to think that far more people than we realise subscribe to conspiracy theories?

[EmmaGrundyForPM]

I've gone down a bit of a rabbit hole after reading the comments on an online video of the dreadful ship accident in Baltimore.

Thousands of comments and the vast majority believe that this wasn't an accident but a deliberate act to destroy the infrastructure and economy of one of the USAs biggest ports.

Los of comments about the black smoke showing that the ship had explosives. Even when the odd sane person chips in to explain that was almost certainly due to the ship being put in hard reverse to try not to hit the bridge. Other people claiming that they've slowed down the video and it shows explosives on the bridge, even though these are clearly powerlines with electricity arcing as the bridge collapses.

And then lots of people commenting that they need Trump back in power because Biden is too feeble/?senile/left wing to realise that America is under attack.

I appreciate that most of the comments were from Americans, but I suspect the same thing might be true here. They all seem to be buying into a conspiracy with no acknowledgement that, sometimes, dreadful accidents do happen.

A CT is at least asking questions rather than believing of whiter than white governments who never do things for their own agenda

Well no most CT's follow other CT's on social media and youtube and believe everything they say is fact - when most of it is bollox - investigative journalists are the people who look at facts and rise above both governments and CT's

Oh and us dinosaurs had the internet when Princess Diana died btw OP!

Echo the thanks. Now I know in advance what my mum will be reading/thinking. We lost her down the rabbit hole too

Well a lot seem to believe the conspiracy theories about Jews, so I'd say you're probably right

You know what really depresses me? That people still believe in ‘The Protocols’, despite it being exposed as a hoax by the Times newspaper in 1921. And it has a 69% approval rating on Google. I despair.

Conspiracy theory or spoiler alert?

The only people i know who genuinely believe in conspiracy theories are either paranoid weed smokers or people who are as thick as shit and believe everything they read on the internet!

Truss probably was to some extent resisted by the civil service, because the smooth running of the country is their job and she came in with extreme economic changes like a bull in a china shop. Likewise when Trump was first elected I remember reading accounts from anonymous Whitehouse staff who mocked and aimed to frustrate him. So although I think framing such things as "the deep state" is silly, they are probably describing some real events in exagerrated and emotive terms.

Someone with a decent IQ can see why most of them are absolutely insane.
It’s not about always believing the government, it’s about seeing that most are just batshit.

I feel that conspiracy theory tendencies is an inherent part of human nature, and part of the history of mankind, for example medieval witch hunts.

Trying to make sense of calamity and chaos through blaming someone or something making it happen is somehow more reassuring to certain personality types than accepting bad things happen randomly. Conspiracy theorists often have controlling personality traits and want to make sense of the world by presuming someone else is exerting control. They are also people who enjoy believing they somehow know more than all the other ‘sheeple’ and it takes people with their level of ‘intellect’ to expose the truth!

I think it probably feels worse at the moment because of the failure in trust of the political classes, and it is in the interest of populists (like Trump) to exploit these types of people. Social media has also exposed the stupidity of many people, who are happy to convince themselves of various conspiracies whilst being naively unaware that they are being manipulated and lack critical thinking themselves.

It is the same part of human nature which believes in the supernatural, has blind religious faith, and ignores logic and science.

I’m always more of a cock-up rather than conspiracy belief person. But that being said it’s always sensible to be a little sceptical about what we are being told by those in power - no doubt we are not always told everything.

A lot of people have issues with conspiracy theories because they just believe what they are told and don't question anything

Let's take JFK's assassination

One of the entry wounds was at the front of his throat. LHO was behind the car when he took the shots

How does a bullet go past the car and then do a 180 degree turn?

Gould I’d have to start by asking for evidence of your assertion 🤷‍♀️

30 years ago, there were obviously conspiracy theorists. They would spout their nonsense down the pub, everyone would roll their eyes, tell them to get a grip and laugh at them behind their backs.

Now it's so easy for them to find equally unhinged people on the internet who just feed their nonsense beliefs and egg them on.

@SomethingUniqueThisTime

Yes, a really good history book on this subject is ‘The Pursuit of the Millenium’ by Prof. Norman Cohn in which the writer concludes that when populations feel disenfranchised, when there is great social change or upheaval, when enough people feel dispossessed and rootless, conspiracism will thrive.

He wrote another very interesting book about the European witch hunts, ‘Europe’s Inner Demons’.

There was an article recently in the BBC about the Kate Middleton conspiracy theories that said that foreign actors from Russia, China, Iran are suspected by foreign affairs specialists of getting involved in driving existing conspiracies started by local actors to feverish levels. It’s thought to be a strategy to fracture Western society into highly polarised groups and therefore weaken the fabric and unity of it.

Interesting points here. I suppose I hadn't thought about the grey area between healthy scepticism and rabbit hole CT.

I thought it was already established that there are whole mills of Russian bots driving these conspiracy theories online

Ironically whether true or not, this is in itself a conspiracy theory.

It’s security experts that have arrived at this view though. They would be looking for more substance before making the claims as they have more to lose in terms of reputation and livelihood compared to the average random on the internet who would be working in unrelated fields and have the ability to make their claims anonymously.

@WalkingaroundJardine that's exactly what Putin and Elvis WANT you to think.

I've lost IQ points just reading the conspiracy drivel you guys have uncovered.

So they've got to you too.....

I can't believe all the excitement over a bridge! Tadcaster bridge got swept away in the floods a few years ago and it barely got a mention on Calendar 😉

It was the Lancastrians

50% of the human population are of below average intelligence. I find this fact explains a lot as I move through the world.