Tools of Fear/Demonization/Tragedy in Tucson

Tragedy in Tucson - 2011

The writings of alleged Giffords shooter Jared Lee Loughner contain right-wing Patriot and anti-Federal Reserve themes mixed with rhetoric similar to that from people who are mentally unbalanced.

Videos of Interviews with Chip Berlet

• Chip Berlet on Democracy Now!, Amy Goodman - {more program segments 1 - 2}
• Chip Berlet on The Big Picture, Thom Hartmann - {full program}

Blog Posts by Chip Berlet

• Alleged Giffords Shooter Shares Currency Plot Obsession with Anti-Abortion Killer
• Possible Racist and Anti-Immigrant Tie to Alleged Arizona Assassin
• More

• Highlighted Essay: The Political Economy of Character Assassination: Who Invests in and Profits from the Discourse of Hate? by Jonathan Michael Feldman
• More Articles on Demonizing Rhetoric & Aggressive Action

Selected Other Useful and Informative Articles

• Let's Get This Straight: There Is No Progressive Equivalent to the Right's Violent Rhetoric by Melissa McEwan on Alternet
  The shooting in Tucson was not an anomaly. It was an inevitability, and as long as we play this foolish game of "both sides are just as bad," it will be inevitable again.
• Loughner Influenced by Conspiracy Movie "Zietgeist": How Fearmongers and Conspiracy Theorists on the Right Encourage Violence by Digby on Alternet
  Conspiracy theories have always been around. The difference is their mainstreaming by politicians and pundits on the right.
• Climate of Hate by Paul Krugman, The New York Times
• The Cult Web Film that Inspired Loughner by Michelle Goldberg, Daily Beast
• More Links

More Resources

Conspiracism

• Extremism, Conspiracy Theory, and Murder, NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross
• "Right-Wing Populism & Conspiracism and the Tea Party movement: How Right-Wing Populists use Demonization, Scapegoating, & Conspiracy Theories to Justify Apocalyptic Aggression," paper by senior analyst Chip Berlet for UC Berkeley's Fall 2010 Tea Party Conference
• Tea Parties, Right-Wing Populism, and Scapegoating, an introduction to the topic by Political Research Associates
• Timeline of Conspiracy Theories
• How Conspiracy Theory Stories Overlap
• Scholarly Article on North American Union Conspiracy Theories

Related

• Report: Toxic to Democacy: Conspiracy Theories, Demonization, & Scapegoating
• Tragedy in Tucson - 2011
• Berlet's posts on Talk to Action
• Demonizing Rhetoric & Aggressive Action
• Right-Wing Populism
• Patriots & Militias
• The Murder of Dr. George Tiller
• The Tools of Fear
  • Dualism
  • Demonization
  • Scapegoating
  • Aggressive Apocalypticism
• Conspiracism

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