Why did you get into conspiracy theory?

Conspiracy? Yes, as the ATS Intro page says, Conspiracies do exist. Watergate? Conspiracy. The Manhattan Project? Conspiracy (of silence). For good or evil, when things are done in secret, it's called conspiring.

Theories? We base our lives on theories that we ourselves cannot prove and which are often ill-conceived. In fact, real theories should be testable, by their nature. For example, the official 9/11 report is a theory which can be tested and identified as ludicrous.

Personally, I was surrounded by lies growing up as a Jehovah Witness. They are a very controlled group and you are not allowed to read books that are "bad" by their definition. My parents grounded me for reading the Bagavad Gita, they grounded me for reading Ayn Rand, etc. I only got out of that hell by sheer will and a love of reading. Once I escaped, I promised myself I would read every book that people told me not to.

Conspiracy theorists are the brave people who are not afraid to ask big questions. I have a little bit of love for all of them and if the human race survives, it'll be be thanks to the "kooks" or whatever Ann Coulter is calling us these days.

No one got interested because they looked around, and thought it was the end times? That is interesting

I mean, I don't think anyone remembers where they even heard of 2012 the first time, or what they heard.

But they remember.

The first time I heard of 2012 was on this website.

I really got interested about conspiracies was when 9-11 happened.

Originally posted by iceTman
basically because of the intrique of what important people have to say ..like for example:

New World Order Quotes

"The world is governed by very different personages from what is imagined by those who are not behind the scenes."
--Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli of England, in 1844.

1844? Most likely he was talking of the aristocracy and the 'old boy' network, regardless, those in positions of power in 1844 are long dead.

"The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is the American Branch of a society which originated in England ... (and) ... believes national boundaries should be obliterated and one-world rule established."
-- Professor of History Carroll Quigley, Georgetown University, in his book "Tragedy and Hope".

And? Oxfam is a society dedicated to helping the world's poor, is there a global conspiracy to that extent? This world is populatedwith societies, organisation and 'think tanks' all working to completely different ends, picking one which believes in world goverment (most likely for peacefull co-operation rather than dictatorship) adds nothing to your point, Gene Rodenberry believed in the world should have a united goverment, is he part of your conspiracy too?

"Some of the biggest men in the United States, in the field of commerce and manufacture, are afraid of something. They know that there is a power somewhere so organized, so subtle, so watchful, so interlocked, so complete, so pervasive, that they had better not speak above their breath when they speak in condemnation of it." - Woodrow Wilson

Woodrow Wilson, president of the united states 1913-1921, when there really was something bigger than big buissiness, goverment; World War! Regardless, anyone associated with this conspiracy is also dead.

"[The New World Order] cannot happen without U.S. participation, as we are the most significant single component. Yes, there will be a New World Order, and it will force the United States to change it's perceptions."
-- Henry Kissenger, World Affairs Council Press Conference,
Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel , April 19th 1994

The phrase 'new world order' is a widely used phrase, meaning a change in global politics of any kind, not a reference to a specific conspiracy, here Kisinger was talking of the emergance of the USA as a lone superpower, and the era of peacefull co-operation between (he hoped) between the major states.

"David Rockefeller is the most conspicuous representative today of the ruling class, a multinational fraternity of men who shape the global economy and manage the flow of its capital. Rockefeller was born to it, and he has made the most of it. But what some critics see as a vast international conspiracy, he considers a circumstance of life and justanother day's work... In the world of David Rockefeller it's hard to tell where business ends and politics begins" . Bill Moyers

The link between politics and bussiness (which I asume is your point here, next time you make a list of quotes, say what you think they mean) is no secret, it is a large bussinesses 'lobbying' for legislation favourable to their cause. This is no conspiracy it is each lobby simply trying to get the best for themselves, often working at cross purposes, the 'road and car' lobby is directly apposed to the 'ril and train' lobby, for example.

"We know in the not too distant future, a half dozen corporations are going to control the media. We took this step (merger) to ensure we were one of them"--Time Warner spokesperson.

True, in the US, it is in the interest of each buisinness to have as little competion as possible, competition drives own prices, when they have a monoploly they have the market at their mercy, it is simple business sense, not a conspiracy.

"We shall have World Government, whether or not we like it. The only question is whether World Government will be achieved by conquest or consent." -- Statement made before the United States Senate on Feb. 7, 1950 by James Paul Warburg ("Angel" to and active in the
United World Federalists), son of Paul Moritz Warburg, nephew of Felix Warburg and of Jacob Schiff, both of Kuhn, Loeb & Co. which poured millions into the Russian Revolution through James' brother Max, banker to the German government - See the Siss?on Report

A likely statement of political fact, trade power is increased when countries band together, the EU is an example of this, it is a simple conflict between national pride and political reality, simple observation indicates politics is winning, world goverment is the logical conclusion of this trend, the only question is will it develope in the interests of buissiness or those of world peace (based on the UN model), simple politcal theory, not any indication that said world government will be about anything but governing it's people.

"All of us will ultimately be judged on the effort we have contributed to building a NEW WORLD ORDER."--Robert Kennedy, former U.S. Attorney-General, 1967.

Again, merely using the phrase 'new world order' does not constitute a conspiracy, Kennedy was speaking of trying to end the cold war, why have you leaped upon the phrase 'new world order'? Why not 'Gobal Confederation' or 'Whole General Mish Mash'? An arbitrary use of a common phrase does not a conspiracy make.

"The real rulers in Washington are invisible and exercise their power from behind the scenes."
-- Justice Felix Frankfurter, U.S. Supreme Court.

A reference to the lobbyists that convey the interests of big buisiness to the government, I don't agree with this, but they aer not attmpting to take over or whatever you think they'll do.

"I am concerned for the security of our great nation; not so much because of any threat from without, but because of the insideous forces working from within."
-- General Douglas MacArthur

Place this phrase in some context please, with mcarthur's career as it was he could have been speaking about insergants during several wars, or communism (one of the mcarthyist theories) placed in a vacuum this statement can mean anything.

"For some time I have been disturbed by the way the CIA has been diverted from it's original assignment. It has become an operational and at times a policy making arm of the government." --
President Harry Truman

Speaking (presumably) of the power held by the CIA in the climate of fear during the cold war, a situation that is now over.

Deny Ignorance.

I just happen to disagree with each of your guesses as to how to interpret the person being quoted. I found it much more sensible to just take them at their word, and not add a lot of subjective, biased, conjecture in order to spin the interpretation so that it means something completely different.
If I was to believe your defensive rebuttals completely, I would have to believe that there are no 'powerbrokers' behind the scenes pulling the strings, and that characters like Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, et al. are calling the shots.... and that is never going to happen.
In the 1970's the Rockefeller family was estimated to control over 500 Billion dollars US, in various industries, through their numerous funds, charities, subsidiaries, etc.
What is that worth these days?
And Bill Gates is the worlds richest man. lol yeah right....

I was mostly interested in knowing things when I was younger, i.e aliens, etc. When I got older I found out people would hide the truth. This made me curious so I went on to a Serious discussion board and read Conspiracies by F.P.Wilson, at which point there was no turning back.

I didnt get into conspriacy theories, they got into ME!

One of the best books I owned (Until it was stolen from me by the SON of one of the guys in the background of the famous 'Ruby Shooting Oswald' picture...who is now retired NSA....no lie!)
Has a forward by the Rev Ivan Stang, which reads in part: "The problem with conspiracy theories is that once you investigate one, it leads right into the next one, and from there into the next conspiracy theory, and the more you investigate, te more you find that you are an unwitting cog in the conspiracy!"

Get that book, and read that forward everytime you start investigating a conspiracy theory, it will help keep you on an even keel.

But, that being the case, many of the "Paranoid conspiracy theories" BECOME so all-encompassing for the people that end up finding themselves PART of the conspiracy....mostly because of a lack of ego boundries, and as a way of elevating their own sorry nothingness of life, and feeling important.

Having said that.
I blow my own horn like any braggart who vicariously tries to gain somesort of higher-status via who or what they are related to.

I am a direct descendent of MANY interesting fruits and nuts that dangle from my family tree...and the way that some of those fruits and nuts are related to each other is "coincidental" to the point of lending a whole new layer to many "conspiracies" throughout history.

I wont bore everyone with reciting my family tree...because like describing ones surgery, its only interesting to the one telling of it.

However, I am descended from Laffyette Baker, who was the grandson of Capt Remember Baker, a revolutionar war hero, and cousin to Ethan Allen.
Laffyette Baker was Abraham Lincolns head of Secret Service, and in someways was the "inventer" of the modern Secret Service. He was one weasely scoundrel! Either a hero or a complete loose cannon, depending on your POV. He wrote a book before his death called "The United States Secrate Service of the Late War" (Civil War) and for the most part, it is one huge apologetic excuse for how Lincolns assasination wasnt his fault.
(A little known fact...and one that I need to verify absolutly still, aside from believing "Family Folk Lore" which has so far pproven to be accurate on many counts, is that Baker was a second-cousin to Andrew Johnson!)

So I have this rich family history that includes many OTHER charectors in politics...some of them involved in some way or another paripherally in other historical events/conspiracys.

So I hope this doesnt come off as the self-important horn-blowing of an egotistical braggart (I am, but thats beside the point!) But this is what got me into conspiracy theories.

I also have a healthy interest in sub-cultures and political music such as the Dead Kennedys/Biafra and D.O.A., which opened my eyes to a LOT of the "Dark shattered underbelly of the American dream". And I find myself amused by "Whacko Religious Cults" and such things (I live right around the corner from the Rev Fred Phelps and his "God Hates F*gs" church)

One of my favorite set of theories is the JFK assasination (And the Lincoln assasination). I really think that the JFK assasination was a coup, and the Taking Of America 1,2,3,. (Is it true that what the Watergate burglars where REALLY looking for was photographic proof that the Democrats had that would have exposed the JFK assasination and its driving forces?)

And now that I've buried this far down below the point where most people would have gotten bored and quit reading:
WHO was the liason between the Oval Office and the National Security Council during Eisenhowers administration?
WHO was fielding many aspects of Phillip Corsos 'Day After Roswell' disemination of technology to the corporations playing the biggest roles in the military industrial complex?
And WHO came up with the "Umbrella Man / Gun" theory in the JFK assasination?

I believe that Eisenhower was our last decent president.....his exit speach is MOST compelling!

Thats my story....and Im sticking to it...at least until I come up with something more interesting that someone gives a crap about.

Cheers!
ChromeTuna

[edit on 23-5-2005 by Chrometuna]

Originally posted by smallpeeps
Conspiracy? Yes, as the ATS Intro page says, Conspiracies do exist. Watergate? Conspiracy. The Manhattan Project? Conspiracy (of silence). For good or evil, when things are done in secret, it's called conspiring.

Actually, the word "Conspiracy" comes from two (Latin? greek?) words:
Con, meaning "together" and "Inspire" or "Spire" meaning "To Beath"

So "Conspiracy" means "To breath together". With the common meaning to be that more then one person is involved in an act or deed.

E=MC5

DO some deep research into the word "Atom"....now THERE is a cosmic "conspiracy theory" if there ever was one!

Cheers!
ChromeTuna.....I can't handle the truth!

Clearly, concisely, and eloquently written opinions Lurch

i second this. you've done your research lurch, better than most people - but in the end you're choosing (as we all do) which position to side with. IMHO you're in denial. probably hoping all those red flags can be rationalized away with, "oh, theyre all dead now" and "no evil intentions, just business"

well from my experience with human nature, i do believe absolute power corrupts absolutely. just because those guys are dead doesnt mean they couldnt have passed the torch. maybe all us conspiracy theorists should shut up and suck it up. fact is, humans are nasty and brutish. history paints pretty pictures, but the truth has a fair amount of dirt in it. that coupled with the obvious effort to promote the textbook and to quiet the questioning, i am inclined to believe more lies are covered up everyday.

"the truth hurts. save yourself the pain, and rationalize away."

soo many interesting topics and people on one site,how can you go wrong.don't have to worry about being considered a kook cause you will always have someone else here that knows where you are coming from.

i got intrested in conspiracy theorys as a kid because i used to live out in the country and at night i would sit outside and be amazed at everything that i would see moving across the sky and unfortunately i am still craning my neck every so often

The Bermuda Triangle, Spontaneous Human Combustion, UFOs, Remote Viewing, etc......were all topics covered in a monthly publication called "The Unexplained", i'm sure plenty of UK ATSer's will recognise the title.

I used to collect it, when I was 7 or 8, and just about every article left me amazed and more curious.

The reason I actually found the unexplained so interesting, I believe, was I wanted to be somewhere else other than school, where I was picked on every day from the age of 4 to 10. I believe that I was trying to escape a world I perceived as evil.

In fact, I bet there are many on here that have similar stories, who were looking for escapism, and found a vast wealth of unexplained phenomena.

Alot has changed since then, and I no longer believe the world is an evil place, it's a majority of the human residents that are evil.

I cant send U2U's until I have about 16 more posts! So rather then making a bunch of inane posts just to run up my numbers, we're going to pretend that this post is of some value and interest.

But to Icarus: GOOD JOB!
So very very very close!

(I love silly little guessing games)

I am currently watching Ollie Stones JFK yet again.

It's one of my favorite movies....even if it's a bit long.
I have heard people say that Stone took a lot of liberties
with historical facts. But what exactly did he spin-out?

Obviously there is a lot of conjecture, and filling in the blanks
with drama.

The various clues, leads, and pieces of controversial evidence that the movie lays out are as far as I can tell all real. The main thing that Stone did do was to attribute many finds and discoveries to his main character rather than introduce the numerous different actual sources of the discoveries. This was to avoid bogging down the films flow and making it easier to follow. So, the information is, imho, correct, but the people who discovered and exposed many of the suspicious points referred to in the film have in many cases been conglomerated into one person.

Hypnotized without my knowledge and consent........I had a very rude awakening to say the least.......'Nuff said........

Well, being a committed leftist, I began reading about the history of stuff like contras etc. that the media commonly likes to ignore, the generally bloodthirsty stuff that advanced western nations are responsible for. All this sort of stuff piqued my interest, and I began to think after a while - what if there is more to it that meets the eye? I've always been interested in alien/UFO lore, and combined with knowledge of (essentially) covered up and ignored history I just HAD to find out more! I used to go to a few alien sites but one day a guy on para-normal.com linked to ATS and I've been reading these boards every single day since.

Eventually I decided to actually register an account instead of lurking all the time, and here I am!

I think the thing that got me into conspiracy theories for the first time was the movie JFK. I saw and it really opened my mind and started doing research from there. Fortunately, that coincided with the time I first got the internet ('94-'95) so I quickly was in over my head with the vast number of conspiracies!

I have a warped sense of humor.

I enjoy laughing at people so naive and gullible they actually believe the crap posted here. The more preposterous and outlandish the story more it is believed and accepted as fact.

There is a small handful of regulars here that play along with the 'game' and perpetuate the bizarre fantasies and beliefs with their own phony concoctions, then laugh aloud when it shows up on 'other' web sites as established fact, and then is repeated back here as authoritative.

It's all great entertainment!!!

I got into Conspiracy theories for one reason and one reason only

I don't want to lie to my children. !!!

I don't want them brain washed in society
I can't tell them that god or a heaven or religion is real
And when they ask i simply tell them 'We just dont know yet'

I do tell them children like them die everyday because they have no food
I did tell them that some bad people flew areoplanes into those buildings
but didn't tell them who those 'bad' people were ......

Basically im fed up of this world and the way it works (for the elite)
and only our children can change this .
My kids may not be the best kids but deluded they definetly aren't !!!

Simple. Question everything. Take nothing for granted.

"One must forget everything before he can except the truth"