Well-chronicled, Mike. I have long been feeling like I’ve been watching Alex execute a slow-motion self-immolation. I kept trying to throw him lifesavers to help him restore his rapidly crumbling credibility, but he shot down and ignored every one, just like the letter I wrote him last week:
I believe he has shown himself for the person he truly is—a megalomaniacal wannabe-mainstream journalist who treats both his audience and the principles he purports to advocate with contempt.
Berenson is actually far more like Jones than he would like to admit. They are both flame throwing fighters that are typically right more than they are wrong. But Berenson should be smarter about whom his real enemies are. Jones isn’t one of them.
I sniffed this out way back when he had a series of posts dumping on Joe Rogan. I don't follow JR, but Berenson was going deep into this guy's *speech*, can you believe it? Of course you can believe it now. I dumped him right there, even though I was a paid subscriber. I had also been paying attention to the exact posts you referenced about getting kicked of his charity, etc. Plus the IVM stuff. It all added up to me the exact way you summed it up, he was having some sort of identity crisis and he had contempt for his own supporters.
I used to not like Alex Jones but he has turned out to be right far more than he’s been wrong. And all of the people that want him dead are the same ones that want me dead and for the same reasons. In the interest of self preservation, we all might start there…
Alex Berenson ‘s beliefs are contrary to mine. Ivermectin works with hydroxychlorine, Vitamin C, oxygenation, outdoor activities with lots of sunshine, no diaper masks that foster social engineering, and never any jabs. HIs arrogance is obvious and his blindsigntedness is unacceptable
This was a good read and I found it useful to watch the video clip again but I think it was more an odd quibble as Berenson thinks to the present that Ivermectin can no better make a case for itself than the jabs versus the ChiCom virus. (He points to the high survival rate which is true of course even without treatment.)
FWIW, as I suspected Alex would have the last word on skeptics about his lawsuit. Today he released a substack showing coordination between Biden's Obama handlers and Twitter. The coordination isn't about generic handling of "misinformation" but about specifically seeking Berenson's removal from that platform.
On the aspects around Ivermectin, I sided with Dr. Malone and knew his citation to that area of India with plumetting infection and death rates from the ChiCom virus. So, I was happy to see that notation. Berenson thinks that's all wrong and he's pretty upfront about it even though he recently joined a panel to discuss it with Dr. Kory who has extensive on the ground experience with Ivermectin. So, let's call that progress.
As for AJ, I think we're slipping into the opinion vs. opinion modality where one opinion accuses another of being beyond inappropriate and wishes that opinion holder everything they deem coming to them. That's where that is at and frankly, IMHO, AJ brought it on himself. He was not only expressing an opinion, he was making money off that opinion and trying to make more money by enticing more people to join his conspiracy theory.
So, it's not merely saying an opinion should be met with a price but voicing disgust which I think is what Berenson did in the case of AJ. This is no way suggests there's merit to how the legal case has been conducted against AJ. That's an entirely separate matter.
When I think of these parents who suffered a horrific loss, it seems unfathomable AJ would just go off blustering some BS he thought he could feed to his audience, for moolah. They certainly deserve an apology but while I'm uncomfortable with this legal avenue taken, it's beyond me to comprehend how they feel and why they felt it necessary to take the legal route.
Anyway, I enjoyed your piece and liked how you went through all the elements. Just thought you should know there's more on the "discovery" front that was clearly part and parcel of some settlement with Twitter and now Berenson is setting his sights on target no. 1, that tried to deplatform and cancel him: the Biden Administration, re: his Obama handlers.).
I think your commentary missed the mark here, and I'm trying to understand the psychology behind jumping on the "hate Berenson" band wagon. I think most of Berenson's writing on Covid is phenomenal, but he's likely wrong on Ivermectin. Could we please go back to the good old days of allowing other adults to have the wrong idea on some things? Seeing as how we're all facing an existential crisis of pharmaceutical fascism, does it perhaps make sense for public figures who see the overall picture to try and make allegiances? Or are we going to revert to a pissing contest among these men as well? Where are the women who see the big picture by the way (Answer: homeschooling their kids and learning to ferment all their food because the culture is sick and the children are sick LOL). As far as the Twitter disclosure, have some effing patience for eff's sake. If Berenson hasn't published something in a year, go ahead and trash him. As far as criticism of Malone goes, it seems like the delightful gentleman can handle it just fine. And frankly, as a Mom, I wouldn't mind if a judge made Alex Jones drain his bank account to compensate the Sandy Hook families for the unimaginable anguish that he added to. However, I don't want Paypal to stop processing payments to him. You see--it is possible to think both are important. To finish, deep down what is the point of ripping apart someone who would probably stand with you against the real anti-speech tyrants that would destroy our democracy?
Thanks for the comment, Tina. I admit that none of us know the full story on Twitter. Like I said, we may never. I hope we do. I don’t see this as jumping on a bandwagon though. I actually see it completely opposite. I was not one of the commenters asking him for an apology on Malone. I was not one of the commenters asking him for disclosure on use of litigation funds/proceeds regarding his Twitter suit. I think he offers a WEALTH of information free of charge on COVID and I’ll always have his back on that. That’s why I paid him for it when he was writing it. All I can say is as someone who has personally endorsed Alex to friends and family members I’m not liking his takes lately and I think his stance on Jones is bad. It’s not just that tweet. Look at how he has engaged with people since his return to Twitter. There’s a difference between what I like to refer to as “east coast edge” and being “elitist” and he is exhibiting the latter. You say he would “probably stand with you” in regards to free speech and that’s a perfect way to explain it. Probably. Maybe. I’m actually not sure anymore. That is THE REASON I wrote this. Does Alex believe in free speech or does he believe in free speech for people with a certain number of Twitter followers provided they’re on the correct side of arguments? Doesn’t the fact that he has sued Twitter yet we’re still saying “probably” in reference to his free speech commitment speak volumes?
It makes me happy that you took the time to write a well-formed response. Thank you!!! I'm currently traveling for my daughter's wedding, and so that's why it's taken me a moment to respond. I'm going to examine Berenson's tweets more closely and see if I can see the same anti-speech sentiment in them that you see. I just want to distinguish between being anti-a-person-one-views-as-a-complete-asshole and being anti-speech. I'm anti-Trump because I think he's been a professional con-man his whole life (but also a brilliant reader of people and an innate scholar of human psychology). I also think that Twitter banning him was wrong, and I think that Trump Derangement Syndrome is a real condition suffered by many elites which would be farcical if it wasn't likely a major cause of the destruction of American trust in our government institutions. I just have to return to the question of whether what's happening right now is a power grab by monopolist-corporatist/neo-fascist forces that threatens America's existence as a free, democratic society or whether it's just a regular pull-and-tug between liberal and conservative thinkers. I wish someone could show me good evidence that it's the latter scenario, but I keep seeing evidence piling up that we're close to (or past) a tipping point into the first scenario. If we are in the first scenario, it means that either by design (conspiracy theorists rejoice) or by accident (probably as a result of the systems that combine to form America's brand of corporate welfare/military industrial capitalism), the dominant institutions in our country are now aligned to crush individual liberties whenever it serves their corporatist/fascist interests--which will probably be all the time pretty soon. If we are in the first scenario, the only hope I see is for the ones who "get it" to work together to figure out asap how to explain it so that others see it as well. I feel like Alex Berenson has done a fantastic job of explaining part of the problem for a large audience, but I will look carefully to see if his tweets could undermine the greater ability of people to see a potential catastrophic loss to their civil liberties.
Thank you for this. I don’t do any Big Tech social media, so I hadn’t heard about this latest bout of hypocrisy. I thought he recently agreed to debate Dr. Kory on IV but haven’t heard when. The attack on Dr. Malone alienated me, however I did not cancel my subscription. The propaganda is instilled too deeply in anyone that believes NY Times does real journalism and strives to join them. I understood how deeply he was embedded in the narrative, that it was a miracle he had the ability to do real journalism regarding Covid. But his dedication to dump on IVM was so unreconcilable with everything else that II stopped taking him seriously by then. I wrote him off as controlled opposition. I wasn’t shocked about his behavior during the Twitter lawsuit. I never contributed. Wouldn’t be surprised that was his pay off for his help controlling the opposition. The Alex Jones comment is yet another piece of evidence . I hope everyone learns of this hypocrisy. Bye Alex B. It was fun while it lasted.
I've been following Alex since early 2020 and am grateful for all of his covid and vaccine coverage. But it does seem like more and more that he is ashamed of the audience he has acquired, many of which are conservatives and even Trump supporters. He openly shows disdain for those who are financially supporting him. He misses being part of "the club" and was desperate to get back on Twitter. It bothers him that Fox News is the only news channel that still invites him on.
I still value his covid coverage and have his book, but any of his non-covid stories follow the same narrative as the corporate media.
Well-chronicled, Mike. I have long been feeling like I’ve been watching Alex execute a slow-motion self-immolation. I kept trying to throw him lifesavers to help him restore his rapidly crumbling credibility, but he shot down and ignored every one, just like the letter I wrote him last week:
• “Letter to Alex Berenson on World Ivermectin Day” (https://margaretannaalice.substack.com/p/letter-to-alex-berenson-on-world)
I believe he has shown himself for the person he truly is—a megalomaniacal wannabe-mainstream journalist who treats both his audience and the principles he purports to advocate with contempt.
Berenson is actually far more like Jones than he would like to admit. They are both flame throwing fighters that are typically right more than they are wrong. But Berenson should be smarter about whom his real enemies are. Jones isn’t one of them.
💯
I sniffed this out way back when he had a series of posts dumping on Joe Rogan. I don't follow JR, but Berenson was going deep into this guy's *speech*, can you believe it? Of course you can believe it now. I dumped him right there, even though I was a paid subscriber. I had also been paying attention to the exact posts you referenced about getting kicked of his charity, etc. Plus the IVM stuff. It all added up to me the exact way you summed it up, he was having some sort of identity crisis and he had contempt for his own supporters.
I used to not like Alex Jones but he has turned out to be right far more than he’s been wrong. And all of the people that want him dead are the same ones that want me dead and for the same reasons. In the interest of self preservation, we all might start there…
Alex Berenson ‘s beliefs are contrary to mine. Ivermectin works with hydroxychlorine, Vitamin C, oxygenation, outdoor activities with lots of sunshine, no diaper masks that foster social engineering, and never any jabs. HIs arrogance is obvious and his blindsigntedness is unacceptable
Maybe the weed he's smoking is causing psychosis
This was a good read and I found it useful to watch the video clip again but I think it was more an odd quibble as Berenson thinks to the present that Ivermectin can no better make a case for itself than the jabs versus the ChiCom virus. (He points to the high survival rate which is true of course even without treatment.)
FWIW, as I suspected Alex would have the last word on skeptics about his lawsuit. Today he released a substack showing coordination between Biden's Obama handlers and Twitter. The coordination isn't about generic handling of "misinformation" but about specifically seeking Berenson's removal from that platform.
https://alexberenson.substack.com/p/the-white-house-privately-demanded
On the aspects around Ivermectin, I sided with Dr. Malone and knew his citation to that area of India with plumetting infection and death rates from the ChiCom virus. So, I was happy to see that notation. Berenson thinks that's all wrong and he's pretty upfront about it even though he recently joined a panel to discuss it with Dr. Kory who has extensive on the ground experience with Ivermectin. So, let's call that progress.
As for AJ, I think we're slipping into the opinion vs. opinion modality where one opinion accuses another of being beyond inappropriate and wishes that opinion holder everything they deem coming to them. That's where that is at and frankly, IMHO, AJ brought it on himself. He was not only expressing an opinion, he was making money off that opinion and trying to make more money by enticing more people to join his conspiracy theory.
So, it's not merely saying an opinion should be met with a price but voicing disgust which I think is what Berenson did in the case of AJ. This is no way suggests there's merit to how the legal case has been conducted against AJ. That's an entirely separate matter.
When I think of these parents who suffered a horrific loss, it seems unfathomable AJ would just go off blustering some BS he thought he could feed to his audience, for moolah. They certainly deserve an apology but while I'm uncomfortable with this legal avenue taken, it's beyond me to comprehend how they feel and why they felt it necessary to take the legal route.
Anyway, I enjoyed your piece and liked how you went through all the elements. Just thought you should know there's more on the "discovery" front that was clearly part and parcel of some settlement with Twitter and now Berenson is setting his sights on target no. 1, that tried to deplatform and cancel him: the Biden Administration, re: his Obama handlers.).
Thought you should know.
https://alexberenson.substack.com/p/if-youre-wondering-if-i-plan-to-sue/comments
Thanks for reading! Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for sharing AB's update. I'll check that out shortly. I agree with a lot of what you said FWIW
I had missed that strike 3. What a damn shame. Nice write up.
I think your commentary missed the mark here, and I'm trying to understand the psychology behind jumping on the "hate Berenson" band wagon. I think most of Berenson's writing on Covid is phenomenal, but he's likely wrong on Ivermectin. Could we please go back to the good old days of allowing other adults to have the wrong idea on some things? Seeing as how we're all facing an existential crisis of pharmaceutical fascism, does it perhaps make sense for public figures who see the overall picture to try and make allegiances? Or are we going to revert to a pissing contest among these men as well? Where are the women who see the big picture by the way (Answer: homeschooling their kids and learning to ferment all their food because the culture is sick and the children are sick LOL). As far as the Twitter disclosure, have some effing patience for eff's sake. If Berenson hasn't published something in a year, go ahead and trash him. As far as criticism of Malone goes, it seems like the delightful gentleman can handle it just fine. And frankly, as a Mom, I wouldn't mind if a judge made Alex Jones drain his bank account to compensate the Sandy Hook families for the unimaginable anguish that he added to. However, I don't want Paypal to stop processing payments to him. You see--it is possible to think both are important. To finish, deep down what is the point of ripping apart someone who would probably stand with you against the real anti-speech tyrants that would destroy our democracy?
Thanks for the comment, Tina. I admit that none of us know the full story on Twitter. Like I said, we may never. I hope we do. I don’t see this as jumping on a bandwagon though. I actually see it completely opposite. I was not one of the commenters asking him for an apology on Malone. I was not one of the commenters asking him for disclosure on use of litigation funds/proceeds regarding his Twitter suit. I think he offers a WEALTH of information free of charge on COVID and I’ll always have his back on that. That’s why I paid him for it when he was writing it. All I can say is as someone who has personally endorsed Alex to friends and family members I’m not liking his takes lately and I think his stance on Jones is bad. It’s not just that tweet. Look at how he has engaged with people since his return to Twitter. There’s a difference between what I like to refer to as “east coast edge” and being “elitist” and he is exhibiting the latter. You say he would “probably stand with you” in regards to free speech and that’s a perfect way to explain it. Probably. Maybe. I’m actually not sure anymore. That is THE REASON I wrote this. Does Alex believe in free speech or does he believe in free speech for people with a certain number of Twitter followers provided they’re on the correct side of arguments? Doesn’t the fact that he has sued Twitter yet we’re still saying “probably” in reference to his free speech commitment speak volumes?
It makes me happy that you took the time to write a well-formed response. Thank you!!! I'm currently traveling for my daughter's wedding, and so that's why it's taken me a moment to respond. I'm going to examine Berenson's tweets more closely and see if I can see the same anti-speech sentiment in them that you see. I just want to distinguish between being anti-a-person-one-views-as-a-complete-asshole and being anti-speech. I'm anti-Trump because I think he's been a professional con-man his whole life (but also a brilliant reader of people and an innate scholar of human psychology). I also think that Twitter banning him was wrong, and I think that Trump Derangement Syndrome is a real condition suffered by many elites which would be farcical if it wasn't likely a major cause of the destruction of American trust in our government institutions. I just have to return to the question of whether what's happening right now is a power grab by monopolist-corporatist/neo-fascist forces that threatens America's existence as a free, democratic society or whether it's just a regular pull-and-tug between liberal and conservative thinkers. I wish someone could show me good evidence that it's the latter scenario, but I keep seeing evidence piling up that we're close to (or past) a tipping point into the first scenario. If we are in the first scenario, it means that either by design (conspiracy theorists rejoice) or by accident (probably as a result of the systems that combine to form America's brand of corporate welfare/military industrial capitalism), the dominant institutions in our country are now aligned to crush individual liberties whenever it serves their corporatist/fascist interests--which will probably be all the time pretty soon. If we are in the first scenario, the only hope I see is for the ones who "get it" to work together to figure out asap how to explain it so that others see it as well. I feel like Alex Berenson has done a fantastic job of explaining part of the problem for a large audience, but I will look carefully to see if his tweets could undermine the greater ability of people to see a potential catastrophic loss to their civil liberties.
Thank you for this. I don’t do any Big Tech social media, so I hadn’t heard about this latest bout of hypocrisy. I thought he recently agreed to debate Dr. Kory on IV but haven’t heard when. The attack on Dr. Malone alienated me, however I did not cancel my subscription. The propaganda is instilled too deeply in anyone that believes NY Times does real journalism and strives to join them. I understood how deeply he was embedded in the narrative, that it was a miracle he had the ability to do real journalism regarding Covid. But his dedication to dump on IVM was so unreconcilable with everything else that II stopped taking him seriously by then. I wrote him off as controlled opposition. I wasn’t shocked about his behavior during the Twitter lawsuit. I never contributed. Wouldn’t be surprised that was his pay off for his help controlling the opposition. The Alex Jones comment is yet another piece of evidence . I hope everyone learns of this hypocrisy. Bye Alex B. It was fun while it lasted.
I've been following Alex since early 2020 and am grateful for all of his covid and vaccine coverage. But it does seem like more and more that he is ashamed of the audience he has acquired, many of which are conservatives and even Trump supporters. He openly shows disdain for those who are financially supporting him. He misses being part of "the club" and was desperate to get back on Twitter. It bothers him that Fox News is the only news channel that still invites him on.
I still value his covid coverage and have his book, but any of his non-covid stories follow the same narrative as the corporate media.