
"DePape’s attorneys have focused heavily on the far-right podcasts and internet echo chambers that influenced him in the months before the attack. He testified Tuesday that he spent most of his free time playing video games while listening to fringe podcasters like Tim Pool, Jimmy Dore and Glenn Beck.
The defendant said the podcasts convinced him that Pelosi and other Democratic officials were smearing Trump with lies and protecting a cabal of pedophiles. DePape is a follower of the QAnon conspiracy movement, an evolving series of allegations against celebrities and political figures that attempts to tarnish them with false allegations of pedophilia and other crimes."
----------------------------------------------------------------
I thought the article was insightful and added a perspective for the majority of USMB posters & lurkers to view some of the fringies who are prolific posters here.
Prosecutors grapple with alternate reality defense in Paul Pelosi trial
The trial has become something of a test of what happens when certain far-out strains of digital-age American radicalism collide with the criminal justice system.
www.politico.com
