Yes, the best conspiracy theories are really enjoyable, like good whodunnits. They satisfy a desire for the world to be a coherent place which one can make sense of albeit in a rather roundabout way, which requires one to suspend belief. And at the same time they throw light on all the complex ways society is organised so that the truth is often hidden. Most people aren’t gullible enough to think conspiracy theories are literally the truth, but people who take an interest in conspiracy theories support the kinds of clever people who can dream them up and thereby demonstrate the flaws and holes in the narratives we are fed by those in power.
Ralph Windsor
4 years ago
There are better examples of corona virus gullibility than the rather harmless ones quoted (which were part of a ‘package’ that contained some more reasonable info). For example, the more vicious stuff like the belief that the PM is using a herd immunity strategy in order to cull the elderly and so reduce social welfare costs. Or the more loonball theory of a certain ex-sports commentator that the virus is all part of an international cabal’s plot to frighten us all to the point where they an control us through AI. Most of us laugh at this but a minority does buy in. You can fool some of the people some of the time. Not too many right now let’s hope.
boyd conklin
4 years ago
Is it fake new that this is a Chinese virus? (see photo above} Good luck with that, although big tech, most of the political class and CNNCBSNBCABCMSNBC are Chinese sycophants.
Jacques René Giguère
4 years ago
You don’t need a lot of people to believe idiocies to be in danger. Just enough.
Yes, the best conspiracy theories are really enjoyable, like good whodunnits. They satisfy a desire for the world to be a coherent place which one can make sense of albeit in a rather roundabout way, which requires one to suspend belief. And at the same time they throw light on all the complex ways society is organised so that the truth is often hidden. Most people aren’t gullible enough to think conspiracy theories are literally the truth, but people who take an interest in conspiracy theories support the kinds of clever people who can dream them up and thereby demonstrate the flaws and holes in the narratives we are fed by those in power.
There are better examples of corona virus gullibility than the rather harmless ones quoted (which were part of a ‘package’ that contained some more reasonable info). For example, the more vicious stuff like the belief that the PM is using a herd immunity strategy in order to cull the elderly and so reduce social welfare costs. Or the more loonball theory of a certain ex-sports commentator that the virus is all part of an international cabal’s plot to frighten us all to the point where they an control us through AI. Most of us laugh at this but a minority does buy in. You can fool some of the people some of the time. Not too many right now let’s hope.
Is it fake new that this is a Chinese virus? (see photo above} Good luck with that, although big tech, most of the political class and CNNCBSNBCABCMSNBC are Chinese sycophants.
You don’t need a lot of people to believe idiocies to be in danger. Just enough.