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Conspiracy Theories - Do you believe in any?

I know someone who thinks 9/11 and the moon landing were faked, that Obama was born in Kenya, and that Michelle Obama is really a man.

I'd never met anyone like that. Do you or someone you know believe this stuff? If so, what?

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shockwaverider 8 Feb 22
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12

You don't have an option in your poll for "no". That's my vote.

The question wasn't only about you. It includes someone you know. I voted for nearly everything cause I've known people who believe all kinds of crazy stuff.

Good point. I have the same answer. None of the above.

@mt49er Thanks! That actually does change my answer. My brother and my niece believe a couple - chem trails; false flag-Vegas. Ugh....

@BlueWave I believe in chem trails. They're very real though they obviously don't happen to the extent certain enthusiasts would propose.

@mt49er Chem trails as mind control?

@RavenCT No, I know they've been used for chemical warfare. It may been possible for mind control, but if they are currently doing something like that, a lot of seemingly rational must be in the wrong place.

@mt49er X-Files is about to go down that road (seemingly).

@RavenCT I've really never watched that show. I was an Air Force brat. My favorite time was when my dad worked in a hanger were they worked on planes so I've seen these machines, they literally look a lot like big foggers. History kind of displays that they don't equip planes with them if you're not at least testing them. I asked my dad a lot of questions in that hangar. He didn't always answer though.

@mt49er You do realize the people who believe chem trails are mind control are talking about commercials flights? I can imagine the military spraying stuff. During war time one hopes.

@RavenCT I try to stay a little out of touch with society intentionally and obviously am not up to date on my chem trail conspiracy. I'm sure the government could pay off some corporations executives, but that kind of operation would be kind of hard to conceal. Like you say, military planes would be the way to deploy that kind of attack and people would likely notice the extra travels in spaces they don't normally fly. Thanks for the wacko theory update.

@mt49er I can read, and I understood the question. The answer is still no.

@chicagojcb I only stated that as I noticed the question in the post was a little different than in the title and I'm used to people reading titles and commenting on posts when they obviously haven't read the post. That prevalence does seem to occur a little less frequently here though.

6

Nope. I find them extremely annoying and avoid those who espouse them.

5

Here's the thing. If you mention the phrase Conspiracy Theory around here, or in progressive circles, people will around you will declare No! No! No! It's very uncool to believe in conspiracy theories. Loonies and non rational people only believe in CTs, it is thought. The phrase has been brilliantly orchestrated by power to equate to fringe, crazy speculation. But, ask people if they believe their governments tell them the truth, and now people will reply, well not really. So, what about big corporations? No, they lie. Then how about the military? The military? Can't believe a word they say. The big media? They're just playing us. And so on. So, no, cool folks don't believe in CTs. At the same time they seldom if ever believe they are really told the truth by power.

So, my question is, when you don't believe power tells you the truth, and there's more to the story than you are told, what would you call what's going on? Huh? And when you discover that the military conspired with politicians to facilitate US involvement in the Vietnam War (The Pentagon Papers) what was that? And when Woodward and Berstein discovered that the Nixon Admin conspired to conceal the truth about its activities (Watergate) what was that? But of course these got leaked and proven, didn't they, so it cool to believe in these now. Right?

I think that I can believe that the Big Wiggs, are working for their best interest! It is not like a boardroom meeting, but more like an unspoken collusion, in a language that only these Ultra Rich people seem to have, between themselves!

Sure. Once they are leaked and proven, they are no longer conspiracy theories. The moon landing for example, hundreds if not thousands of people would have had to be involved to fake it and not one of them leaked it? Not likely.

Just because liars are lying doesn't mean they're organized about it.

@shockwaverider I agree. Some are just crazy, like that one

@shockwaverider I agree but it is so difficult to prove conspiracy. Look at Watergate. It took Nixon's recordings and the No2 of the FBI leaking. He might very well have survived otherwise. I'd be just another C T now.

@ScienceBiker yeah, we always have to look for the evidence and the proof, and that's the hard part. And sometimes the truth comes about. I think in the end it always does, but the end can be a long time. Then it becomes part of history.

5

All bullshit.

1

Edward Snowed, the Pentagon Papers, etc... These are provable.

JeffB Level 6 Feb 23, 2018

Provable things do not a conspiracy theory make...

1

My exes whole family have bought into the Trump"mythos" lock stock and barrel.

Perhaps a reason he's your ex...

@shockwaverider one of them

6

I believe it's all fake. Trump, Obama, Hillary, all that crap is a puppet show to keep people distracted. The people who really run things hide behind the scenes. Nothing changes really. The same people are running things with every president. Each president gets more ridiculous. I'm expecting Jerry Springer to run next.

I would take him any day of the week...

1

None of the above, but this took the place of my religion for many years. Conspiracy theories are an interesting combination of dogma and coping mechanism for the confusing, fearful modern world amid its culture wars and constant media immersion.

I wonder if that is a more general thing? Moving from religion to conspiracy theories...

@shockwaverider @surrealhoax I think some new age nonsense falls into that kind of movement to pseudo religion, and aliens worship also, and multi universes and stuff like that, which is kind of idealistic and faith based in some big higher level existence. That sort of thing. But I think CTs stem from a different impetus, and that's modern cynicism, a loss of belief in authority, institutions, and power structures, because people don't believe them, think they cover their asses, and are self interested and self serving. In my lifetime, and I'm 62, the loss of people's belief and trust in institutions has been incredibly noticeable. And I don't blame them. I share it. You only have to read recent history to see the lies and deception. These days, like with Trump, they do it openly and blatantly so confident they are in their powers of manipulation.

@David1955 Conspiracy Theories have a wonderfully long history, if you consider that anti-Papal (along with anti-Semitic) conspiracy theories have existed since Martin Luther in the West. From the belief that the papacy was covering up satanic practices, and/or hidden gnosis (truths), the anti-authority conspiracy theories germinated. It just so happened that many such views were pushed out of Europe and into America with the migration of Puritans and other similar religious extremists.

A wonderful article in 1964 described the "Paranoid Style of American Politics" and provided insights into the era before the JFK assassination. This time period might have marked the beginning of a transition that we see culminating today in the full rejection of established authority - once distrusted in some contexts, now distrusted essentially in its own right as corrupt (unless, of course, a particular figurehead is placed in the highest position that fits with an individual's ideology - then that individual supports that figurehead, even while distrusting the establishment authority).

@surrealhoax well I think that's quite interesting. However, the point I've made here is that we need to move away from the Great Big Conspiracy idea, where a vast conspiracy is perpetuated, to the reality of power, corruption and greed and ambition, and a culture to avoid culpability, results in manipulation of truth in a myriad of ways. We've wised up over the past 60 years or so as conspiracies to manipulate us have become known, as mentioned here, and I don't care to be naive enough to believe that that's all there has ever been. As a student of history I look back at the past and discover the truth that has seeped out, often very different from what believed at that time.

5

Sadly many of my friends and co workers sprout chemtrails.
I have my own theories re conspiracy and the Vatican.

What about the Vatican?

Wouldn't the Vatican, be more like 'back stabing'...maybe by more than two/three/four person, maybe just one?

@shockwaverider The whole bible thing back to the time of Constantine, I believe it has little to do with early christianity and is a roman construct. It has been bastardised from go to whoa ever since Moses started organising it. The Vatican would know all this,for years Mass was only in latin and it was heresy for an average person to own a copy as the church deemed them incapable of interpreting it.

Cardinal Pell our famous pedophile supporter currently back here from the Vatican to face charges has stated numerous times on television that the Garden of Eden story is a myth and obviously not meant to be taken literally. So, where did original sin originate?

If I was Pope, surely I would have access to every bit of information the church ever had.
Occasionally the church admits that some things in the bible are unlikely to be true, but when we are not looking still pushes and does not deny that it is the word of god, holds all the authority of god etc.
They are doing all in their power to hold onto their power, wealth and alter boys.

They should just admit, they made it all up, that it has always been just made up, imagine how that would change the world. The 3 Abrahamic religions gone.

@Rugglesby got to perpuate that religious theme onto the next generation...(can't let it die a slow death or anything)! Every religion does that keeping their ideology alive...no matter, if they must go to Africa and convert the Natives!

I think the Vatican's conspiracy is a bigger more general one: They conspire to thwart humanity in as many ways as possible. For a long time they did it well too, as least from their perspective.

5

Well...I must be in a world of my own, because I did not believe the first one of those conspiracy! I have read about all of them, and all have been debunked! I do believe in 'debunking!' I believe in what I can see for myself...mostly! And anything else will need lots of information from different views on the facts! And, I need creditable people to give information and even then I may be reading between the lines! That is just me!

Several people, myself included, think they are all BS too. You are not alone. 🙂

3

It depends on how you define it. The phrase has taken on a sense of meaning "fantastical hypothesis," but the word conspire means something having to do with a group. I have evidence that people conspire together.

Good point. The fantastical hypothesis as you put it, is how it is now used. People conspiring to cover up is hardly difficult to understand. I just think they don't do it very well any more. In the past they got away with it.

@David1955 I think things are changing.

@JadedSage These days we can see incompetent conspiracy, like the Trump disaster.

@David1955 I think this whole "crisis actor" thing is like the Trump disaster on CRACK. The people spreading it dodge the simplest questions and ignore all evidence against their hypothesis. It gets worse, but I won't scare you with the details.

1

Former Fundy neighbors lived for conspiracies! I think this one’s their latest: [en.wikipedia.org] I’d do my best to listen with a straight face … as they were deadly serious.. I lost track of how many guns, bottles of propane, dogs, dried food and hiding places they had on their hobby farm. Don’t miss them 🙂

Varn Level 8 Feb 23, 2018
1

Them against us for our money but don't give a flying fuck. how do you know your vote is counted? how do you know who owns you? have you really got rights? blah blah blah

1

This is less a conspiracy and more of simple pattern.
Other - I think racism, millennial, sexism, homophobia are brought up in every conceivable subject for no reason for a distraction or to prove a point. For example.
If you destroy someone you become a criminal for your cause and all non-violent protests can now have pepper spray on them however worthy your cause/reason. In the US you can't vote after that even if you we're just standby. Yelling after that is considered the same as destroying a store.
Gay marriage - Very few think that homosexual marriage is wrong and I'm glad Australia passed in recently (where I'm from, I voted yes) but it is yet another distraction. The distraction? Drilling the Great Australian Bight. Not only the loss of a lot of the marine life that sustains the ocean and if there was a spill the entire bottom half of Australia would get covered in oil. The spill a few years back was from calm waters close to help. We have managed to have 3 oil companies back off during the time the vote was on everyone's minds.
Racism -There was black politicians in the Civil war. Frederick Douglass, Rober Smalls, Blanche Bruce, Joesph Rainey and many more. Perhaps that is one reason it was fought, they knew what power and wealth meant.Chinese v Vietnamese is standard but most think it is black vs white. There is history behind racism. Slaves are all colours through history and sexual slavery is a thing.
Sexism - Whatever you believe if your defense is your sex perhaps there is truth, if it is your excuse however not so much. I've know of women who run marathons with weights, I'm a fan of female and male MMA. There is a difference between everyone but in reality if your lazy male or female you're going to be weak and likely poorer.
Rich = Monster - Who in the world thought this up? You can and usually are affected by your wealth.. but... Ah. You know.
These words hold way more weight than they should. To quote...
We were all humans until Race Disconnected us, Religion separated us, Politics divided us and wealth classified us

1

I have a theory that a vast majority of conspiracy theories are people being lazy and not thinking about what is involved in what they suggest. How many people had to know? How come there are no whistleblowers? Occam's razor doesn't apply here? It's the religion of the few, thus it sounds ridiculous.

Ever heard of the Pentagon Papers, Mark Felt and Watergate, Edward Snowden, Bradley Manning....

@David1955 those don't sound like theories. Was a guy, living in his mom's basement, telling everyone he suspects snowden is about to steal and leak documents? If a conspiracy is a theory, you've jumped the gun and not followed the evidence. If you find evidence it's not a theory it's a fact.

@SocraticAddict you asked about whistleblowers. In each case they blew the whistle about conspiring to conceal actions.

@David1955 oh then yes it passes the test of a rational assumption. Misinterpreted the context of your comment.

1

I can’t barely believe that there are some things people actually believe.

Yes indeed. I've often thought that about the Trump base.

1

No one has proved any to me yet, although I do keep my eye on a few of them. Hey, there might be one or a few, that are true. I don't think many of them are though.

2

I didn't vote, but maybe I should vote other. I think conspiracy theorist's are conspiring to confuse the world.

1

Do people tell the truth always? No. Do governments, corporations, the military, religions...always tell the truth? No. Is public opinion ever deliberately manipulated? Yes.

'Conspiracy Theory' has become a blanket term to mock and discredit anyone that seeks to draw attention to an issue.
For example, when we in the west discuss 9.11 we talk about whether it was a false flag attack etc. We rarely talk about it in terms of why were those young men so disturbed by our respective countries foreign policies that they were prepared to carry out such a horrific act.
Noam Chomsky has quite a bit to say about manipulation of public opinion.

Yes I agree. It's time to salvage the term conspiracy theory from an image of nut jobs off their meds who watch too much XFiles, to a recognition that power will lie and deceive and discredit to avoid responsibility and we should question everything. Often we can only really prove things when people leak or confess - Pentagon papers, Vietnam, Watergate, Snowden. Power has enormously effective legal and other mechanisms to discourage that. And, yes, I agree with you about Chomsky. He calls it Manufactured Consent.

* If we are atheists and we reject the illusions of religion which aim to manipulate people, should we not also reject, or at least challenge the elites, who manufacture secular socio-economic and political illusions that are intended to have the same purpose?

Or the fact that most of them were from Saudi Arabia. Nothing was said much about that because since we depend on them for large amounts of oil.

4

Buildings just don,t fall that way when hit by a plane or planes and the 3rd one fell by it,s self later on..and my list goes on and on

They do when it's a controlled detonation, right?

I'm also intrigued by all those phone calls made by passengers by mobile phones, even though phones then, and even now, can't work at that altitude with cell towers seamlessly, or even work at all. Like to have an explanation for that too.

@David1955 and Rachel, ty for stating your thoughts.

I believe there is information about 911 that we will probably never know. I don't believe that the buildings would fall like they did without explosives and during the first few days it was the conclusion that there were explosives involved then the narrative abruptly changed. I was glued to the news as many people were, that part just does not add up. I don't think the government planned it or anything but someone got into those buildings that shouldn't have.

i watch the news that day and i know what I saw.They where showing it over and over lets just use a bit of logic and common sense here shall we, maybe find it a bit suspicious if anything?

3

Don't believe in any of these. But there are conspiracies. Russian's involvement in our country constitutes a very broad multi-pronged attack, including cyber espionage & hacking, social media propaganda campaign, direct collusion with Trump's people, and illegal money laundering to finance GOP interests, including the NRA

[nytimes.com]

3

I firmly believe that Dick Cheney is an alien or one of those T-800 terminators (the early ones, not the cool liquid metal T-1000). Those that believe KNOW that wasn't a heart transplant he received, but instead a replacement power cell (non-tesla model). We have our eye on you Cheney, watch out!

1

No. None. Utterly crazy ridiculousness.

1

All conspiracy theories are the products of troubled, paranoid minds.

2

I've always thought there was more to the Kennedy assassination than they've let on.

godef Level 7 Feb 23, 2018

Yes. In that case I don't think it was a great big conspiracy to assassinate JFK. Rather, it was conspiring to conceal, after the event, incompetence and bad judgement that led to the assassination. I may be wrong. But if I'm right, that's still conspiracy to conceal culpability.

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