Ralph Lopez majored in Economics and Political Science at Yale University. He has been published in the Boston Globe and the Baltimore Sun.

The mainstream media has launched a full-scale assault on skeptics of reports that convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide, and instead believe that he was murdered. Epstein was reported to be found dead in a high security wing of a federal prison just weeks after he had been placed on suicide watch as the result of a previous alleged attempt. One report in the UK Daily Mail quotes unnamed prison sources saying that Epstein told them that someone had tried to kill him. Epstein's alleged first attempt at suicide is in itself shrouded in mystery.

Epstein's Death and Unanswered Questions

It was reported that there were bruises on Epstein's neck after he was found nearly unconscious and curled up in the fetal position, and the New York Post said that "investigators noted that the marks on his neck were 'more consistent with being choked than hanging yourself.'" The Post reported that Epstein "refused to cooperate with investigators" of the suspected first suicide attempt.



Epstein was being prepared to stand trial for charges of sex trafficking of children in a case which was notorious for already having snared a number of rich and powerful names over the years, in multiple related lawsuits. Epstein's social associations and business dealings traversed a broad spectrum of the rich and famous, including Bill Clinton, Donald Trump, Prince Andrew, Victoria's Secret billionaire Les Wexner, attorney Alan Dershowitz, various politicians, businessmen, and Hollywood stars.

Some are named as sexual abusers of underage girls in 2000 pages of previously sealed documents relating to a civil case against Epstein and his friend and former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, whom a July 2019 New York Times profile on Epstein and Maxwell called the "Lady of the House." All the named accused have categorically denied the allegations, though the alleged victims stand by them.

After Epstein's suspicious death CBS intoned as news in "Jeffrey Epstein's death by apparent suicide inspires new conspiracy theories":

"Jeffrey Epstein's apparent suicide Saturday morning in a federal jail launched new conspiracy theories online in a saga that has provided fodder for them for years, fueled by Epstein's ties to princes, politicians and other famous and powerful people."

Yahoo News published the headline "Jeffrey Epstein's death is a perfect storm for conspiracy theories":

"Online theorists Saturday quickly offered unsubstantiated speculation — including some retweeted by President Trump — that Epstein's death wasn't a suicide, or it was faked."

And the New York Times joined in with:

"Mr. Epstein’s death has led to an explosion of unfounded conspiracy theories on social media, often uniting people of disparate ideologies who seem to be grasping for any kind of explanation for how it could have happened."

The New York Times article appears on page A 18, in the news section. The article did not explain why skepticism over Epstein's death was "unfounded."

The flood of abuse aimed at those who do not believe that Epstein killed himself is reminiscent of the manner in which others who challenge certain official narratives, such as the official 9/11 Commission Report, the conclusion that there was only one shooter in the Las Vegas mass shooting, or the death of President Kennedy's son John-John in a small plane crash.



In all of these cases, suggestions that the officially endorsed narrative is false and that evidence points to the involvement of government-connected perpetrators, in order to advance an agenda or fulfill a nefarious goal, are branded "conspiracy theories."

Attention Returns to 9/11 Conspiracy Theory

But in an interesting recent development, one of those theories, the theory that 9/11 had to have been a pre-planned demolition carried out or assisted by outlaw elements of the US government, has received an unexpected boost. The governing board of an historic New York City firefighting unit, the Franklin Square and Munson Fire District, has unanimously called for other city and New York State fire departments to endorse a call for a new 9/11 investigation. The call emphasizes the conclusion by the commissioners, whom the governing board consists of, that:

"the overwhelming evidence presented in said petition demonstrates beyond any doubt that pre-planted explosives and/or incendiaries — not just airplanes and the ensuing fires — caused the destruction of the three World Trade Center buildings, killing the vast majority of the victims who perished that day;"

The commissioners refer to a Special Grand Jury Petition presently before the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York reporting un-prosecuted federal crimes at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.



There is no denying that the secrets Epstein held were likely seen by many powerful people as better off taken to his grave. Although many of accused in the 2015 lawsuit have called Virginia Roberts a liar, and say they have never even met her, Prince Andrew, for example, cannot say he never met her, as he can be seen right there in a 2001 photo with his hand on Roberts' bare midriff.

And there is former Israeli Prime MInister Ehud Barak, covering his face as he enters Epstein's New York mansion in 2016, well after he was already known as a convicted sex offender. Hours later, four young women were also photographed entering the house.

Prince Andrew, Virginia Roberts, Ghislaine Maxwell

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak entering Epstein mansion in 2016.

If true, there is no doubt whatsoever that some of the allegations surrounding the Epstein case would make it extremely convenient for Epstein to suddenly die. The International Business Times reported that:

"Epstein used to photograph and record the orgy sessions that he used to throw for VIPs and other dignitaries through concealed cameras. The 2008 Florida lawsuit clearly mentioned the fact that his properties were filled with hidden cameras."

The Mirror said Virginia Roberts claimed in court papers that:

"she was forced to tell Epstein all about her sexual encounters so he could use the information to 'blackmail' the royal [Prince Andrew]"

Queen and Prince Andrew photographed by paparazzi on day after Epstein death.

As people grapple with their major news institutions branding them as "conspiracy theorists" for asking what would seem to be reasonable questions, a realignment in the public's views of these institutions may be in the offing.

Adolf Hilter, a propaganda master, famously wrote in Mein Kampf:

"in the big lie there is always a certain force of credibility; because the broad masses of a nation are always more easily corrupted in the deeper strata of their emotional nature than consciously or voluntarily; and thus in the primitive simplicity of their minds they more readily fall victims to the big lie than the small lie, since they themselves often tell small lies in little matters but would be ashamed to resort to large-scale falsehoods."

It remains to be seen if the current assault on skeptics not in line with the Epstein suicide story is perceived as an insult to the intelligence, which will drive a reevaluation of the trust placed in news institutions. And whether they may indeed be part of a vast conspiracy—to paraphrase Hillary Clinton—which has been perpetuating Big Lies for many years.