Considering Alex Jones / Prisonplanet, I can sort-of see why such a far-off-the-mainstream source is somewhat popular in a number of far-off-the-mainstream circles, such as the permaculture community. However, what does make me highly nervous about A.J. is that he has made up his own mind on how the world works, seeks out confirming evidence that fits his crazy picture, and discards everything that does not fit.

Take, for example, this issue:

http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/april2006/030406massculling.htm

An academic biologist warned that an overpopulated (and highly networked, I may add) planet provides an ideal medium for lethal viruses to spread, and that there is considerable likelihood that our population gets decimated this way within our lifetime.

The possibility of such a scenario is actually not such an outlandish idea, after all. It’s certainly under-estimated by the general public, as is the danger of a Carrington event, or of a major asteroid impact taking out a city.

But what did happen then? A creationist tried to spin the content of this talk to launch a smear campaign against that biologist (for he’s an “adherent of the belief in evolution”) and mis-reported this talk as being about plans to decimate the human population. Now, this so nicely fits into Alex Jones’ model of the world that he had to report that – unchecked – as sound evidence for the sinister plan to kill off the majority of human people by the power elite.

Madness at its best.

I think I can safely say that, while reading Alex Jones may at times serve useful purposes to overcome mental blockades, and that the existence of his site should be seen as a sign that freedom of speech still works to a reasonable degree, he is actually navigating quite a bit outside the realm of sanity.

For starters, Janet, the weather on Black Saturday was EXACTLY the same as before and during every other huge fire in Victoria. It was hotter in 1851, when half the state burned, and the temperatures in 1939, 1944 and 1983 were within one of two degrees. That’s a 160-year period and the fire conditions have not budged an inch.

And Janet, when you write that preventative burning is coming back, it is obvious that you haven’t discussed that point with any of the green readers of this blog. They opposed hazard reduction, and green councils (the dills in Nillumbik) actually fined people for collecting dead wood from the roadside. They also uprooted deciduous trees (which don’t burn readily) and replaced them fire-loving natives.

Look, I could go on, but it’s not global warming that is to blame. It is moronic ideologues.

To save the next crop of bushfire victims, we have to go back to aboriginal burning practices. When aborigines were removed from the countryside that their burning had altered over the course of 40,000 years, the low intensity fires stopped also. The nature of the vegetation changed and the amount of ground fuel increased, because it was free to build up for years.

Anyone who wants to get a clear and non-ideological perspective on bushfires and how to avoid more mega-deaths should read ”Inferno: The Day Victoria Burned” by Rodger Franklin. I just took it back to the library and its description of the stupidity that created Black Saturday and the official idiocy that made it even worse should make your blood boil.

Here are a couple interesting articles:

http://www.prisonplanet.com/with-hurricanes-at-thirty-year-low-gore-turns-to-photoshop.html

http://www.infowars.com/climate-skeptics-claim-leaked-emails-are-evidence-of-collusion-among-scientists/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMe5dOgbu40&feature=player_embedded