The profound revolution (research update); Evans work influenced by end times preacher, who saw that coming?

“The modern political power structure has its roots in the hidden manipulation and accumulation of gold and other forms of money. The development of fractional reserve banking practices in the 17th century brought to a cunning sophistication the secret techniques initially used by goldsmiths fraudulently to accumulate wealth. With the formation of the privately-owned Bank of England in 1694, the yoke of economic slavery to a privately-owned “central” bank was first forced upon the backs of an entire nation, not removed but only made heavier with the passing of the three centuries to our day. Nation after nation, including America, has fallen prey to this cabal of international central bankers… “The Money Masters 1996 documentary”

Sound familiar?

I’ll be posting more a more detailed analysis of what I now refer to as “The David Evans banksters are coming to take over the world oh my god its true theory!” early next week. Consider this a research and work in process update.

From what I can tell there are two major influences and one antecedent that feeds Evans conspiracy theory.

One is a highly problematical documentary – but very popular in conspiracy culture – from the 1990s called “The Money Masters”. The other major influence appears to be the work of one Larry Bates (who appears in the documentary), an “end times preacher” who writes about the role of international bankers and their attempts to create a one world government.

Bates not only writes about “international bankers” but selling gold to escape their predation. Something David Evans does via Gold Nerds.

But ya know, coincidence.

The possible influences

And so further detailed analysis of the more absurd claims made by Evans in the work “Manufacturing money and global warming” continues.

The Money Masters

• The Money Masters is a 3 hour (good god it is long!) 1996 documentary whose claims echos many of those of David Evans
• It was popular at the time, and continues to be so among evangelical Christians and others…
• It includes the theory that “international bankers” organised the killing of Abraham Lincoln – another Evans claim
• It claims a “major economic” crash is being orchestrated by them – another Evans claim
• The phrase “money created out of nothing” is repeatedly used in the documentary – a phrase repeatedly used by Evans and Nova
• Part 7 of the film (at 31:35) details the history of the Rothschild family and how they orchestrated world events – another Evans claim
• The film is frequently praised by anti-Semites (see this link, see here, here and here)
• It’s the kind of film ultra-conservative, evangelical, bible-thumping “World Net Daily” calls essential viewing
• So I’m thinking maybe, just maybe, “The Money Masters” does not really have a great deal to do with science…
• The full script of the film is here.

Evans has clearly taken his cues from this documentary as the following illustrates. The film states the “money changers” had Lincoln killed, to quote:

Bismarck well understood the Money Changers’ plan. Allegations that international bankers were responsible for Lincoln’s assassination surfaced in Canada 70 years later, in 1934. Gerald G. McGeer, a popular and well–respected Canadian attorney, revealed this stunning charge in a 5–hour speech before the House of Commons blasting Canada’s debt–based money system. Remember, it was 1934, the height of the Great Depression which was ravaging Canada as well elsewhere.

The film makes the following claim about the assassination of President Garfield:

Three years later, the American people elected Republican James Garfield President. Garfield understood how the economy was being manipulated. As a Congressman, he had been chairman of the Appropriations Committee, and was a member of the Banking and Currency Committee. After his inauguration, he slammed the Money Changers publicly in 1881:

“Whoever controls the volume of money in any country is absolute master of all industry and commerce… and when you realize that the entire system is very easily controlled, one way or another, by a few powerful men at the top, you will not have to be told how periods of inflation and depression originate.” 

Garfield understood. Within a few weeks of making this statement, on July 2 of 1881, President Garfield was assassinated.

Evans states the following on page 9:

The paper aristocracy has overwhelming wealth. They own or influence all the media – if only because every media organization borrows from banks. They influence almost all the institutions that employ professional economists, by supplying the money for PhDs and providing most of the lucrative consulting jobs for economists. They buy politicians by the truckload. The banksters have even killed the occasional thorn in their side—including, probably, two US presidents, Lincoln and Garfield

OK readers, I sat through this tosh for three hours for your benefit, so a little thanks would go a long way. Trust me, I took a bullet for you. It’s a rambling piece of shit that argues the “bankers” and the Rothschild family are behind all the wars, revolutions and stock market crashes of the last 300 years or so.

Oh sure, not at all problematical… its just a “theory” and nothing to do with antisemitism.

Recap on influences

So let’s recap: Evans work is primarily influenced by the pseudo-scholarship of conspiracy culture and down market documentaries purporting centuries long plots to take over the world. Honestly, this is pretty much par for the course for these people.

However – Evans unique contribution to conspiracy culture is to marry climate change scepticism with preexisting conspiracy narratives. Now that’s novel – I guess Australia can be proud to have generated its own world-class conspiracy theorist. I highly recommend Evans work to academic scholars for analysis – its been fun unpacking and sourcing his materials (I do it for the lulz, really).

This is how conspiracy theorists work: they weave together tighter, and tighter narratives so that “everything is connected”. Honestly it gets to the point when even a sparrows fart can be retrofitted into their kooky theories.

Nothing is as it seems. Everything is connected…

Even a sparrows fart…

Larry Bate: end times preacher

One of the most prominent “experts” in “The Money Masters” is Larry Bates, a former banker and end-times preacher whose work is rife with references to “international bankers” and the coming “end times” – that’s right Jesus is about to come down and whoop some ass so ya’ll better all repent! And buy gold!

• His book, “The New Economic Disorder” if rife with talk of Jesus, international bankers, the end times and.. ya, know buying gold
• Bates is in the business of selling gold in order to protect oneself from the “predation” of the international bankers and the coming economic crash they – the bankers – will usher in
• Uh-huh, got that?
• FYI Bates has been selling gold, keeping the cash but “forgetting” to send the gold to the poor Christian souls who’ve paid him…
• Bates speaks often and frequently of “fiat money” and that “international bankers” have been behind international events – the exact claims Evans makes
• Others have noted the strong anti-Semitic over tones of Bates work
• Fuck it, I’m reading his book and its full of this thinly veiled anti-Semetic crap.

You know, for some years I’ve suspected a hint of  Evangelical belief in Evans and Nova’s work, especially because of some the sources they point readers. Here’s a 2010 post of mine discussing another climate sceptics work Nova praises which made me pay closer attention to this idea:

“Right from the beginning Robinson is citing biblical authority over science. I’m not criticising Robinson’s spiritual beliefs – these are his own – but in science explicitly putting faith before empirical evidence is a major red flag. The scientific method is built around methodological naturalism, the very opposite of Robinson’s approach. In addition to the above, Robinson’s paper is sprinkled with religious references…”

Say, is my silly little pet theory of “neo-Fundamentalism” is getting some legs?

The secrets of the federal reserve: Eustace Mullins 

I can’t say if Evans is familiar with the work of known US anti-Semite Eustace Mullins whose book “The secrets of the federal reserve” book was both popular and highly influential within conspiracy culture. Traces of Mullins work can be seen in all forms of conspiracy theories involving the Federal Reserve.

I’ll drop in some Wikipedia quotes as background:

In Mullins on the Federal Reserve (1952), (the updated edition published in 1983 was called Secrets of the Federal Reserve) Mullins argued that there was a conspiracy among Paul Warburg, Edward Mandell House, Woodrow Wilson, J.P. Morgan, Benjamin Strong, Otto Kahn, the Rockefeller family, the Rothschild family, and other European and American bankers which resulted in the founding of the U.S. Federal Reserve System.

Mullins held questionable views:

Many of Mullins’ writings show a preoccupation with the idea that the Jews of the world are in a state of war with Christianity and Western civilization, and that Communism, Zionism, and International finance were Jewish tools to subjugate gentile populations. He also believed that in general the interaction between Jews and gentiles was parasitic. He believed that the Rockefellers were also parasitic

I believe Mullins work is antecedent to the work of Evans, who may be completely unaware of his writings. Michael Barkun, a scholar whose work I’ve read notes the following:

Like his mentor [Ezra Pound], Mullins sees the world’s evil as a product of financial manipulation, in which Jews play a central role. But as an explanation of world, as opposed to modern, history, his conspiracist vision makes the Illuminati merely a link in a much longer change that extends back to the ancient Near East and forward to the nascent communist movement of the early Marx…

And I’ll finish with a quote by Evans:

Bankers know far more about banking and its subtle ramifications than politicians, and have usually been able to persuade, con, or bribe governments to do their bidding. The politicians, our representatives, are the patsies here. The banksters have conned government big time, including when they talked US President Woodrow Wilson into setting up the Federal Reserve in 1913 (which, by the way, Wilson later bitterly regretted).  

Yes, the world’s evils are perpetrated by financial machinations. Conspiracy theories about the Fed are pretty standard among the Black Helicopter brigade.

Does this negate the previous post, or discount the other sources I cited? I don’t think so – remember conspiracy theories are often complex systems built from dozens of influences. Often their authors have no idea where the “facts” and “evidence” come from.

This stuff is literally taking me years to unpack. But as I said, I do it for the lulz 😉

Well that’s the update, a bit of a raw data dump – analysis to follow next week.

Oh I’m serious about the thanks I deserve for watching “The money masters” on your behalf guys – you dodged a bullet there.