as if we needed more proof of how vile the Newton truthers are.....

[nitasee]

This man helped save six children, is now getting harassed for it
Gene Rosen sheltered six kids during the Sandy Hook massacre. Now he's become a target of conspiracy theorists
By Alex Seitz-Wald“I don’t know what to do,” sighed Gene Rosen. “I’m getting hang up calls, I’m getting some calls, I’m getting emails with, not direct threats, but

Comments

[chaya]

I'd throw in the anti-semitism tag for good measure.

[skellington1]

Definitely. And for anyone triggered by such things -- that gets even worse if you read the comments on any of the articles. Ugh.

[chaya]

Omg if we start putting in tags/TWs for content in the comments, we'll never sleep

[skellington1]

Oh, lord, no! I didn't mean to suggest that -- just to provide a heads-up for anyone reading the responses here. I think most of us know not to trust comments, anyway... it's just that they bring out rubbernecker syndrome.

[maenads_dance]

There's a part of me that wants to start ranting about how people are just vile, but there's another part of me that's curious -- what makes some people become conspiracy theorists? I know seemingly ordinary people who are 9/11 truthers or Kennedy conspiracy theorists (no birthers, thank goodness). It's almost a personality trait - there's a hostility toward authority, a feeling that one's own logical and analytical powers are superior to everyone else's, a delight in feeling persecuted and "fighting the power."

There are mild versions and heavy versions of this. Some folks who are big into supplements, complementary and alternative medicine will go on about the evils of Big Pharma and how all MDs are shills; some libertarians/Tron Paul supporters have a whiff of it too.

But what would bring someone to ascribe a massacre of schoolchildren to a government conspiracy, and to attack a man who sheltered little children....

not to mention why is it that so many of these conspiracy theories all boil down to "blame the Jews."

[squeeful]

People write books and articles about that question.

High individuality, increased anxiety, and decreased feeling of agency.

[maenads_dance]

Thanks for the links!

[squeeful]

You're welcome. It's an interesting question. Much like people turning to religion, it's a need for somebody to be in control, someone to be accountable, in the face of something that stretches or defies the comprehension like extreme violence, natural disasters, etc. Making the random not random.

[ultraelectric]

I was just reading this and it absolutely disgust me.

I just can't fathom why ANYONE would think people would kill kids in some government way to take guns or do whatever these stupid fucks think the government is trying to do.

[maenads_dance]

These are folks who think the president is a Kenyan manchurian candidate out to wreak post-colonial vengeance on white America. Who blame the Iraq war on Jewish conspiracies. Who blame the financial crisis on Jewish conspiracies. Who will call the president a cryptofascist, Islamic terrorist, and communist in one breath.

They assume that everyone in power is hateful and violent. When of course they are the hateful ones.

[moonshaz]

Ah, projection--such a convenient way to avoid SO many things!

[aerdran]

Honestly? At least in the case of someone I know who's made noises about it being a hoax, it's because he hates Obama so much that I think he actually wants to believe anything that might shine a bad light on him. He won't check things out for truth at all, he just believes everything bad he hears about the president and then passes it on as gospel truth. I'd imagine that with quite a number of the people passing this crap on it's the same way.

It's disgusting.

[aviv_b]

I guess we have to file this under, 'No good deed goes unpunished.'

What worries me is that given how hard it is to get people to step up in a time of crisis, the last thing we need is for people to be discouraged from doing the right thing because they are afraid of being harassed afterwards.

I do feel for Mr. Rosen, but he can take comfort in the fact the in the world of Internet conspiracies - this too shall pass. Another shiny thing will come along and distract the douche canoes away. If I were a parent of one of the kids who was murdered, I don't know how I would cope with this.

[halfshellvenus]

Unreal-- and I understand his rage. Part of the ugliness is directed at him, but I think he's more offended by the idea that all of those teachers and children died so horribly and that there are people painting that as either a manufactured event or something the government did for reasons of its own.

It is an affront to decency and humanity, and glosses over the horror of the event and what it cost both the victims and their survivors.