Because the Corporate Media landscape has totally changed from basic reporting, to Story Telling, to explain News, the American people have been groomed to like the story, rather than the Facts and the Truth. Good article today, Jack, thank you, and will reStack ASAP 💯👍
You nailed it, Karen...the media stopped reporting and started story-selling.
They groomed people to crave narrative arcs...not raw truth. That’s why so many cling to conspiracies or “super-sniper” myths...it feels like a better story.
But the facts...stripped bare...are what actually matter. Thank you for catching that point...and for the reStack! That’s how we keep cutting through the noise together.
This was a great article for a lay person like me to read. I too thought this must have been some military sharp shooter (knowing nothing about guns and not really wanting to). You opened my eyes to see that yesterday indeed, some random teenager could actually pull this off with just just adequate planning and already honed shooting skills. However, because Trump runs so many lies and conspiracy theories, he has tricked minds to think there must have been something deeper behind this "random" shooting. I mean, look at Trump's seemingly assassination attempt last year. Very few people believe that was real. So yes, our brains are in a constant state of influx anymore to even figure out what any truth actually is.
I appreciate this more than you know, Karen. You captured the exact point: it doesn’t take a ghost in the shadows, it takes a rifle and a plan...and yes...that means even a teenager can change history in a heartbeat.
The tragedy is that Trump’s blizzard of lies and conspiracies has rewired people to doubt everything...so even when the truth is simple...it feels unbelievable.
That’s the psychological warfare we’re living under...chaos by design.
I’m glad this piece cut through some of that fog for you. That’s why I write the way I do: to strip away the sexy lies and show the raw reality. Together we can keep our feet on the ground...even when the world around us is spinning.
As a country girl, I knew this wasn’t a sniper. But I must admit I thought maybe donnie’s minions had staged it as another distraction and to create a martyr for the cause. We never found out any details about what happened in Butler. 👹
You nailed it, Rachel...anyone who’s ever put a rifle on a deer at 150 yards (and that's 10-12 million Americans who hunt deer each year) knows this wasn’t some sniper fantasy.
And I get the instinct to wonder if Trump’s minions staged it...he thrives on distraction and martyrdom.
But that’s why Butler still hangs in the air like a fog: unanswered questions feed conspiracy thinking.
The danger is letting that fog blind us to the simpler...scarier truth...in a country with half a billion guns...it doesn’t take masterminds to stage chaos. It just takes opportunity...and one person willing to pull the trigger.
Karen S and Karen H- great observations and comments. I too know zero about guns/rifles so I (as Jack predicted) immediately assumed an expertise that was not required. If only Corporate Media (I like that term) spoke as clearly as Jack.
I appreciate that, Vicky. In today's world...some writers are too tempted to run with the narrative that taps most closely into the prevailing emotions and beliefs. I'm committed to writing as close as I can to facts...even when doing so feels like abandoning what democracy defending Americans might hope to see me write. When I am speculating, hypothesizing, etc. I try to make that known.
Too bad the people that really need to read this do not read Substack, They are faux News followers and they suck up everything the Right tell them especially the orange menace. Thanks for the clarity I learned quite bit since animal hunting is not something I knew about living in a suburb type area.
You’re right, Teri...the people who need this most won’t touch it. They’re glued to FOX... swallowing every word the orange menace feeds them.
But that’s exactly why this community matters: to cut through the noise...sharpen our understanding...and arm ourselves with facts that most of suburbia never hears.
I’m glad the hunting context hit home for you...that’s the gap I’m trying to close...turning what looks like “mystery” into common sense clarity.
I'm not ignorant to the fact that many people are repulsed by the topic of hunting. I get that. I also know, however...that it was a major theme in my life growing up...part of how we kept food on the table...and something I know about...and can draw from.
And thank you for being here...because it’s readers like you that make this fight winnable.
I also grew up around guns as my mom’s family was from very rural Mississippi. My first husband also went hunting in north Florida. The guns were always secured. I used to just do target practice at ranges and have a concealed permit. I never want to need to use it.
Thank you, Jack. You've delivered again! Like those who commented below, I greatly appreciate your analysis. Same re the comments below, particularly Karen Scofield's about StoryTelling!
StoryTelling was an important tool we used raising our children. But doing so (for those of us not hermits, or living in isolated tribes) requires other teaching methodology, particularly training in Critical Thinking.
In another venue this morning, I read about a woman from an upscale Houston area, who'd worked for Kirk.
In secondary school or college she'd had training in Critical Thinking. It enabled to evaluate the "gospel" Kirk was delivering.
Great article, really explains the situation to us non-gun people. And speaking of the influence of movies on the culture, it's always been my position that movies have had an absolutely awful effect on us over the past 100 years. Especially in terms of intimate relationships. Movies have created all sorts of false expectations in nearly everyone, and it's work to rid ourselves of these (if we ever do). Of course, movies that depicted reality would have no audience!!
Thank you Jack! Your article not only cuts to the truth but explains it clearly. We as a nation tend to respond to conspiracy theories these days. More truth is needed and as I said, thank you for that.
Because the Corporate Media landscape has totally changed from basic reporting, to Story Telling, to explain News, the American people have been groomed to like the story, rather than the Facts and the Truth. Good article today, Jack, thank you, and will reStack ASAP 💯👍
You nailed it, Karen...the media stopped reporting and started story-selling.
They groomed people to crave narrative arcs...not raw truth. That’s why so many cling to conspiracies or “super-sniper” myths...it feels like a better story.
But the facts...stripped bare...are what actually matter. Thank you for catching that point...and for the reStack! That’s how we keep cutting through the noise together.
-Jack
This was a great article for a lay person like me to read. I too thought this must have been some military sharp shooter (knowing nothing about guns and not really wanting to). You opened my eyes to see that yesterday indeed, some random teenager could actually pull this off with just just adequate planning and already honed shooting skills. However, because Trump runs so many lies and conspiracy theories, he has tricked minds to think there must have been something deeper behind this "random" shooting. I mean, look at Trump's seemingly assassination attempt last year. Very few people believe that was real. So yes, our brains are in a constant state of influx anymore to even figure out what any truth actually is.
I appreciate this more than you know, Karen. You captured the exact point: it doesn’t take a ghost in the shadows, it takes a rifle and a plan...and yes...that means even a teenager can change history in a heartbeat.
The tragedy is that Trump’s blizzard of lies and conspiracies has rewired people to doubt everything...so even when the truth is simple...it feels unbelievable.
That’s the psychological warfare we’re living under...chaos by design.
I’m glad this piece cut through some of that fog for you. That’s why I write the way I do: to strip away the sexy lies and show the raw reality. Together we can keep our feet on the ground...even when the world around us is spinning.
-Jack
As a country girl, I knew this wasn’t a sniper. But I must admit I thought maybe donnie’s minions had staged it as another distraction and to create a martyr for the cause. We never found out any details about what happened in Butler. 👹
You nailed it, Rachel...anyone who’s ever put a rifle on a deer at 150 yards (and that's 10-12 million Americans who hunt deer each year) knows this wasn’t some sniper fantasy.
And I get the instinct to wonder if Trump’s minions staged it...he thrives on distraction and martyrdom.
But that’s why Butler still hangs in the air like a fog: unanswered questions feed conspiracy thinking.
The danger is letting that fog blind us to the simpler...scarier truth...in a country with half a billion guns...it doesn’t take masterminds to stage chaos. It just takes opportunity...and one person willing to pull the trigger.
-Jack
Karen S and Karen H- great observations and comments. I too know zero about guns/rifles so I (as Jack predicted) immediately assumed an expertise that was not required. If only Corporate Media (I like that term) spoke as clearly as Jack.
Thank you, Tom.
Jack- you’re my daily reality check on what the fuck to believe and what to question.
Great article, Jack. Common sense and clarity! Those are rare today.
I appreciate that, Vicky. In today's world...some writers are too tempted to run with the narrative that taps most closely into the prevailing emotions and beliefs. I'm committed to writing as close as I can to facts...even when doing so feels like abandoning what democracy defending Americans might hope to see me write. When I am speculating, hypothesizing, etc. I try to make that known.
Too bad the people that really need to read this do not read Substack, They are faux News followers and they suck up everything the Right tell them especially the orange menace. Thanks for the clarity I learned quite bit since animal hunting is not something I knew about living in a suburb type area.
You’re right, Teri...the people who need this most won’t touch it. They’re glued to FOX... swallowing every word the orange menace feeds them.
But that’s exactly why this community matters: to cut through the noise...sharpen our understanding...and arm ourselves with facts that most of suburbia never hears.
I’m glad the hunting context hit home for you...that’s the gap I’m trying to close...turning what looks like “mystery” into common sense clarity.
I'm not ignorant to the fact that many people are repulsed by the topic of hunting. I get that. I also know, however...that it was a major theme in my life growing up...part of how we kept food on the table...and something I know about...and can draw from.
And thank you for being here...because it’s readers like you that make this fight winnable.
-Jack
I also grew up around guns as my mom’s family was from very rural Mississippi. My first husband also went hunting in north Florida. The guns were always secured. I used to just do target practice at ranges and have a concealed permit. I never want to need to use it.
Ditto for this suburban mom. My dad hunted, but never tried to include me (thank goodness).
Jack, Thank you!! This article is SO interesting, informative, important and makes sense!!
Thank you, Jack. You've delivered again! Like those who commented below, I greatly appreciate your analysis. Same re the comments below, particularly Karen Scofield's about StoryTelling!
StoryTelling was an important tool we used raising our children. But doing so (for those of us not hermits, or living in isolated tribes) requires other teaching methodology, particularly training in Critical Thinking.
In another venue this morning, I read about a woman from an upscale Houston area, who'd worked for Kirk.
In secondary school or college she'd had training in Critical Thinking. It enabled to evaluate the "gospel" Kirk was delivering.
Thanks for the great article, Jack! It’s very helpful.
Great article, really explains the situation to us non-gun people. And speaking of the influence of movies on the culture, it's always been my position that movies have had an absolutely awful effect on us over the past 100 years. Especially in terms of intimate relationships. Movies have created all sorts of false expectations in nearly everyone, and it's work to rid ourselves of these (if we ever do). Of course, movies that depicted reality would have no audience!!
Thank you Jack! Your article not only cuts to the truth but explains it clearly. We as a nation tend to respond to conspiracy theories these days. More truth is needed and as I said, thank you for that.
Great article Jack, thank you 🙏💙