Another observation: It's now been two hours since I posted this story. I've got several Reader Comments, but only one of these commenters got more than four "likes" (not counting my own "like.") That was the very first comment posted by Simulation Commander. His comment got six "likes" but one of those was from me.
Another early poster's comments generated "three likes" but one of those likes was me.
All other comments got no likes or only one "like" (from me).
I used to post a story and got many more Reader Comments, but also the people who commented would get many more "likes" for their excellent comments.
I don't know what this means, but it's another metric where I can gauge traffic to my newsletter and can quantify major changes when compared to the past.
... I wonder if this comment will get any likes. If anyone sees it, please hit it with a "like!" ... for an experiment.
10 likes as I type this Bill - but Substack is seeking more funds - what is one to make of that?
Don't get lost in the small details - but be weary no doubt.
I reckon even that coach - the one coached your Dad - Bear Byrant - that be something he would say to the Offensive Lineman - he would say - you main job is to protect the quarterback - and take your job seriously you big fellas.
Now myself personally - I never enjoyed playing "center" - I could do it against some teams but that was not my role - my role was to be "safety" - and that was the position I was born to play Bill.
So - don't get lost or caught up in small details - and I hope your experiment gives you info helpful - but at the end of the day the "terms of conditions" in place when articles were posted have standing that CANNOT be changed after the fact - and if they try to change that - then get ready for some jungle justice - see you in court Substack - you seem to have lost your way is how it seems to me Bill - the place has gone downhill - and now they are seeking more funds - that is bullshit - and "wefunder" ought invest in better communication with those who invest if they want to endear themselves to more investment - otherwise - Substack be advised to find another entity for raising funds - but if they get subsumed and then disavow that which they had in their "toc" - then see you in court Substack!
🦬🦬🦬🦬🦬🦬🦬🦬🦬
~
Lastly - when the hell is Substack gonna enable bold text in comments or italics for Christ's sake - if this is why they need more funds - then one wonders - maybe they ought spend more time on programming better user-interface versus some of the other bs seems they are affixed with. Cause other platforms allow for this way to post comments and in this regard - Substack is way behind the Signs of the Times.
My experiment shows that in about 20 hours, I got 14 more readers who visited my Reader Comments section and participated in said experiment by hitting my comment with a "like."
FWIW, I now have (allegedly) 8,000 total subscribers (and 15,000 "followers") ... One, I trust, can do the math.
I would say if you check the data - especially at my own place - about 95% of the time - maybe higher - anybody comments there - gets a like from me and usually a response direct as well!
BTW, Seymour Hersh is still doing investigative journalism - at age 88! He's like Jon Rappoport, who, I think, is 83.
The only hard-core, well-known real investigative journalists we have left are in their 80s! That tells us something right there.
Hersh's last big exclusive was the Russian pipeline bombing story (Russia didn't bomb its own pipeline) - a story which was, of course, dismissed by all of his old colleagues who are members of the "Trusted News Initiative."
It would obviously be BETTER if we also had a functioning media industry, but every time they fail to write the stories that you do, they lose more of their power and we gain it.
SC made one of the Substack "Leaderboards" of Top 100 authors! I think it's in the "International" leaderboard.
Anything that gets him more reads is great by me. I still think this newsletter should be in the Top 50 or 60 of the "Health Politics" Category. I have more paid subscribers and total subscribers than 50 percent of the authors who are listed.
You wrote: … I often channel one of the country’s great unexposed villains, Hillary Clinton, and think to myself, “What difference does it make?”
Still, for some reason, I keep hitting the “send” button.
___
Same here. Writing to help others feels like the proverbial tree falling in the forest with no one to hear. But maybe the squirrels and deer are listening and sharing news from the tree. And then the lions, tigers, and bears. And maybe -- just maybe -- some firefighters and hikers. And then...
Well, you get the idea. Sometimes reaching the few eventually reaches the many. But it takes...too...darn...LONG!
We're in the same boat. My fragile little ego could use a boost by getting a few more "likes" or a few more Reader Comments ... and then I see that people who make comments in my Reader Comments get a decent number of likes.
"Is anybody out there, reading this stuff?"
I appreciate any intelligence that tells me, "We're here, Bill."
We're definitely here, Bill! Online approbation -- especially on Substack -- is rare except for a very few early adopters and famous people. Fragile little egos (like ours) are uncomfortable in the online world.
It hurts when people don't seem to care. Also, we really don't know how accurate the numbers are. Perhaps they are like VAERS, reflecting only 1% to 10% of real readers. (FWIW, we often strip off the tracking information from links before sharing them so our readers don't feel so surveilled. Doing this likely affects an author's numbers.)
The place to hear the madding crowd appears to be X. But if no one is sharing our work on X or we don't post ourselves, our reach is less. But we just cannot bring ourselves to become X users no matter how tempting. After seeing what others have endured on X, it's not worth it for the extra clicks and likes. Especially for those of us with fragile egos!
I've done experiments on Facebook. When I make a post about Covid topics, I get 0 to 2 "likes." When I make a post about my kids being in a local play, I get 50 to 100 likes.
I've been banned on Facebook - or my account suspended - about four or five times. I definitely don't reach any of my 1,600 followers when I am in Facebook Timeout.
Interesting! Not surprising. Facebook is a big censorship platform. We've forever banished them from our lives. They're in OUR Facebook jail.
But...government agencies use Facebook for much of their communications -- some of it essential and life-saving. If citizens don't have a Facebook account (which we don't), they're locked out of the information, even public posts.
Government's use of Facebook an unacceptable public/private partnership if there ever was one. We've spoken personally to several government folks (you can do that in a small town/county), but they haven't done anything to remedy the situation.
Facebook, X, and other social media have their tentacles in everything.
If anyone looks at my list of “Top 150 Covid Contrarian” Substack authors, I think he or she would agree with my estimate that 100 percent of these authors are skeptical of virtually every authorized Covid narrative, including the one that says the vaccines are “safe and effective” and “saved millions of lives.”
Conversely, based on all journalism published in corporate MSM news organizations, I would estimate that 100 percent of these journalists think that every Covid narrative is correct, “settled science” and that every one of these Covid Contrarians are dangerous “disinformation spreaders.”
My question is how can EVERY member of one group believe one thing and another group all believe the exact opposite? Statistically, this doesn’t seem possible. I also note that those who think the Covid narratives are true are all salaried employees, where all my Substack “Contrarians” are independent writers who depend on voluntary subscriptions to make any revenue.
Bill - I have to disagree with you one item; the thermo-nuclear-truth-bomb. I'd argue that the Snowden Leaks did just that. The system naturally tried to suppress what he exposed but none the less he still did expose a lot of the corruption including the fact that Americas #1 spy threat is Israel! Not the Jewish people but the leadership of their nation specifi8caly their intel agency Mossad.
That should have been a major truth bomb. It was a little truth bomb to people like us, but we are 1 in 200 of the total population. Again, no purge or nobody went to jail. Snowden had to flee to Russia where he still is today.
I would have pardoned Snowden, Assange and Chelsie Manning on Day 1 of my administration.
After I did this, I'd take careful note of all the people and organizations that were irate that I'd done this. These, I'd conclude, are the real enemies.
EXACTLY! People can/do lie especially those in government whether elected or appointed but what they typically can't do is change their behavior to match the lie. When Patel and Bongino were being interviewed and said that there was evidence and that Epstein did kill himself both were acting like 2 nervous, scared and angry people. The behavior they would exhibit if they were telling the truth would be one of shock and surprise and possibly frustration.
There are body language experts on YouTube who review interviews and the like and they can tell when someone is lying by their behavior, their body movements. Neither man believed what they were saying in the interview and since then rumors have leaked that Bongino has threatened to leave if Bondi is not removed as the AG and now P:atel has done the same.
I'm getting the impression that someone got to Bondi, she did whatever was necessary to disappear any evidence and then told trump after her review there was nothing in the files that would expose pedophiles that Epstein accommodated but there are many names including Trump who had some dealings with Epstein and if that info is released he and other will be falsely accused in the media as being pedophiles. That would explain most of the reactions and what we're seeing. Trump believed her and now he's angry about it b/c he's convinced that if the info is released he will be falsely accused and his efforts to save America will be defeated by that.
It's very common for Trump to make jest of people who challenge him (i.e. Senator Paul and Rep Massey who voted against the BBB) but I don't believe I've ever seen him respond in an emotion/personal manner like he has when asked about the Epstein files.
On a smaller scale the Toronto star used to do surveys of different industries to see who was good and who was not. One year it was tax preparation services, another time if was car garages. So the garage expose worked like this. The reporter had a mechanic replace a good spark plug wire with a dead one. He then took it to 40 garages explaining that the engine was missing. After each garage visit he would return to his mechanic to restore the car to its original problem. Out of 40 garages the repair bill ran from $0 to $1200( in 1970 dollars!). The $1200 garage was notorious for gouging. The $0 garage was a 2 pump gas station with an older mechanic owner who knew his business and was the only one to figure out the problem correctly and had a spare good spark plug wire on hand. He pulled spark wires until he found the dead one.
I've seen those type of reports, but not enough. You could do the same thing with doctors and an alleged health condition.
I'm getting ready to cross post a dispatch by Transcriber B who reminds us of the African leader who ordered aides to test goats, birds, motor oil and fruit for Covid with a PCR test.
Half of the non-human samples tested positive! And he told his people this. I don't know if this is a coincidence or not, but a few months later he was dead.
Bill what difference today with the past is that the media has chosen sides whom to support and have become outlets who deceive the public in the search for the truth. Instead of reporting the news so the average person can decide as to the merits of the facts the media has abandoned all pretense of journalist's standards instead becoming a propaganda arm for the left. Those in media sold out to those who fund them. Your article warrants discussion and I agree at some point when the truth of COVID comes out and realizes how COVID was weaponized by the government that resulted in millions of deaths throughout the world that there will be some sort of justice. The salient point is it’s writers like you that keep the issue in the forefront and at some point will catch the attention of those in power. Please keep doing what your doing remember John Kennedy and Margaret Mead quotes “one person can make a difference, and everyone should try,” “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
Thanks, John. I, for one, appreciate the potential Truth Bomb you keep trying to highlight. As I've written many times, I really don't care what scandal finally breaks through to the masses and makes people realize they've been duped by the experts and their "trusted" leaders.
Once that trust is detonated then real change can happen.
Didn't journalists get banned in 2020, renamed conspiracy theorists and replaced by "fat checkers" spewing the official narrative?
Substack and Rumble is the only place you find the truth tellers and whistle blowers these days. (Also Yandex is a fairly good search engine.) YouTube is on a short leash. The other national news outlets have gone all bread and circuses.
That's because Reuters is run by the controligarchs who have told the editors to focus mainly on trivia to keep the masses dumbed down and distracted. Did you know that Lynn Forester de Rothschild edits The Economist?
We live in a society where there are two worlds. One world believes the actions taken during the pandemic averted catastrophe and it would have been worse if the lockdowns, masks, shots, etc were not given. The other world believes that it was a flu with 99% survival rate and the lockdowns, etc made things worse. The first group doesn't want to talk about it or even consider that their thoughts (what everyone knows) are wrong. The second group is open to changing their mind as new information is revealed.
The key here is that the mass of the population that needs to believe the bombshell will never believe the bomb story no matter who tells it. They will assume it is just the conspiracy theorists or Trump supporters that have accessed the news source.
No one will be removed from office with half the population in denial. They will claim that those people know the truth and everyone else is delusional.
The Mass Formation Psychosis has made society immune to the truth.
That's what most of us think but we can't "test" anything that hasn't happened yet. For example, let's get photos of the embalmers clots in every newscast and every website for a week or two and let the masses see interviews with a half dozen embalmers who can prove they are finding these things in 20 to 50 percent of the bodies they embalm.
And then let's see what happens or if people might change their minds on the "safe and effective" shots.
After that, let's see if all mothers rush out to get their children their Covid boosters or if anyone demands Congress hold hearings on this.
I like your optimism and am completely behind the effort.
However... I have some family members that are in that 'other world' and have had lots of opportunity to field test ideas. For one person to actually entertain the thought, requires them to start thinking contrary to all the friends that 'were there for them' when they were lonely and had their Psychosis created. They don't want to go back there. They will not allow themselves to have those thoughts.
My daughter was in the hospital after she got a booster. Symptoms happened exactly 14 days from the shot. I didn't know she got the shot until I saw the symptoms and predicted which day she got it. She said she did later. I showed her articles on the exact symptoms that she had. No other explanation for why she was in the hospital. When she got out of the hospital, still on an oxygen tank, she took her daughter to get the same shot. I couldn't believe it...
OMG. You might be right. One day, psychologists and sociologists are going to have a field day discussing all these surreal responses. That is, if we have any REAL scientists doing real psychological and sociological studies and research. We probably won't.
I think it is a filter. Those that can't change their mind when new information comes along will not survive. It is a form of modern day natural selection.
those that survive will have learned from the lessons.
You are doing really well for comments to be honest. I am on other substacks with amazing writers and they struggle to get a handful of responses. Since the mRNA shots, attention spans are down and people get overwhelmed more easily.
I get more comments than probably most Substack authors. However, the number of people who now comment after one of my articles has dropped by about 50 to 75 percent compared to 18 months ago ... when I had half the subscribers I do today.
... My only observation is that "something changed."
Regarding Watergate, we may not have been told the truth. Little by little, some interesting similarities with Russia-gate are being leaked out. That is, the intelligence agencies were responsible for both. Watergate may not be the political scandal we thought it was, but more of a setup of Nixon. Probably what got JFK murdered was his stance against war with Cuba and Vietnam, then along comes Nixon wanting to get out of the war in Southeast Asia. After leaving the presidential office, Nixon refused Secret Service protection; he claimed he wanted to live longer.
Interestingly, McNamara, the lead Neocon at the time, admitted that the war was really a civil war, not a communist takeover. It was his deathbed repentance, maybe his conscience finally kicked in. .
Anyway, my point is that during the 50s through the 7Os, the intelligence agencies and the military were in complete control of the country until the Pentagon Papers. I'm not sure any real reporting happened in that period, it was more like controlled; until the Pentagon Papers. After that, we got a slight reprieve from total propaganda and yellow journalists. Alas, that didn't last long.
I would submit the only Truth Bombs that changed the world were CIA Psyops: Both Kennedy hits, Watergate, Reagan/Trump shooters, hijacked election, Covid...
Good and provocative point. I could build an essay around that theme. The Covid Narrative can be viewed as a "Truth Bomb" that damn sure resonated with the masses.
All the key Truth Bombs were massive lies and Psy Ops. We don't have Truth Bombs; we have Lie Bombs.
I think it's all a matter of perspective. The one great scandal that actually changes the world, is, in most people's eyes, a non-starter. It involves the most - published book in history. Yet the vast majority of people are basically contemptuous of it. Governments and various human institutions (like journalism) hold the shattering news in derision. The news? "For God so loved the world that He gave His Son, the only begotten, that everyone who believes on Him may not perish, but may have eternal life."
Also, the sharers of powerful Truth Bombs often end up getting murdered by the Powers that Be. Socrates gave us the Socratic Method (the importance of seeking the truth by simply asking questions) and what happened to Socrates?
Yep. That's the bottom line of today's essay: No REAL journalism is occurring (at least journalism that reaches more than a few thousand readers herded into our coral here at Substack).
But, somehow, we've got to have this. The Key to the Operation is coming up with a way to get around the barricades erected by the "gatekeepers of the news."
The only way to get around the "gatekeepers" in their own misbegotten minds is local. So go local and then over time if enough do likewise then a wave of Justified Retribution will emerge in good time - but there is no way to do it on the quick - and this is more than evident - it is obvious and natural - just like lets say you got an infection in the body - the body first stops the infection from growing and then defends locally till the infection is dismissed. But it don't happen overnight - it takes time and local interaction in many localities over time - and then it turns the tide.
Moreover and lastly - it seems evident - Substack is a "limited hangout" - but local interaction are outside the jurisprudence of those trying to sway the tide or the narrative if you will - tis hard work - not well compensated, but tis of merit....there ain't no yellow brick road Bill - but keep hacking away at it - that has value no doubt - myself - I'm going local - and Substack - tis becoming secondary - nothing more than a place to be like an online diary - protected of course by the terms - per the link below.
Another observation: It's now been two hours since I posted this story. I've got several Reader Comments, but only one of these commenters got more than four "likes" (not counting my own "like.") That was the very first comment posted by Simulation Commander. His comment got six "likes" but one of those was from me.
Another early poster's comments generated "three likes" but one of those likes was me.
All other comments got no likes or only one "like" (from me).
I used to post a story and got many more Reader Comments, but also the people who commented would get many more "likes" for their excellent comments.
I don't know what this means, but it's another metric where I can gauge traffic to my newsletter and can quantify major changes when compared to the past.
... I wonder if this comment will get any likes. If anyone sees it, please hit it with a "like!" ... for an experiment.
10 likes as I type this Bill - but Substack is seeking more funds - what is one to make of that?
Don't get lost in the small details - but be weary no doubt.
I reckon even that coach - the one coached your Dad - Bear Byrant - that be something he would say to the Offensive Lineman - he would say - you main job is to protect the quarterback - and take your job seriously you big fellas.
Now myself personally - I never enjoyed playing "center" - I could do it against some teams but that was not my role - my role was to be "safety" - and that was the position I was born to play Bill.
So - don't get lost or caught up in small details - and I hope your experiment gives you info helpful - but at the end of the day the "terms of conditions" in place when articles were posted have standing that CANNOT be changed after the fact - and if they try to change that - then get ready for some jungle justice - see you in court Substack - you seem to have lost your way is how it seems to me Bill - the place has gone downhill - and now they are seeking more funds - that is bullshit - and "wefunder" ought invest in better communication with those who invest if they want to endear themselves to more investment - otherwise - Substack be advised to find another entity for raising funds - but if they get subsumed and then disavow that which they had in their "toc" - then see you in court Substack!
🦬🦬🦬🦬🦬🦬🦬🦬🦬
~
Lastly - when the hell is Substack gonna enable bold text in comments or italics for Christ's sake - if this is why they need more funds - then one wonders - maybe they ought spend more time on programming better user-interface versus some of the other bs seems they are affixed with. Cause other platforms allow for this way to post comments and in this regard - Substack is way behind the Signs of the Times.
My experiment shows that in about 20 hours, I got 14 more readers who visited my Reader Comments section and participated in said experiment by hitting my comment with a "like."
FWIW, I now have (allegedly) 8,000 total subscribers (and 15,000 "followers") ... One, I trust, can do the math.
I would say if you check the data - especially at my own place - about 95% of the time - maybe higher - anybody comments there - gets a like from me and usually a response direct as well!
Godspeed Bill!
Ken
BTW, Seymour Hersh is still doing investigative journalism - at age 88! He's like Jon Rappoport, who, I think, is 83.
The only hard-core, well-known real investigative journalists we have left are in their 80s! That tells us something right there.
Hersh's last big exclusive was the Russian pipeline bombing story (Russia didn't bomb its own pipeline) - a story which was, of course, dismissed by all of his old colleagues who are members of the "Trusted News Initiative."
Rare Bill Rice L here! Of course it matters, even if you only reach a single person.
I give as an example, SB549 in California: https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260sb549
Regular people read the bill, noticed some extremely controversial elements, (https://www.sandiegopost.com/2025/07/15/california-bill-would-direct-40-of-wildfire-recovery-funds-to-low-income-housing-in-la/) and sounded the alarm. The result? The bill's now shelved AND people are aware of the attempt.
https://www.foxla.com/news/senate-bill-would-have-turned-lost-pacific-palisades-homes-affordable-housing-put-pause
The Dignity Act is going to go the same way, IMO.
It would obviously be BETTER if we also had a functioning media industry, but every time they fail to write the stories that you do, they lose more of their power and we gain it.
Thanks, SC. The other option - don't write any stories that are taboo in the MSM - is NOT an option.
👆 that guy, again!!! he's everywhere!!!!!😂
SC made one of the Substack "Leaderboards" of Top 100 authors! I think it's in the "International" leaderboard.
Anything that gets him more reads is great by me. I still think this newsletter should be in the Top 50 or 60 of the "Health Politics" Category. I have more paid subscribers and total subscribers than 50 percent of the authors who are listed.
You wrote: … I often channel one of the country’s great unexposed villains, Hillary Clinton, and think to myself, “What difference does it make?”
Still, for some reason, I keep hitting the “send” button.
___
Same here. Writing to help others feels like the proverbial tree falling in the forest with no one to hear. But maybe the squirrels and deer are listening and sharing news from the tree. And then the lions, tigers, and bears. And maybe -- just maybe -- some firefighters and hikers. And then...
Well, you get the idea. Sometimes reaching the few eventually reaches the many. But it takes...too...darn...LONG!
We're in the same boat. My fragile little ego could use a boost by getting a few more "likes" or a few more Reader Comments ... and then I see that people who make comments in my Reader Comments get a decent number of likes.
"Is anybody out there, reading this stuff?"
I appreciate any intelligence that tells me, "We're here, Bill."
We're definitely here, Bill! Online approbation -- especially on Substack -- is rare except for a very few early adopters and famous people. Fragile little egos (like ours) are uncomfortable in the online world.
It hurts when people don't seem to care. Also, we really don't know how accurate the numbers are. Perhaps they are like VAERS, reflecting only 1% to 10% of real readers. (FWIW, we often strip off the tracking information from links before sharing them so our readers don't feel so surveilled. Doing this likely affects an author's numbers.)
The place to hear the madding crowd appears to be X. But if no one is sharing our work on X or we don't post ourselves, our reach is less. But we just cannot bring ourselves to become X users no matter how tempting. After seeing what others have endured on X, it's not worth it for the extra clicks and likes. Especially for those of us with fragile egos!
So keep writing. You're helping. A lot!
I think we're both focussing on the "Reach question." I keep harping on the fact that "freedom of speech" is not the same thing as "freedom of reach."
The Censorship Industrial Complex was created entirely and solely to block or suppress the "reach" of dissident thinkers.
Agree, 100% -- Reach Question.
Linda Yaccarino, who infamously discussed "Freedom of Speech, Not Reach" just resigned from Twitter: https://x.com/lindayaX/status/1942957094811951197.
Yaccarino in 2023:
- Interview with Elon Musk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9TuhTz0vmo
- Before Musk picked Yaccarino as Twitter CEO, she challenged him on policies, and his own tweets: https://apnews.com/article/musk-twitter-ceo-yaccarino-interview-9327856331614e64163f50900c831bf4
- Interview with "Squawk on the Street" https://www.cnbc.com/video/2023/08/10/x-corp-now-a-much-healthier-and-safer-platform-than-a-year-ago-says-linda-yaccarino.html
Maybe freedom of reach will expand on that platform now.
I've done experiments on Facebook. When I make a post about Covid topics, I get 0 to 2 "likes." When I make a post about my kids being in a local play, I get 50 to 100 likes.
I've been banned on Facebook - or my account suspended - about four or five times. I definitely don't reach any of my 1,600 followers when I am in Facebook Timeout.
Interesting! Not surprising. Facebook is a big censorship platform. We've forever banished them from our lives. They're in OUR Facebook jail.
But...government agencies use Facebook for much of their communications -- some of it essential and life-saving. If citizens don't have a Facebook account (which we don't), they're locked out of the information, even public posts.
Government's use of Facebook an unacceptable public/private partnership if there ever was one. We've spoken personally to several government folks (you can do that in a small town/county), but they haven't done anything to remedy the situation.
Facebook, X, and other social media have their tentacles in everything.
My latest Note!
If anyone looks at my list of “Top 150 Covid Contrarian” Substack authors, I think he or she would agree with my estimate that 100 percent of these authors are skeptical of virtually every authorized Covid narrative, including the one that says the vaccines are “safe and effective” and “saved millions of lives.”
Conversely, based on all journalism published in corporate MSM news organizations, I would estimate that 100 percent of these journalists think that every Covid narrative is correct, “settled science” and that every one of these Covid Contrarians are dangerous “disinformation spreaders.”
My question is how can EVERY member of one group believe one thing and another group all believe the exact opposite? Statistically, this doesn’t seem possible. I also note that those who think the Covid narratives are true are all salaried employees, where all my Substack “Contrarians” are independent writers who depend on voluntary subscriptions to make any revenue.
Bill - I have to disagree with you one item; the thermo-nuclear-truth-bomb. I'd argue that the Snowden Leaks did just that. The system naturally tried to suppress what he exposed but none the less he still did expose a lot of the corruption including the fact that Americas #1 spy threat is Israel! Not the Jewish people but the leadership of their nation specifi8caly their intel agency Mossad.
That should have been a major truth bomb. It was a little truth bomb to people like us, but we are 1 in 200 of the total population. Again, no purge or nobody went to jail. Snowden had to flee to Russia where he still is today.
I believe that one day due justice will be served and Snowden set free.
Why didn’t trump pardon him?
That my fiend is a DAMNED GOOD QUESTION!
My guess is he's listening to the lies of those in the Uniparty in DC that he doesn't yet realize are a part of the Deep State.
I would have pardoned Snowden, Assange and Chelsie Manning on Day 1 of my administration.
After I did this, I'd take careful note of all the people and organizations that were irate that I'd done this. These, I'd conclude, are the real enemies.
EXACTLY! People can/do lie especially those in government whether elected or appointed but what they typically can't do is change their behavior to match the lie. When Patel and Bongino were being interviewed and said that there was evidence and that Epstein did kill himself both were acting like 2 nervous, scared and angry people. The behavior they would exhibit if they were telling the truth would be one of shock and surprise and possibly frustration.
There are body language experts on YouTube who review interviews and the like and they can tell when someone is lying by their behavior, their body movements. Neither man believed what they were saying in the interview and since then rumors have leaked that Bongino has threatened to leave if Bondi is not removed as the AG and now P:atel has done the same.
I'm getting the impression that someone got to Bondi, she did whatever was necessary to disappear any evidence and then told trump after her review there was nothing in the files that would expose pedophiles that Epstein accommodated but there are many names including Trump who had some dealings with Epstein and if that info is released he and other will be falsely accused in the media as being pedophiles. That would explain most of the reactions and what we're seeing. Trump believed her and now he's angry about it b/c he's convinced that if the info is released he will be falsely accused and his efforts to save America will be defeated by that.
It's very common for Trump to make jest of people who challenge him (i.e. Senator Paul and Rep Massey who voted against the BBB) but I don't believe I've ever seen him respond in an emotion/personal manner like he has when asked about the Epstein files.
On a smaller scale the Toronto star used to do surveys of different industries to see who was good and who was not. One year it was tax preparation services, another time if was car garages. So the garage expose worked like this. The reporter had a mechanic replace a good spark plug wire with a dead one. He then took it to 40 garages explaining that the engine was missing. After each garage visit he would return to his mechanic to restore the car to its original problem. Out of 40 garages the repair bill ran from $0 to $1200( in 1970 dollars!). The $1200 garage was notorious for gouging. The $0 garage was a 2 pump gas station with an older mechanic owner who knew his business and was the only one to figure out the problem correctly and had a spare good spark plug wire on hand. He pulled spark wires until he found the dead one.
I've seen those type of reports, but not enough. You could do the same thing with doctors and an alleged health condition.
I'm getting ready to cross post a dispatch by Transcriber B who reminds us of the African leader who ordered aides to test goats, birds, motor oil and fruit for Covid with a PCR test.
Half of the non-human samples tested positive! And he told his people this. I don't know if this is a coincidence or not, but a few months later he was dead.
Bill what difference today with the past is that the media has chosen sides whom to support and have become outlets who deceive the public in the search for the truth. Instead of reporting the news so the average person can decide as to the merits of the facts the media has abandoned all pretense of journalist's standards instead becoming a propaganda arm for the left. Those in media sold out to those who fund them. Your article warrants discussion and I agree at some point when the truth of COVID comes out and realizes how COVID was weaponized by the government that resulted in millions of deaths throughout the world that there will be some sort of justice. The salient point is it’s writers like you that keep the issue in the forefront and at some point will catch the attention of those in power. Please keep doing what your doing remember John Kennedy and Margaret Mead quotes “one person can make a difference, and everyone should try,” “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
Thanks, John. I, for one, appreciate the potential Truth Bomb you keep trying to highlight. As I've written many times, I really don't care what scandal finally breaks through to the masses and makes people realize they've been duped by the experts and their "trusted" leaders.
Once that trust is detonated then real change can happen.
Didn't journalists get banned in 2020, renamed conspiracy theorists and replaced by "fat checkers" spewing the official narrative?
Substack and Rumble is the only place you find the truth tellers and whistle blowers these days. (Also Yandex is a fairly good search engine.) YouTube is on a short leash. The other national news outlets have gone all bread and circuses.
That's because Reuters is run by the controligarchs who have told the editors to focus mainly on trivia to keep the masses dumbed down and distracted. Did you know that Lynn Forester de Rothschild edits The Economist?
The Capture Rate in corporate journalism is 100 percent. Not 96 or 99 percent. 100 percent.
Statistically, it would seem like this percentage would be impossible, but there you go.
We live in a society where there are two worlds. One world believes the actions taken during the pandemic averted catastrophe and it would have been worse if the lockdowns, masks, shots, etc were not given. The other world believes that it was a flu with 99% survival rate and the lockdowns, etc made things worse. The first group doesn't want to talk about it or even consider that their thoughts (what everyone knows) are wrong. The second group is open to changing their mind as new information is revealed.
The key here is that the mass of the population that needs to believe the bombshell will never believe the bomb story no matter who tells it. They will assume it is just the conspiracy theorists or Trump supporters that have accessed the news source.
No one will be removed from office with half the population in denial. They will claim that those people know the truth and everyone else is delusional.
The Mass Formation Psychosis has made society immune to the truth.
That's what most of us think but we can't "test" anything that hasn't happened yet. For example, let's get photos of the embalmers clots in every newscast and every website for a week or two and let the masses see interviews with a half dozen embalmers who can prove they are finding these things in 20 to 50 percent of the bodies they embalm.
And then let's see what happens or if people might change their minds on the "safe and effective" shots.
After that, let's see if all mothers rush out to get their children their Covid boosters or if anyone demands Congress hold hearings on this.
I like your optimism and am completely behind the effort.
However... I have some family members that are in that 'other world' and have had lots of opportunity to field test ideas. For one person to actually entertain the thought, requires them to start thinking contrary to all the friends that 'were there for them' when they were lonely and had their Psychosis created. They don't want to go back there. They will not allow themselves to have those thoughts.
My daughter was in the hospital after she got a booster. Symptoms happened exactly 14 days from the shot. I didn't know she got the shot until I saw the symptoms and predicted which day she got it. She said she did later. I showed her articles on the exact symptoms that she had. No other explanation for why she was in the hospital. When she got out of the hospital, still on an oxygen tank, she took her daughter to get the same shot. I couldn't believe it...
OMG. You might be right. One day, psychologists and sociologists are going to have a field day discussing all these surreal responses. That is, if we have any REAL scientists doing real psychological and sociological studies and research. We probably won't.
I think it is a filter. Those that can't change their mind when new information comes along will not survive. It is a form of modern day natural selection.
those that survive will have learned from the lessons.
I wish we could have billboards with photos of the clots on every major highway in the US.
Someone would have to bring the receipts and get convictions in court.
You are doing really well for comments to be honest. I am on other substacks with amazing writers and they struggle to get a handful of responses. Since the mRNA shots, attention spans are down and people get overwhelmed more easily.
I get more comments than probably most Substack authors. However, the number of people who now comment after one of my articles has dropped by about 50 to 75 percent compared to 18 months ago ... when I had half the subscribers I do today.
... My only observation is that "something changed."
Regarding Watergate, we may not have been told the truth. Little by little, some interesting similarities with Russia-gate are being leaked out. That is, the intelligence agencies were responsible for both. Watergate may not be the political scandal we thought it was, but more of a setup of Nixon. Probably what got JFK murdered was his stance against war with Cuba and Vietnam, then along comes Nixon wanting to get out of the war in Southeast Asia. After leaving the presidential office, Nixon refused Secret Service protection; he claimed he wanted to live longer.
Interestingly, McNamara, the lead Neocon at the time, admitted that the war was really a civil war, not a communist takeover. It was his deathbed repentance, maybe his conscience finally kicked in. .
Anyway, my point is that during the 50s through the 7Os, the intelligence agencies and the military were in complete control of the country until the Pentagon Papers. I'm not sure any real reporting happened in that period, it was more like controlled; until the Pentagon Papers. After that, we got a slight reprieve from total propaganda and yellow journalists. Alas, that didn't last long.
I would submit the only Truth Bombs that changed the world were CIA Psyops: Both Kennedy hits, Watergate, Reagan/Trump shooters, hijacked election, Covid...
Good and provocative point. I could build an essay around that theme. The Covid Narrative can be viewed as a "Truth Bomb" that damn sure resonated with the masses.
All the key Truth Bombs were massive lies and Psy Ops. We don't have Truth Bombs; we have Lie Bombs.
I think it's all a matter of perspective. The one great scandal that actually changes the world, is, in most people's eyes, a non-starter. It involves the most - published book in history. Yet the vast majority of people are basically contemptuous of it. Governments and various human institutions (like journalism) hold the shattering news in derision. The news? "For God so loved the world that He gave His Son, the only begotten, that everyone who believes on Him may not perish, but may have eternal life."
Thanks for making that point. I almost included it in a previous essay on "Truth Bombs" that have actually happened in human history. There was one!
Also, the sharers of powerful Truth Bombs often end up getting murdered by the Powers that Be. Socrates gave us the Socratic Method (the importance of seeking the truth by simply asking questions) and what happened to Socrates?
The Seymour Hersh My-Lai story was pretty amazing journalism, a great read. Used to be a subscriber with him but he wears his politics on his sleeve.
The short answer is no, because there is no real journalism. Everything worth knowing (Epstein) is hidden.
Yep. That's the bottom line of today's essay: No REAL journalism is occurring (at least journalism that reaches more than a few thousand readers herded into our coral here at Substack).
But, somehow, we've got to have this. The Key to the Operation is coming up with a way to get around the barricades erected by the "gatekeepers of the news."
Agreed!
The only way to get around the "gatekeepers" in their own misbegotten minds is local. So go local and then over time if enough do likewise then a wave of Justified Retribution will emerge in good time - but there is no way to do it on the quick - and this is more than evident - it is obvious and natural - just like lets say you got an infection in the body - the body first stops the infection from growing and then defends locally till the infection is dismissed. But it don't happen overnight - it takes time and local interaction in many localities over time - and then it turns the tide.
Moreover and lastly - it seems evident - Substack is a "limited hangout" - but local interaction are outside the jurisprudence of those trying to sway the tide or the narrative if you will - tis hard work - not well compensated, but tis of merit....there ain't no yellow brick road Bill - but keep hacking away at it - that has value no doubt - myself - I'm going local - and Substack - tis becoming secondary - nothing more than a place to be like an online diary - protected of course by the terms - per the link below.