The Finish Line February Edition

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T H E F I N I S H L I N E
62,735 INDIANA STRONG!
COS Indiana Vision: To build a strong, engaged army of self-governing activists.
COS INDIANA EVENTS CALENDAR
Click on the Calendar below – it links directly to the COS Team Up Calendar!
LOVE GOD – LOVE FAMILY – LOVE COUNTRY – LOVE ONE ANOTHER

CHOOSE AN EVENT FROM THE CALENDAR LINKED BELOW
AND PLAN TO HOST A COS BOOTH!
THINGS TO DO | VISIT INDIANA | FEBRUARY 2023
VIDEO RECAP OF SURGE DAY IN 2022

WE CONTROL OUR FATE
DESTINY AWAITS!
2023 COS INDIANA "SURGE DAY"
MEET AT THE STATE CAPITOL
IMPORTANT: WE NEED YOU AT SURGE DAY!
Date: March 8, 2023
Location: Indiana Statehouse, North Atrium – 2nd Floor
200 W. Washington Street, Indianapolis, IN 46204
Time: 9:00 am – 3:00 pm (EST)
We need more than 100 COS supporters at this year's COS Surge Day. We ask that you
contact your House and Senate representatives – get on their calendar NOW. Meet with
them and ask them to visit our booth on March 8th. Please wear your COS gear and be
prepared to discuss our Article V progress (19 States and growing) and bills or issues your
representatives are involved in or have authored.
You can find your representatives at https://iga.in.gov/legislative/find-legislators/
You can search for the bills they have authored at
https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2023/bylegislator
Search standing committees at https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2023/committees/standing
ACCESS and ACCESSIBILITY
Enter through security on the Capitol Avenue side at the top of the main stairway.
Enter through security on the west, N. Senate Avenue side lower level.
Be prepared for hard surface walking, but seating areas available inside as needed
and elevator access is available once past security.
Statehouse floor maps and other information can be found at:
https://iga.in.gov/information/location_maps/
PARKING OPTIONS $5-$25
Parking Garage on N. Capitol Avenue directly across from the Statehouse.
Parking at the Circle Centre Mail, enter off Washington Street east of Illinois Street.
Street Metered Parking – meters take a credit card and parking space number can be
paid at any pay station. Add your phone number at the end of pay process to receive
a receipt and a reminder that your time is about to expire. Time can then be
extended using your phone if necessary. First 4 hours is about $7.00.
FOOD OPTIONS – $10-$20 per person
Lower level of the Statehouse – basic grilled items and drinks.
Indiana Government Center west of the Statehouse – cafeteria options.
Local dining options within two blocks of the Statehouse.
PLEASE PLAN TO ATTEND. The more folks that come, the more positive impact COS can
make as a force to be reckoned with. MAKE THIS A CALENDAR PRIORITY!
STATE NEWS

COS State Director Dale Parrish gives a quick run­down on Indiana news!
COS INDIANA LIVE BROADCAST
Hosted by Dale Parrish / Co-Hosted by Ken Kashuba
The weekly broadcast is live-streamed on Facebook and Youtube
Each Monday at 7:00 PM Eastern Time
COS ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION
4TH MONDAY EACH MONTH
NEXT ROUNDTABLE: FEBRUARY 27, 2023
PATRIOT VOLUNTEERS
"SHARE THE PETITION" MONTHLY CHALLENGE
These are critical times!
Forward this newsletter to your family and friends!

THE 2023 CHALLENGE
GOAL: 70,000 PETITION SIGNERS
Share the COS Project with at least one person!
Help them sign the petition!
WE NEED PETITION SIGNERS
AND MORE VOLUNTEERS!
Signing the petition is the least we can do to save our republic.
www.conventionofstates.com
WAYS TO SERVE – HELP NEEDED
If we are to fulfill our mission, we need more than petition signers – we need Hoosiers to
engage in their community. We can no longer trust our lives, our rights, and our country to
others. Convention of States Action offers many ways to be involved, so whether it be
visiting the statehouse for Surge Day, writing letters to your representatives, working the
phones for the TelePatriot missions, or getting a friend to sign the petition this month –
there is a way for each person to make a difference. Together, we can accomplish great
things! Do something to serve! Get started making a difference today!
That is why we are introducing the STEP UP program. Click on the link to review the
opportunities, or you can contact the team directly if you would like to volunteer or need
further information about any open positions at email: RaiseYourVoiceCOS@gmail.com.
STEP UP!
Founding Father Thomas Jefferson said:
“We in America do not have government by the majority—we have
government by the majority who participate... All tyranny needs to gain a
foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent.”
You can help bring change by being engaged. Do not remain silent. Get involved!
Many of us sat on the sidelines, hoping that someone else would step up. If we are going to
restore America, it will require every patriotic American.
If we are going to stop the taking of our rights, we must stand together, and we are
standing together nationally 5 million strong. You are not alone.
Doing nothing gives us more of what we are getting right now!
I am asking for citizens of Indiana to take a stand. I am asking you to raise your Hoosier
voice to be heard across every county in this state.
We need District Captains to grow our grassroots army here in Indiana. Will you join us?
Take action NOW!

MARENGO MIKE
Created by COS Indiana Comms Director Ken Kashuba
VIEW VIDEO
ONE NATION UNDER GOD
Aspirational Goal: To bring a Political and Spiritual Awakening to America.
An Answer To Prayer
by Tim Heidenreich | February 14, 2023
I received a wonderful update from Robert Suarez this week. We started praying for
last July, because he was being treated for Lymphoma. It is so heart warming to hear
stories like this so I am sharing some excerpts from his email with all of you:

“Hello Tim, a few months ago you placed me on your prayer list. Perhaps you
remember me. As I finished my prayers tonight the spirit moved me to contact you. So I
got out of bed and began texting you.
"I want, first, to thank you for your prayers and those of your prayer warriors. I had so
many people in COS praying for me. Several contacted me asking if they could put me
on their church prayer lists...
"Thank you to all my prayerful Christian brothers and sisters who have been praying
for me. Rest assured that your prayers provided me with much comfort and strength.
So much so that I often felt guilty and undeserving to see others suffer so much more
than I did. The Lord also blessed me Spiritually in ways that I cannot communicate
properly in a text.
"I have begun doing my morning prayer walks again, but it will be a while before I get
back up to 5 mile walks again. But I have already reached the 2.5 mile mark. It takes me
an hour to complete a walk now, but I pray unceasingly in that hour for the church,
our nation, and I never forget all my brothers and sisters in Christ. I pray for you all as
I walk, just as you all prayed for me, while the Lord held my hand as He walked with
me over the last few months.
"I said many in this text except the most important ones: Thank you, I love you, and
glory to God in the highest, for the great gift of our lives which He shares with us
through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
If you would like to join our COS Indiana Prayer Warriors team, please let me know.
I'd be very happy to add you to the distribution list for prayer requests that I receive.
* * *
COS Indiana State Prayer Contact Tim Heidenreich invites your prayer requests and we
sincerely ask your prayers for the COS team, their families, and for the success of our
mission. Prayers for upcoming events, legislative issues, for critical roles to be filled,
personal needs, surgery or illness, comfort in time of grief, items for thanksgiving. Phone
Tim at: 317-910-2992 or email: Tim.Heidenreich@cosaction.com.
* * *
My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct
my prayer unto thee, and will look up. Psalm 5:3
All true love is from God, and man receives the divine affection as he himself bestows
this love upon his fellows. Love is dynamic. It can never be captured; it is alive, free,
thrilling, and always moving. Man can never take the love of the Father and imprison it
within his heart. The Father’s love can become real to mortal man only by passing
through that man’s personality as he in turn bestows this love upon his fellows. The
great circuit of love is from the Father. The love of the Father appears in the mortal
personality by the ministry of the indwelling spirit and through the ministry of
Jesus. Then such a God-knowing faith-son reveals this love to his universe brethren. –
Philosophy from The Urantia Book
IDEALS OF SELF–GOVERNANCE
Self-Governance is the essence of the true American spirit.

IDEALISM, ILLUSION, AND REALITY
Success may generate courage and promote confidence, but wisdom comes only from the
experiences of adjustment to the results of one's failures. Men who prefer optimistic illusions
to reality can never become wise. Only those who face facts and adjust them to ideals can
achieve wisdom. Wisdom embraces both the fact and the ideal and therefore saves its devotees
from both of those barren extremes of philosophy — the man whose idealism excludes facts
and the materialist who is devoid of spiritual outlook. Those timid souls who can only keep
up the struggle of life by the aid of continuous false illusions of success are doomed to suffer
failure and experience defeat as they ultimately awaken from the dream world of their own
imaginations.
Any civilization is in jeopardy when three quarters of its youth enter materialistic professions
and devote themselves to the pursuit of the sensory activities of the outer world. Civilization is
in danger when youth neglect to interest themselves in ethics, sociology, philosophy, the fine
arts, religion, and cosmology.
Unbridled self-will and unregulated self-expression equal unmitigated selfishness, the acme
of ungodliness. Liberty without the associated and ever-increasing conquest of self is a
figment of egoistic mortal imagination. Self-motivated liberty is a conceptual illusion, a cruel
deception. License masquerading in the garments of liberty is the forerunner of abject
bondage. Secular social and political optimism is an illusion. Without God, neither freedom
and liberty, nor property and wealth will lead to peace. – The Urantia Book
As we dance a tango with the possibility of world war, will America continue to "doubledown"
on creating the illusion of success, or face the reality that certain policies are not
working? Take current politics out of the equation and ask yourself: what kind of world are
we creating? Is the world a more peaceful place than 10 years ago? Is there food security for
more people? Do people enjoy a better sense of health and well-being? Are we better off
financially? Are less people needing assistance? Are less people homeless? Has education
improved? Are we energy independent? Are our citizens safer? Are we winning the battle
against illegal drugs? Do our children have a sense of hope for the future? If not, action is
required. To repeat the same governing mistakes and expect a different outcome is
insanity. We must begin to evaluate what works and what doesn't. It will take courage to

admit mistakes, but by doing that we can learn and move forward for all mankind, for
example: How Ancient Wisdom Can Help Us Tackle Today's Crises. (as Samatha Aschieris
wrote earlier this week in The Daily Signal) continue reading...
Courage–John's Journal ~ by John Aukermann
OPINION / EDITORIALS
Opinions expressed in the following articles are solely the expressed views of the authors.
SHALL NOT PERISH
By An Ordinary Citizen | February, 2023

We are often a nation of whiners. When we should be grateful for what we seem
determined to throw away, we get together with our friends and play “ain’t it awful.” But,
to give us our due, there’s no denying that this country is in a very serious and precarious
position. That said, our national reality can be viewed, indeed, as awful.
As Stanford fellow and historian Victor Davis Hanson pointed out in The Daily Signal, there
are 10 things that could destroy the US. These are happening now. They are done with
intention and impose a long-lasting impact on the country as a whole that may take years
(if not a generation or two) to reverse.
However, considering the overarching impact on the country as a whole is somewhat
disingenuous because it allows us to divorce ourselves from the urgency of the situation.
We can rely on venting our fears over the back fence, in the coffee shop, or in the
breakroom at work. (Again, “ain’t it awful?”) This venting removes the pressure and
slithering fear we might feel but it does not change reality – because big things like these
trickle down.
First, here’s Hanson’s list – 10 steps to destruction – in a nutshell (with my paraphrasing).
Step 1. Destroy America’s energy independence.
Step 2. Promote a manipulative monetary policy.
Step 3. Devalue America’s physical boundaries.
Step 4. Create balloting systems that are impossible to verify.
Step 5. Subvert the criminal justice system by refusing to prosecute.
Step 6. Create and support the proliferation of identity politics.
Step 7. Present an international image of weakness.
Step 8. Render the First Amendment impotent.
Step 9. Demonize your opponents in order to divide the country.
Step 10. Perpetuate the various lies and cover-ups related to the COVID virus.
To take this further, let’s consider some ways that these items in Hanson’s list influence
our lives.
Energy Independence (Dependence)
The rapid destruction of our energy independence cannot be over-vilified. This was
accomplished in record time by blocking or shutting off pipelines, cancelling production,
demonizing coal and nuclear power, and depleting our strategic reserves. We saw the
impact right away in 2021…gas prices were up 59%. This increase hits us at the pump,
raises the cost of all goods and services, and increases utility costs. Everything is connected
and we pay the freight.
Manipulative Monetary Policy
The government continued to send COVID-19 subsidies. It kept interest rates low while
prices were climbing, and publicly demonized the rich. The lowered interest rates means
little return on savings accounts and less money available for investment. The continued
flow of COVID subsidies helped to generate a reduced incentive to work. ‘Quiet Quitting,’ the
practice of doing just enough on the job to get by, has the impact of lowering productivity,
reducing revenues, and ultimately increasing layoffs. While demonizing the rich is a great
way to create and fuel class envy and division, it also creates a distrust of individual and
business success.
As a country we are built on the foundation of hard work and upward mobility. Everyone
has a chance to create their future. Do we want our children to shy away from being as
successful as they can because they fear the distrust of others? We have to encourage them

to ignore the negative and keep working.
Devaluing Physical Boundaries
A country without a border is not a country because it has no line to protect, no way to
refuse entry, no way to evaluate who or what comes in. Such an entity rapidly loses its
reason for being.
The United States daily faces illegal incursions on both the northern and southern borders,
the sheer numbers of which can overwhelm border security. As a result, drugs and human
trafficking are up substantially, Fentanyl deaths are up, crime is up, schools and welfare
programs in some areas are swamped, and US citizenship itself has been devalued. The
dream of belonging to a larger idea that is America is rapidly fading away. We need
protected and enforceable borders.
Fallacious Balloting Systems
State governments have allowed the proliferation of balloting systems that are virtually
impossible to certify, and label anyone who questions this practice as an election denier.
Never mind that almost every election, regardless of who wins, is challenged by the
opposing party. But the vicious vilifying of those who challenge goes a step beyond.
Such vilification accompanied by ballots that cannot be authentically certified erodes the
trust in our elections, and makes it easy for monied forces to impact the outcome. It also
creates election disinterest because these changes in balloting can be made without
legislation being passed by Congress or by state legislatures. If these changes can be made
without citizen input through our elected officials, why bother to vote? The ability to have a
voice in one’s government through the voting process is one hallmark of a free democratic
republic or democracy. We must protect it.
Subversion of the Law
While crime is up, especially in major cities, prosecution is down. Partly this is the result of
the movement to redefine crime when committed by someone in poverty as a person
taking what is needed, therefore it is not really a crime. If a person of means were to do the
same thing it would be a crime. So apparently whether or not something is a crime
depends on the size of your bank account.
We all feel the impact of this misguided policy – increased crime, decreased enforcement
of and respect for criminal laws, prosecutors who release repeat offenders, and lower
morale among those charged with enforcing the law. Any one of us could be the victim of a
crime which law enforcement could ultimately decide not to pursue because there’s no
point. When this becomes reality everywhere, no one is safe and “to protect and serve” has
definitely lost its meaning.
Promoting Identity Politics
One term that has often been used to describe America is that of a melting pot. No matter
the color of our skin, our religion, our ethnic ancestry, or country of origin we are
Americans. But that picture of America does not help the politicians. When we are all
joined by shared values and ideals, we are not vulnerable to the encouragement to be a
victim and thus have no value to those who need class envy and division for control.
Unfortunately the position of victim is seductive. As a victim we have a tribe…all of whom
are victims. Victims need help and preferential treatment…and tribes compete for those
things with each other in various ways…often on YouTube or TikTok. Whatever the basis
for the victim identity, the result is a lack of cohesive national identity, and an increase in
envy and division. When these attitudes prevail it is nearly impossible to do anything

positive on a local, state, or national level and our governments devolve into impotency.
We should all examine our thoughts for “victim” tendencies. They are sneaky.
A Weak International Image
Beginning January 1, 2021, the new administration began to systematically remold our
international image from one of strength to one of weakness. The method of withdrawal
from Afghanistan, the begging of Saudi Arabia (as well as our enemies) to sell us oil, and
the attempted appeasement of the theocracy of Iran to reenter the nuclear discussion all
combine to make us vulnerable. This is without considering the impact of electing a
president who is clearly not up to the challenge of the job. We all need remember this
when we vote in 2024.
Rendering the First Amendment Impotent
The collusion between the DOJ, the FBI, Big Tech, large corporations, and the media to
silence those who report in a way that goes against the narrative belies our claim to free
speech. Any criticism or question of perceived authority is reviled as hate speech, and those
who dare to participate are denigrated and cancelled. How is this any different from the
initial treatment (at least) of dissidents in Russia or China? Apparently our speech is free,
as long as those in power like it…other than that, all bets are off and we’d better shut up.
We owe it to ourselves, our children, and their children to continue to speak freely and to
insist on our right to do so respectfully but boldly.
Demonizing Opponents
It is one thing to oppose, it is another to demonize the opposition. Just because someone
disagrees with us does not make them fascists, insurrectionists or (in the case of parents
of many school age children) domestic terrorists. All they are doing is questioning and
disagreeing. The Declaration of Independence says that governments derive their powers
from the consent of the governed. This does not refer only to that portion of the governed
populace that agrees with the government. We owe it to ourselves, and to our posterity to
speak up, with reasoned authority on a foundation of fact.
Thank Goodness for COVID
The lies and coverups that accompanied the COVID narrative are worthy of a champion
author, because otherwise who would believe it? There were so many terms and phrases
we’d never heard before. Here are a few.
Gain of function. Why is it suspect?
Why is a ventilator bad for you? We thought it saved your life.
Where is Wuhan?
What does mRNA stand for and why is it in the vaccine?
Why does the vaccine not really prevent future illness? Isn’t that what vaccines do? Most of
us have had the polio vaccine, and we have basically wiped out polio.
But the response to COVID of the average citizen was really just a symptom of a society that
has grown used to following the lead of its elected officials. That’s why the backlash from a
few entrepreneurs made the news. It was different. People fought back after a while. But
not enough. We were in lockdown of some sort or another for nearly 2 years.
The governance of COVID (or manufactured pandemic) was designed for control, to get the
populace used to being locked down, under threat of spreading a horrible virus. Never mind
that the virus was most harmful to a specific demographic. Schools and businesses were
closed. Many of those businesses were closed forever.
But government overreach in the form of forced lockdown finally met its match from an
unusual corner. Parents. Both parents and children were locked down, mostly using Zoom
to connect to work and school. And, since the computers were in the home, and school

lessons were visible on Zoom, parents began to watch too. Initially, they probably watched
in order to help their kids complete their lessons. But boy, did they get a surprise. They
soon learned that the schools were pushing a sexual and racial narrative that (at the very
least) did not belong in elementary school.
The parent revolt across the nation resulted in changes in school board membership, as
well as the election of some governors, lieutenant governors, and attorneys general. Once
aroused, parents as a group and individually are powerful, and there are a lot of them!
What’s the Upshot?
Victor Davis Hanson is extremely well-informed. He has a long list of credentials, and his
analysis of things political is always enlightening because it’s analysis combined with
common sense.
But while I was trolling the internet and thinking over what he wrote in The Daily Signal I
bumped into Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. That 2-minute speech given on November 19,
1863 has surely stood the test of time. All of it was powerful and right on point, but the end
of it, again, caught my eye…and my spirit.
“…that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation,
under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the
people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”
It is time for that new birth of freedom. For our children, and their children, we cannot be
the ones that allow this concept of government to perish.
An Ordinary Citizen is a concerned activist and a regular content writer for COS Indiana The
Finish Line.
Resources – Victor Davis Hanson | The Daily Signal | Click here to read
TWITTER FILES REVEAL AN EXISTENTIAL THREAT
By John Daniel Davidson | January 2023 | The Federalist
The following is adapted from a talk delivered at Hillsdale College on February 7, 2023.

ELON MUSK’S takeover of Twitter last October and the subsequent reporting on the Twitter
Files by journalists Matt Taibbi, Bari Weiss, and a handful of others beginning in early
December is one of the most important news stories of our time. The Twitter Files story
encompasses, and to a large extent connects, every major political scandal of the Trump-
Biden era. Put simply, the Twitter Files reveal an unholy alliance between Big Tech and the
deep state designed to throttle free speech and maintain an official narrative through
censorship and propaganda. This should not just disturb us, it should also prod us to action
in defense of the First Amendment, free and fair elections, and indeed our country.
Continue Reading...
John Daniel Davidson is a senior editor at The Federalist, where he covers politics,
immigration, culture, and religion. He is a graduate of Hillsdale College, a former Lincoln
Fellow at the Claremont Institute, and a senior fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation.
His writings have appeared in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, the
Claremont Review of Books, the New York Post, and The Guardian. He is the author of the
forthcoming book, Pagan America: The Decline of Christianity and the Coming Dark Age.
SILENCE!
'Conspiracy Theorist' is a Slur Meant to Silence Us
By Stella Morabito | The Federalist | February 6, 2023
The term ‘conspiracy theorist’ is used to halt thoughtfulness and conversation, often under
the guise of protecting you from ‘disinformation.’
Back in the 1980s, when Bill Casey was director of Central Intelligence, I asked him a direct
question related to analysis. In response, he pointed to his temple and said, “Well, you just
gotta use your noodle.”

Whatever you may think of Casey, his pithiness here is instructive. It’s good advice for
everyone these days, especially as the term “conspiracy theory” continues to mushroom
throughout Big Media, here, there, and everywhere. Team Biden seems to have pushed the
term into absolute hyperdrive since he took office.
It’s used even when grand plans are out in the open. For example, participants at the recent
World Economic Forum congregation in Davos publicly discussed how we should all be
censored and surveilled and tracked. The Orwellian life they’d like to shove on us has been
preached for decades by WEF founder Klaus Schwab, prior to his 2020 publication of “The
Great Reset.”
But if you point this out you’re likely to be smeared as a “conspiracy theorist.” As Sen. Rand
Paul, R-Ky., and many respected pundits have noted, the WEF goal for an unelected elite to
rein in the hoi polloi is no theory. Their activists talk about it constantly.
Sure, there are some people who conjure up far-fetched notions of why and how this or
that may have happened. But the term “conspiracy theorist” has become a knee-jerk label
intended to discredit thoughtful investigation — or just plain observation — by describing
investigators as wacky conjurers. This is one of many ways power elites exploit the natural
human fear of ostracism in order to induce us to self-silence.
Defining Terms
So let’s use our noodle and explore the term itself and how it is used. First off, “conspiracy”
simply means a secret plan. You can’t be a conspiracy theorist if you’re quoting elaborate
plans that are public. And unless you’ve been living in a cave, you also know that secret
plans exist. We often think of conspiracies in terms of mafia hit lists, embezzlements, or
fraud. Such things do happen, you know.
Next, consider the term “theory” or “theorist” as applied to conspiracy. This would be
relevant to the person who wonders if there’s a nefarious plan in the works and is
investigating. There are legitimate careers dedicated to such things. Actuaries dabble in
them, though probably not consciously. Detectives in law enforcement search for a motive
in murder cases because it’s their job to speculate in order to solve the case.
Of course, none of the above is what first comes to mind when people hear the term
“conspiracy theorist.” Rather, it’s meant to invoke the image of a psychotic who is obsessed
with an idea concocted out of whole cloth. For example, “the guy at the corner hardware
store has channeled Napoleon to send little men to live in our brains and program us into
zombies!” You can surely think of many more examples. The common denominator is
detachment from reality — or from what we generally know as common experience of the
world.
‘Conspiracy Theorist’ Is a Slur
Casual use of the term “conspiracy theorist” is a smear to halt thoughtfulness and
conversation, often under the guise of protecting you from “disinformation.” It’s a staple in
any Wikipedia article about anyone targeted for cancellation by Big Tech. Big Media
constantly uses the term to discredit anyone who might threaten its narrative. It’s also
used constantly in woke academia and by government officials.
The cherry on top is how the FBI has used it to divert public criticism, as with its December
statement in reaction to “The Twitter Files.” The FBI statement reads in part: “It is
unfortunate that conspiracy theorists and others are feeding the American public

misinformation with the sole purpose of attempting to discredit the agency.” (Interesting
the FBI referred to itself as “the agency” — a CIA moniker — rather than the standard selfreference
of “the bureau.” Hmm.)
“Conspiracy theorist” is now used constantly by just about anyone who wishes to shut
someone up by instilling in them the fear of being labeled a kook. In fact, that’s what
gaslighting is: psychological abuse that instills the belief that you must be crazy if you
simply want to understand why things are the way they are.
Origin of the Term
Pundits often point to a 1967 CIA memo as the origin of the term “conspiracy theory.” The
New York Times publicized that memo after obtaining it through a 1976 Freedom of
Information Act request. The memo states that the public should be actively dissuaded
from straying from the Warren Commission’s conclusion that the John F. Kennedy
assassination was the act of a lone gunman. Any other ideas, according to the memo, were
conspiracy theories that should be discredited as such in the media.
But some folks take issue with the claim that the CIA memo is the origin of the term.
There’s an argument that that very claim is in itself a conspiracy theory. The author of a
2013 article in the Skeptical Inquirer even scoured the internet for sources of the term and
found it used in a medical journal dated 1870.
But whether the term “conspiracy theory” predates the CIA memo — even by a century — is
irrelevant. It has always been used as a derogatory term. And its pejorative usage in public
discourse exploded after The New York Times published the CIA memo in the 1970s. The
unprecedented reach of the internet then allowed for the exponential proliferation of the
term to denigrate anyone who has a different opinion from the propagandistic narrative.
In short, the CIA memo was the clear turning point in usage, no matter who first may have
coined the term. Ever since The New York Times article (clearly not since the 19th century)
we have been bombarded with the term to shut us up about any legitimate concerns we
may have. Constantly. In Big Media. In Wikipedia. In social media. In politics. In academia.
In medicine. In filmmaking. Indeed, wherever big propaganda is propagated, which is
pretty much everywhere.
That’s not to say that far-fetched theories don’t exist. Obviously, they do. But the usage of
“conspiracy theorist” as a constant slur and effective gag order got its start with the
publication of the CIA memo.
And, yes, it can be used on both the left and the right. So when you come across the term,
forget about politics. Ask yourself if it’s being used with evidence to back up the claim. For
example, we now have plenty of proof that the Russia-collusion hoax boiled down to the
dissemination of a conspiracy theory on the part of Democrats in Congress.
On the other hand, if no real argument is offered to back up the use of the term, then you
know that “conspiracy theory” is nothing more than an ad hominem silencing device.
But you should decide which is which and speak up about it. You just gotta use your noodle.
Stella Morabito is a senior contributor at The Federalist. She is author of "The Weaponization
of Loneliness: How Tyrants Stoke Our Fear of Isolation to Silence, Divide, and Conquer." Her
essays have appeared in various publications, including the Washington Examiner, American
Greatness, Townhall, Public Discourse, and The Human Life Review. In her previous work as

an intelligence analyst, Morabito focused on various aspects of Russian and Soviet politics,
including communist media and propaganda. Follow Stella Morabito on Twitter
@Stella_Morabito
Government Overreach.
Irresponsible Spending.
Career Politicians.
Political Corruption.
WASHINGTON IS BROKEN!
We The People Have a Constitutional Solution!
(It will be an epic event!)
ARTICLE V – CONVENTION OF STATES
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Rick Santorum speaking for Convention of States Action

WHICH STATE WILL BECOME #20?
WILL IT BE WYOMING?
We anticipate good news to report very soon!
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