More Conspiracy Moonshine from Neo-Nazi David Icke and Alex Jones

Alex Jones' Infowars.com claims Obama uses 'mind control'
www.examiner.com
April 12, 2009

If you have ever watched President Obama give a speech on television or in person, be advised: Infowars.com, the website of conspiracist talk show host Alex Jones, says you were probably hypnotized against your will.

According to an article on the website from writer David Icke entitled "Barack Obama: The Naked Emperor," Obama uses a technique called neuro-linguistic programming, or NLP, which Icke says is a "mass mind-control technique" to "implant beliefs and perceptions into the mind of the viewer."

NLP was created in the 1970s as a form of alternative therapy by Richard Bandler and linguist John Grinder, who claimed that it would help people overcome their phobias, depression and other psychological disorders, according to Wikipedia.

Icke claims in his Infowars article that he, Icke, studied military mind-control techniques in the 1990s (establishing his "expertise"), before stating that Obama's rhetorical and campaign tools are part of the "most blatant mass-mind control operation you could wish to see."

Icke points to an unsigned paper as evidence of this, which appears to come from an organization called the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons -- a very offical sounding group with obvious connotations of clinical legitimacy.

But this is an extremely deceptive claim, coming from a group that is not recognized by mainstream physicians and has made thoroughly debunked claims about immigrants spreading leprosy and asserts false connections between breast cancer and oral contraceptives. AAPS is also a contributor to right-leaning causes, according to the Center for Media and Democracy's SourceWatch.

Furthermore, according to Wikipedia, NLP is a "pseudoscience" that is not supported by scientific evidence. Its founders additionally made "such extreme and changeable claims that researchers began to question the wisdom of researching the area further."

Despite these facts, which point to NLP as a quack science and not a scientifically accepted technique, Icke insists that Obama has used NLP to further his agenda in the most devious way -- by brainwashing Americans.

After briefly explaining NLP, Icke goes on: "All of which brings me to the parallels with Nazi Germany, fascist Italy and similar regimes throughout history."

That is the leap of logic of a conspiracist. Obama must be like Hitler because he is using (phony) mind control techniques, like Hitler did.

You see, Icke's article is actually not based on scientific fact, as he claims, nor is his "expertise" as one who studied miltary brainwashing techniques and worked in broadcast media relevant at all. It is presented this way so as to make him seem like an authority, to give weight to his fact-free argument.

The point of the article is to instill fear of Obama as somehow comparable to Hitler and the worst dictators of modern history, those who were known to use mass propaganda towards evil ends.

This kind of "factual" assertion -- backed up by official-seeming documents from official-sounding groups -- is cited by defenders of Jones as proof of his legitimacy. That lends credence to Jones' assertions that Obama is seeking to enslave Americans to usher in a New World Order.

But these are fake facts dressed up to llok like real ones. It is a technique used by a true deceiver to cover their tracks.

Finally, Infowars.com runs an advertisement on the page with the DLP article for a product called Alpha Mind Control, which the ad claims allows those who get the product to "use the elite's mind control tricks to your advantage."

Watch out what kinds of crackpot products you buy online.