Letter: Conspiracy theories have deep history
Published 1:30 am Wednesday, July 30, 2025
Editor,
To understand the MAGA obsession with the late Jeffery Epstein, a brief historical review of one of the more prevalent anti-Semitic conspiracy theories of the century is essential.
At the end of the 19th century revolution was fermenting in Russia. In 1903 the head of the Russian secret police of the czar, published a book titled, “The Protocols of The Elders of Zion,” propaganda vilifying the Jewish community, saddling them with responsibility for the ills of Russia and civilization in general.
A bizarre attribute of this publication was claiming a Jewish organization similar to the MAGA designated “Deep State” operated globally in the shadows running banks, economies and governments. Incredulously, “The Protocols” postulated a theory: these power-wielding Jews derived their prowess from consorting with Satanic demons in rituals requiring the sexual violation of children, after which they drank their blood and devoured their flesh.
Soon after, Henry Ford brought this despicable virus to America and began to spread it in his paper, The Dearborn Independent. A confidant and supporter of Hitler, it is suspicious that the Nazis’ publication began at the same time. The Nazi Party gained publication rights in 1929. Its final publication in 1938 coincided with Kristallnacht: the “Night of Broken Glass,” when Jews residing in German controlled territory were terrorized, killed, imprisoned, dispossessed of property, freedom, human rights and dignity.
This virus went into remission after WWII only to resurface when Trump ran for office in 2016. Master of the media and misinformation, he inspired and encouraged alternative media to join him. Heeding the call were the likes of hard-right disinformation peddlers such as Jack Posobiec, instrumental in conjuring up the vitriol of The Protocols to vilify Trump’s opponent in the 2016 election, a conspiracy dubbed “Pizzagate.” In essence, they claimed rich and powerful Jews (George Soros) and Democrats were collaborating to run the world behind the façade of a pizza parlor where they held children captive for the rituals of “The Protocols.” Later, QAnon adopted and expanded “The Protocols” mantra claiming the deep state was global.
Prior to last November’s election, the Public Religion Research Institute found that nearly a fifth of Americans agree with QAnon’s claim: “The government, media and financial worlds in the U.S. are controlled by a group of Satan-worshipping pedophiles who run a global child sex trafficking operation.”
MAGA needs Epstein to consummate their festering covert anti-Semitic conspiracy theory.
Jack Gribble
Oak Harbor
