Are conspiracies getting Dumber?

When I was young, conspiracies used to be complex and elaborate. There would be spies and international intrigue.

Webs of interconnected facts, and unsaved men connecting newspapers clippings on walls with red string.

You'd practically need a PhD to see all of the connections.

Today, Donald Trump puts his back out playing golf and suddenly a million shut-in and nerds suddenly post some dumb conspiracy on Facebook about how this is proof that flu shots are toxic.

Or somebody makes a poorly edited video using free asset art that still has the watermark attached, that supposedly show Hillary Clinton puking green slime and we've got a million numb conspiracies that this is proof that she's a reptilian alien that eats babies.

What's even worse is that people seem willing to believe absolutely anything, on both sides of the political Isle, because you don't like them.

Joe Biden has parkinson based on him dropping a pencil. Donald Trump personally executes immigrant children based on him visiting Texas that one time.

What happened to wanting facts and evidence, or being skeptical of poor quality evidence or mere speculation?

What happened to the thinking man's conspiracy based on breaking Russian codes or plane spotters tracking the movements or planes owned by the CIA?

a reply to: AaarghZombies

The dumbing down of society is working fine.

There seems to be no end to people's stupidity.

I believe that the growth in the 'conspiracy theory' phenomenon is largely a result of concerted efforts to discredit the conspiracy theory movement.
Not everything is a conspiracy.....but some things are.
Unfortunately its becoming increasingly difficult to sort through the mountain of absolute bollocks and unearth the real conspiracy's, the important conspiracies.

Whose agenda does that serve?

a reply to: Freeborn

Whose agenda does that serve?

the conspirators agenda?

Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former. * Albert Einstein

a reply to: AaarghZombies

Are conspiracies getting Dumber?

It might be worthwhile to consider the sources where you're finding conspiracy theories...

......suddenly post some dumb conspiracy on Facebook ....

Back when You/I/We were young, in order for us to even hear about a conspiracy theory, it had most likely been around for quite some time, which gave it plenty of time to gain more interesting details.(regardless of whether or not any of said details were actually true)

And of course, SOME of those aspects had to at least be somewhat* believable, otherwise it would've died off long before we ever even heard about it.

a reply to: AaarghZombies

What happened to wanting facts and evidence, or being skeptical of poor quality evidence or mere speculation?

Yet here we are supposed to believe the official covid narrative, a pandemic that doesn’t really harm the majority, some don’t even know they’ve had it, yet it kills others and leaves a few others with long covid. A tiny percentage of the population, so it’s essential we crash the economy, disrupt the lives of billions and get everyone vaccinated even though once vaccinated you can still catch and spread it? Oh yeah and than vaccine makers are immune from any damage caused..

Were supposed to believe JFK was killed by a magic bending bullet...

That 18 terrorists crashed two planes into the twin towers causing three towers to collapse at near free fall speed, exactly like a controlled demolition, yet a terrorists passport conveniently survived and happened to be found in all the mess, as evidence of who did it.

I could go on but if you ask me it’s the conspirators that are getting stupid.

a reply to: AaarghZombies

Corporate use of public relations to whitewash their bad behaviour and fool the gullible about their green credentials.

Fake news. Spin, bias, lies? Call it what you like but they are clearly not trustworthy.

Corrupt politicians who blatantly treat us like idiots and lie constantly, right in your face, and do nothing but line their pockets and scratch each others backs.

When you know that these things are going on, it's an open invitation to ask questions about why?
Some ask better questions than others.

It's like a lying girlfriend. When you know you're being lied to, you think of alternatives.
The girlfriend couldo be having an affair with your best friend or she could be planning a surprise party for you.
One would be good and the other one bad.
In the absence of honesty people imagine the worst.



I would also add that the conspiracy world has become more mainstream and a branch of the entertainment industry.

You constantly need new content to keep your audience and if there's nothing new, they'll make something up.

originally posted by: BrokenCircles
a reply to: AaarghZombies

Are conspiracies getting Dumber?

It might be worthwhile to consider the sources where you're finding conspiracy theories...

......suddenly post some dumb conspiracy on Facebook ....

Back when You/I/We were young, in order for us to even hear about a conspiracy theory, it had most likely been around for quite some time, which gave it plenty of time to gain more interesting details.(regardless of whether or not any of said details were actually true)

And of course, SOME of those aspects had to at least be somewhat* believable, otherwise it would've died off long before we ever even heard about it.

When I was a child you'd occasionally get a rumor along the lines of "Old man Petrov is a vampire, he has a torture chamber in his basement where he take naughty children".

School yard stuff.

Today grown adults believe more or less the same thing about Oprah Winfrey.

What were once silly rumors for kids are now mainstream conspiracies for adults.

a reply to: AaarghZombies

Modern conspiracy has been weaponized against "us", it has been used to divide and conquer anyone who is still trying to think outside of the box. Just look at all of the unnecessary aggression here these days.

I've been obsessed with all things conspiracy since grade school (almost 40 now) and I really feel like after 9/11 something changed, not that 9/11 was necessarily the catalyst, but it's like the power of the internet was getting us close to unraveling some layer of truth, so "they" decided to let Alex Jones out of his corner and enter the mainstream as a representative of the conspiracy world. I remember getting high and laughing at Alex Jones in high school. But now, after Hillary mentioned him in those debates 4 years ago, the guy is a household name. I know that he was rapidly gaining popularity, but after that debate the people I work with, friends and members of my family suddenly knew who Alex Jones was without knowing that he had been commercializing and marketing conspiracy theories for decades as a career.

I don't think Jones is the cause of these problems, or that he alone is to blame for what has happened. He is a symptom of a much larger situation, one where as soon as a person starts to think outside of the box there is another box waiting to trap them.

IMHO it still all comes down to controlling people through their own fears, so nothing new. The same choice we've always had, a choice between love or fear.

originally posted by: wheresthebody
a reply to: AaarghZombies

I don't think Jones is the cause of these problems, or that he alone is to blame for what has happened. He is a symptom of a much larger situation, one where as soon as a person starts to think outside of the box there is another box waiting to trap them.

our out of the box thinking, is still contained in a couple of other boxes.
to realise that, you also need to expand your horizon, why probably most just take the next box in sight

a reply to: AaarghZombies

A conspiracy about conspiracies. Now that's something that'll get people's minds all the BS.

a reply to: Terpene

I couldn't agree more!

A member here (TzarChasm) recently introduced me to an idea, well it's more of a thought exercise, that is an incredibly useful tool for detecting these boxes that we continue to find ourselves in.

It's also worth considering that having an interest in something and being willing to discuss the topic does not necessarily equate to a belief in that topic.

Some people are interested in religious beliefs and will study them all. I wouldn't assume that they believed all of them. Some might only be interested from a psychological viewpoint as to why others do believe.

Wondering what is causing people to see strange things apparently flying in the sky isn't quite the same as believing we are regularly visited by fifty seven different species of aliens.

Found this one out in the wild on Facebook yesterday. Covid vaccines are turning us into fungus.

a reply to: AaarghZombies

Yes, witness Q, but that's mostly because people are getting dumber. The average IQ in the United States is around 95 which means half the population is as dumb as an actual cucumber.

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus
a reply to: AaarghZombies

Yes, witness Q, but that's mostly because people are getting dumber. The average IQ in the United States is around 95 which means half the population is a dumb as an actual cucumber.

Everybody knows that's due to the fluoride and microwaves!

a reply to: Tulpa

HAARP.

High Altitude American Retardation Program.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

Hoping All Americans Recover Promptly.

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus
a reply to: AaarghZombies

Yes, witness Q, but that's mostly because people are getting dumber. The average IQ in the United States is around 95 which means half the population is as dumb as an actual cucumber.

I'm not sure that we can believe most of what we hear about Q.

The media seem to say that it's all about believing in cults and pedophile vampires and space lizards, but from what I hear that's mostly BS, and that a lot of Q is simply people getting angry about lobbying and vested interests having more power than voters when it comes to setting policy.

originally posted by: billxam
a reply to: AaarghZombies

A conspiracy about conspiracies. Now that's something that'll get people's minds all the BS.

That's an old one.

We know that the CIA has been accused of ufo hoaxes or infiltrating ufo groups in the past.

Hiding the truth by creating a lie.

originally posted by: AaarghZombies
I'm not sure that we can believe most of what we hear about Q.

The media seem to say that it's all about believing in cults and pedophile vampires and space lizards, but from what I hear that's mostly BS, and that a lot of Q is simply people getting angry about lobbying and vested interests having more power than voters when it comes to setting policy.

Go read the Q thread, it's the wacko stuff.