I wrote about Ms. Sheehan last year, specifically about her dubious credentials as a "liberal anti war activist and her questionable alliances and support from racists. There is much sadness and disappointment in discovering this antiwar icon is probably a fraud. But, as Sheehan was preparing for a bid for governor, it could be useful in taking the "truther" temperature in politics:
I'm calling it: whatever the turnout is, it will be used as "proof" of a silent majority.
Variation: if Sheehan doesn't even run a real campaign, the turnout will be used as "proof" of a vast grassroots effort. Actually all that proves is these lying, scammy, closet racists use private email lists and internet boards to organize.
Little did I realize as I wrote those words how late to the party I was. In California politics only the top two winners of the primary go on to election day. My blog was written in mid September and Sheehan had already lost the primary in June.
Whoops, my bad.
That said, looking at the raw numbers is still instructive. Because Sheehan did run a real campaign, or as real as one gets promoted on fringe conspiracy social media. And even with the sheeple out if force, she only got 1.2 percent of the vote, with 52,707 votes in the primary.
http://ballotpedia.org/California_gubernatorial_election,_2014
While over fifty thousand people willing to follow Sheehan over a cliff into a sea of koolaid is nothing to sneeze at, it's also, in pure numbers, down from past candidates for the Peace and Freedom party. Their last candidate in 2010 had 92,637 votes; the candidate before that, 69,934. The only candidate to get less total votes was in 1982.
This could be as simple as the Peace and Freedom Party was a terrible fit for Sheehan. Or maybe Sheehan's regular base was turned off by the obvious leftist branding. In theory, leaders like Kelso might hold their noses and vote knowing they were using the leftist network to undermine it(or that's the plan), but rank and file racist sympathizers in the conspiracy community will have no faith in such a strategy. This seems less a "roll call" and more an experiment, one that seems to have failed.
Why did the Peace and Freedom Party endorse Sheehan in the first place? It's surprising members wouldn't object, but then her Wikipedia page was cleaned up. There used to be a page about criticism and support, that can be found in wayback, but it was deleted. Granted most critics were from the right, but that's doesn't automatically make them incorrect. The rational was this material should be incorporated in to her main page, but little of it has. Her references to 9/11 have definitely been removed, such as this one:
In March 2005, James Morris sent an e-mail to ABC's Nightline allegedly written by Sheehan that included the statements that the 9/11 attacks occurred because "Arab-Muslims who attacked us hate our middle-eastern foreign policy" and that Casey Sheehan "was killed for lies and for a PNAC Neo-Con agenda to benefit Israel" and had "joined the Army to protect America, not Israel." Sheehan denies the allegations: "I've never said that... Those aren't even words that I would say. I do believe that the Palestinian issue is a hot issue that needs to be solved, and it needs to be more fair and equitable, but I never said my son died for Israel." She claims that Morris modified the email to support his own personal agenda. Morris denies altering the email before sending it along to Nightline[16] on Sheehan's behalf (per her request for him to do so). Two other individuals, Tony Tersch and Skeeter Gallagher, received a copy of Sheehan's email directly from her; both claim that the e-mail they received is consistent with Morris' story. Tersch posted the email[17] he received to the "bullyard" Google group.
It can still be read in wayback.
More direct statements on her page about the "truth" movement go back to July 2007:
9/11 Truth Movement
In an interview with Alex Jones, she supported the 9/11 truth movement and said that she agrees that the falling of the twin towers represented a controlled demolition. She also mentioned the Jersey Girls as well as a new independent 9/11 investigation. [70].
( mp3 link )
Expanded on in September 2007:
9/11 conspiracy theories
In an interview with Alex Jones, Sheehan supported the Jersey Girls' call for a new investigation into the Bush administration's response to 9/11, and said with regard to the controlled demolition hypothesis for the collapse of the World Trade Center that "I'm not an expert and I haven't had time to research it, but it does to me look like a controlled demolition, from a very amateur eye." Noting that some "high profile" people "think 911 was an inside job," Sheenan said that "there's just a lot of very questionable things." [74]
This information was available until early August of 2008, after which it disappeared from her page. The mp3 link is very instructive for anyone with 20/20 vision to see how she was working fringe talking points while still plausibly putting up a front as an anti war leftist.
Clearly there was an attempt to clean up her image before going on the politics road show in late 2008. People only familiar with Sheehan anti war work will have no idea, from simply reading her Wikipedia page, how involved she is with fringe politics. Maybe the Peace and Freedom Party didn't either, though someone should have done the research. For instance, before you have someone run for your party, maybe you should check if they're calling well reported news "fake":
Anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan wrote her supporters, “I am sorry, but if you believe the newest death of OBL, you’re stupid. Just think to yourself—they paraded Saddam’s dead sons around to prove they were dead—why do you suppose they hastily buried this version of OBL at sea? This lying, murderous Empire can only exist with your brainwashed consent—just put your flags away and THINK!”Well, I'd respond with, "I'm sorry, but f you believe this woman who has been caught lying numerous times and lets racists take photo ops with her is still a real progressive anti war activist, you're stupid."
Makes us all even, eh?
Few people are talking about Sheehan now. Her so called soap box is in splinters. The 52,707 votes Sheehan garnered is less of a sign of a silent grass roots movement and more an indicator the entire "truther" gig is on life support. Remember, Sheehan started off on the anti war left. Then she almost deliberately acted out in a way that gave her the flexibility to be more tolerant of the fringe right, until she claims to be not left or right, a common Libertarian rhetorical device to hide an extremist right politics.
Now, even among her fans, support is dwindling. The fact is 9/11 truth as always meant to be a racist front by the "leaders". Leftist were only tolerated in so much as they could be a shield for the racist propaganda ala Alibi Jews, except they were completely unaware of their role. (Real albi Jews appear to be classic opportunists who know what they are doing, see David Cole). The only other thing Movement "leaders" want out of leftists is faithful parrots and to recruit new sheeple. People like Sheehan were a useful rallying point to managed to duped leftists. So what happens to Sheehan when the leftists drift away or, worse, see the "truther" con for what it is? Sheehan's voting base goes kaput.
Sheehan's use for the "truth" movement is over. She's burnt her bridges with the Democratic Party and other left antiwar groups. I certainly hope she's saved or invested any donations she's received, because she's going to need it. I could almost feel sorry for her, being completely dependent on the good will of fringe political vultures as she ages. But she still has time to turn it around. That she chooses not to is sad.
But worse than Sheehan's personal prospects are what's left of the "Movement"s prospects. These people would never have gotten the fraud off the ground without the help of real leftists and anti-war activists. "Loose Change" appealed to young anti war activists. The Bush administration’s incompetence and the luke warm media didn't help. But it was the pool of disafected antiwar protesters that the frauds exploited to build the so called "truth movement". Without it, they are dead in the water. Sheehan was one of the tools to organize the lefty truthers.
As Sheehan fades, the Truth Movement fades with her. And like canaries in the old coal mines, any remaining "lefty" truthers should get out. Once Sheehan's gone, you know it's over.
Only Libertarian sympathetic websites like Daily Caller and Breitbart gives her virtual airtime.
One of which has this obnoxious popup:
Do your part to DEFEND AMERICA.
Sign the petition below to show you support defunding President Obama's executive amnesty.
First it's racists, then it's xenophobes. At least they're out in the open now.
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