Misrule of Law

What exactly does “Tennessee Stands” stand for? Promoting Gary Humble’s “Me First” agenda, which includes a laundry list of nutty conspiracy theories.

Thanks to Ace of Spades HQ (here)!

As some podcasters and social media influencers on the right descend into madness with nonsensical conspiracy theories–and I’m thinking in particular about Candace Owens and the once-credible Tucker Carlson–voters should carefully scrutinize what candidates for elective office believe in terms of supposed “conspiracies.” Candidates who espouse foolish and bizarre theories should be deemed untrustworthy and suspect. In Middle Tennessee, we have one of the most deluded conspiracy theorists running (once again) for office.

Repeat Tennessee Senate candidate Gary Humble, running for the GOP nomination in Senate District 27 (the seat currently held by Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson), claims that his opponents “lie” about his record. His campaign website lists eight “lies” he believes will be leveled against him, along with his replies (what he calls “the truth behind the lies”). Gary’s “truth” consists of fabrications and evasion.

“Lie #7” is that  “Gary is a radical conspiracy theorist and out of touch with the average conservative voter.” This is actually a true statement. Gary does not deny that he is a conspiracy theorist, but claims to be confident that “I’ll be on the right side of history.” That’s how most followers of Alex Jones’ Infowars and other fringe figures think. What exactly are Gary’s fringe beliefs? He sugarcoats them on his campaign website by saying that:

I have been vocal about weather modification and geoengineering [i.e., chemtrails] and working with legislators to help pass bills in Tennessee that ban this practice in our state. We are not quite there yet. But other states are taking action to protect their skies and finally, Rep. Majorie Taylor Green [sic] has submitted legislation in Congress that would ban this practice nationally. [Ed.: The bill has gone nowhere and observers believe it is unlikely to pass.] The government has been actively modifying our weather for decades. Testimony now in various state legislatures as well as in Congress has taken this from a conspiracy theory to a well-known fact. And it’s high time that people stand up and demand that we stop it.

Finally, I have made it known on social media that I believe that factions of our own government, including the CIA, were involved in 9/11 and committed acts of war against our own country. Like many Americans (if not most), I do not trust our government and believe that we have been infiltrated at the highest levels in an effort to destroy our national sovereignty and weaken us from the inside out. Of course, our open border policy has played a huge role in accomplishing that task. Had the election in November 2024 gone a different way, those who have an aim to destroy us might have won. And with that, let me say with clarity that the 2020 election was stolen. Biden was an illegitimate President. Obama was born in Kenya. And yes, I hold firm to the belief that Epstein did not kill himself. (Emphasis added.)

This is a verbatim excerpt from his campaign website!

His actual views go quite a bit farther into kooky conspiracy theories. In a longwinded video Gary posted in 2023, responding to the charge by radio talk show host Matt Murphy (99.7 WTN) that Gary’s nutty views should “make him a pariah in Tennessee politics,” Gary said the following:

“Number one. Do I believe that our government on a consistent basis conspires with media and corporations to lie to the American people, destroy our constitution, and usurp our liberties? Yes.

Do I believe they did that? During the JFK assassination? Yes.

Do I believe they did that during the Oklahoma City bombing? Yes.

Do I believe they did that during the operation in Benghazi just a few short years ago? Yes.

Do I believe they did that throughout the last three years during the COVID “plandemic?” Yes.

Do I believe they did that during 9/11? Yes.

Do I believe that factions of our government coordinated with other foreign entities to attack Americans on 9/11? Yes. Do I believe the CIA was involved? Yes.

Do I believe Bush knew about 9/11 before it happened? Yes.

Do I believe that the towers coming straight down in a straight line fashion was not the work of planes crashing into the buildings but a controlled demolition? Yes.

Do I believe that building 7, just next door, also fell during a controlled demolition, while the other two buildings purportedly fell because of airliners? Yes.

I believe those things, unequivocally.

And I believe them to be true, wholeheartedly.” (Emphasis added.)

This is a verbatim transcript of the relevant excerpt from his video.

Seemingly the only kooky conspiracy theory that Gary doesn’t embrace is (the increasingly unhinged) Candace Owens’ nutty claim that the moon landing in 1969 was staged. (Or at least he doesn’t admit it.) Likewise, he is silent about black helicopters, encounters with extraterrestrials, flat earth theories, QAnon, or President Eisenhower’s status as a communist agent (the old John Birch Society canard). I was going to mention fluoride, but Gary has vowed to “Remove fluoride from all public water supplies in Tennessee.” So he embraces the hoax that adding fluoride to the drinking water—one of the public health breakthroughs that has eliminated dental decay—is an evil plot.  

Does Gary share fellow fringe dweller Owens’ kooky belief that French President Macron’s wife is really a man? Or that Michelle Obama is a man? Or that Winston Churchill was to blame for WWII? Or that the Holocaust was a hoax? Or that Bigfoot is real? Or that Mossad was responsible for assassinating Charlie Kirk? These are fair questions. One problem with catering to the deluded conspiracy crowd is that it is a “race to the bottom.” To show one’s far-right bona fides, one has to embrace every crazy notion uttered by a self-styled influencer. This often leads to catering to the worst elements of the cybersphere, leading in many cases to the fever swamp of (subtle or overt) anti-Semitism.  

Responsible public figures (and candidates) eschew such reckless rhetoric. Not Gary. He eagerly panders to the conspiracy crowd. To Gary, holding such deluded views proves how “conservative” he is. He is wrong. It only proves that he holds kooky views.

Critics have termed Gary’s bizarre views “unhinged,” “disgusting,” “abhorrent,” “un-American,” “beyond offensive,” “kooky,” and “beyond fringe.” Gary has so discredited himself that he is already a pariah among elected officials. It is doubtful that Gary could “actually walk into and talk to any group in the state of Tennessee, or talk to any state legislator or member of Congress and be taken with any degree of credibility.” He is radioactive among responsible government officials. His acolytes are fringe followers of groups such as the John Birch Society—which William F. Buckley banished from the mainstream conservative movement decades ago.

“Lie #7” is in fact true. No voter in Senate District 27 should even consider casting a ballot for this conspiracy nut. Gary’s campaign website says “They want you to believe that I am a radical. I guess that will be for you to decide at the ballot box.” Indeed it is. Judge for yourself, based on Gary’s own words. Do you want this nut representing you in the State Senate? If not, vote for Sen. Jack Johnson in the GOP primary.