Conspiracy Theories

[Goredho 17416]

I was getting high last night, watching some netflix show on conspiracy theories and it occurred to me how integral the belief in conspiracy theories is to where we find ourselves now.

Anecdotally, I remember the first time I had a conspiracy theory pushed to me by someone I knew well.  It was sometime in the mid 90s, and it was an email forward from my room mate.  It talked about all the suspicious deaths around the Clintons with the insinuation they must somehow be involved.  No proof, obviously, just a list of people known by Bill Clinton that had died prematurely if not suspiciously.  That was all it took for him.  Definitive proof that the Clintons didn't just possess politics he found distasteful, but were involved in a conspiracy to commit and cover up multiple murders.

Fast forward 30 years and that ex-room mate believes teachers-as-groomers is real, the 2020 election was stolen, January 6th was a peaceful protest being mischaracterized by a complicit mainstream media, Trump is the victim in a massive government conspiracy to deny his rights, Hollywood and liberal elites are all engaged in a global pedophile ring, and so forth.  All with about as much evidence as he had for believing that email about Bill Clinton back in the mid 90s.  He wants to move to a sea-stead in Panama to get away from the horror that is life in today's USA run by liberals.  His business has failed, and to fill the void, he's started a podcast and is authoring two books "with the help of AI."

The FBI has flat out stated conspiracy theories are a prime motivator for radicalized domestic terrorists.  “The FBI assesses these conspiracy theories very likely will emerge, spread, and evolve in the modern information marketplace, occasionally driving both groups and individual extremists to carry out criminal or violent acts,” the document states. It also goes on to say the FBI believes conspiracy theory-driven extremists are likely to increase during the 2020 presidential election cycle."  The diabolically brilliant part of this is that for those open to conspiracy theories, any response by society or government is just more evidence of the ongoing conspiracy.

Then it occurred to me that there is, in fact, a no shit, crazy-as-fuck conspiracy going on.  A conspiracy of global scope, where the powerful, rich and/or influential are trying to direct world events through nefarious means:

1. Either my ex-roommate is correct, and there is a conspiracy between powerful liberal politicians, the democratic party, George Soros, Alec Baldwin, the mainstream media and the deep state to enslave us all in a system that keeps people like him and Donald Trump down, or...
2. There is a conspiracy between powerful conservative politicians, the Republican party, Donald Trump, Vladmir Putin, Elon Musk, Fox, OAN and fringe militia groups to motivate people like my ex-roommate to disrupt the current function of our country and ultimately completely remake it into something more amenable to their ends.

10 years ago, both of those would have seemed wildly implausible.  Now, I don't see how it could be possible for one of them to not be true, with it far more likely to be the 2nd scenario.  We often half-joke about living in a simulation.  We aren't, but what is almost undeniable at this point is that there is at least one crazy, whacked out conspiracy theory that is real, ongoing and impacting all of our lives whether we believe or don't.

Then I thought back to my ex room mate, 30 years ago, with that email that he believed and I laughed at.  That was the beginning for him, the start of his grooming, to make him lose all faith in his country & society.  To radicalize him and to motivate him to action.  That grooming continued since then, through the advent of social media and its construction of informational walls around him.  Through the Obama presidency, until the point where Hilary was on the ballot.  Before that point, he was a conservative contrarian grumbling about the direction of the country.  After that, he's become apocalyptic.  Sold all his investments, put it into crypto, let his business go belly up, talking of moving overseas, much like some here have if Trump gets a 2nd term.  He's all in on his conspiracy, and couldn't just walk away from the table if he wanted to.

He's not stupid.  He's got a 140+ IQ.  He's completely capable of poking holes in an idea with logical flaws and demonstrates critical thinking skills in lots of other areas.  I don't know how he fell for this shit.  It's like he has this weird, unconscious and undeniable compulsion to believe liberal/government conspiracies.  Like the frog/scorpion parable.  His dedication to these ideas has brought him nothing but pain, hardship, isolation, and financial ruin, but he just... can't... stop... believing.

I rarely talk to him anymore.  I check in every few months, see if it sounds like he's come around, and within 10 minutes its obvious he's gone further down the rabbit hole.  I checked in on him again this morning and tried talking sense to him, but it was useless.  I don't really know why I am posting this.  Maybe its just a ranting lament for a lost, one-time friend.

Edited October 12, 2023 by Goredho

[Aqua Buddha 14605]

"Behind the Curve" is a documentary from a few years ago about the Flat Earthers.  It's not so much about that particular conspiracy theory but about them in general and how people get roped into them and can't leave.

Most excellent watch.

[Francisco 2.0 32423]

20 minutes ago, Goredho said:

He's not stupid.  He's got a 140+ IQ.  He's completely capable of poking holes in an idea with logical flaws and demonstrates critical thinking skills in lots of other areas.  I don't know how he fell for this shit.  It's like he has this weird, unconscious and undeniable compulsion to believe liberal/government conspiracies.  Like the frog/scorpion parable.  His dedication to these ideas has brought him nothing but pain, hardship, isolation, and financial ruin, but he just... can't... stop... believing.

 

He's not stupid, but he wants a convenient excuse(s) why everything in his life (and society as a whole) has gone to shit.  Hence, conspiracy theories.  It's a self-perpetuating cycle.

 

 

 

 

Edited October 12, 2023 by Francisco 2.0

[BrickHorn 18283]

30 minutes ago, Goredho said:

He's not stupid. 

[Goredho 17416]

1 minute ago, BrickHorn said:

Fair, so let me re-characterize.  He has shown himself capable of intelligence, rational thought and critical thinking in many other aspects of his life earlier in his life.  In the run up to 2016 his life started to go off the rails.

[Red Five 40881]

I know someone who got really into conspiracy theories, seemingly overnight. Probably a few years ago. Now they see them in everything, even when there are perfectly logical explanations. "Nope, I think what really happened is......"

[Goredho 17416]

Yeah, there are a lot of people like that.  The most interesting/ironic thing to me, as someone who is decided not a believer in conspiracy theories, is the realization that its far more likely than not that a real, no-shit global conspiracy is going on -- the conspiracy to get people like my ex-roommate to upend America and that its been 30+ years in the making.  I don't see how anything else is really plausible at this point.

[Okie State 3846]

This describes my brother. It's impossible for him to have a conversation without something circling back to the government. Once you're in that spiral you can't even exist anymore without making ridiculous links between things that have nothing to do with each other.

[Dnaguy 12054]

Religion, conspiracy theories, or both fill a hole that forms in all of us when life doesn't pan out a certain way for us.

That's my theory at least.

That and Jewish space lasers. But even then.... why didn't the Jews use them to defeat Hamas?

Probably a New World Order plot to distract us from RFK's whitehouse bid.

[Herpa Derpa 6129]

I think they're naturally born out of a mixture of things that have always been around. Boredom, feelings of emptiness/loneliness, lack of real control in daily life, etc.  But we've now added instant (dis)information to the mix and shit be starting to boil over due to an exponential increase in theories and believers.

[Neonmoon 38130]

1 hour ago, Goredho said:

His business has failed, and to fill the void, he's started a podcast and is authoring two books "with the help of AI."

 

This isn’t a new phenomenon 

Religion, Cults, Fascists, and Warlords have been manipulating people since the beginning of time. These people are lost, hurt, alone, curious and confused, among other things. People want something to fill the void we all feel. Some find meaning in family, charity, work, sports, but many don’t. They are ripe for indoctrination. 
 

Why do you think some religious billboards say “Do you feel lost?” We ALL do at times. Life is hard. These groups just continuously chum the waters. 

 

 

[Aqua Buddha 14605]

1.  With almost every conspiracy theory, it's only one or two degrees separated from the Jews. 

2.  These people that really but into these don't understand how random and chaotic the world really is so they default to this unseen hand somewhere controlling everything and it gives them explanations.  You can't get 10 people to keep a secret yet millions are in on these conspiracies and haven't said a word.

3.  These people also like conspiracy theories because it makes them feel smarter.  

[Brisketexan 105288]

1 minute ago, Aqua Buddha said:

1.  With almost every conspiracy theory, it's only one or two degrees separated from the Jews. 

2.  These people that really but into these don't understand how random and chaotic the world really is so they default to this unseen hand somewhere controlling everything and it gives them explanations.  You can't get 10 people to keep a secret yet millions are in on these conspiracies and haven't said a word.

3.  These people also like conspiracy theories because it makes them feel smarter.  

The third point is key.  People want to feel smart, and important: "Look what I  figured out, and you clueless dummies didn't!"

It's actually unnerving when you realize how much of life and society is just haphazard, run by chance and utterly fallible human beings.  I have been deep within various "halls of power," and what consistently strikes me is how utterly fucking mundane they are.

Walk down the hallway of your office.  You get to the door of the schlub who runs Accounts Payable. He's making decisions.  He's making mistakes.  Amp up the scale...and that same guy is doing that for your major city.  Or state agency.  Or the Federal Executive branch.  And those elected officials, who are all clearly part of a vast global cabal, dancing naked in Bohemian Grove and whatnot?  They're mostly schmucks I knew in high school, college, etc.  One of them got lucky on a car dealership, so now he has the time and money to be mayor.  Another was always really involved in community activities, she's a state rep or Congresswoman.  Most all of them were just regular people (yeah, once they hold office for 3 decades, rot sets in, and they ain't who they once was).

But it's actually MORE comforting to think there's some vast plan, some script that everyone is following, as opposed to the truth: they're all just making it up as they go along, and nobody knows exactly what comes next.

[Goredho 17416]

17 minutes ago, Aqua Buddha said:

1.  With almost every conspiracy theory, it's only one or two degrees separated from the Jews. 

2.  These people that really but into these don't understand how random and chaotic the world really is so they default to this unseen hand somewhere controlling everything and it gives them explanations.  You can't get 10 people to keep a secret yet millions are in on these conspiracies and haven't said a word.

3.  These people also like conspiracy theories because it makes them feel smarter.  

Do you think the rise of conspiracy theories, the alt-right, their alternative reality and their attempt to remake America through violence is due to random chance?   Or is it the result of a plan with intent?  Is there some connection between those emails about the Clinton's murders in the 90s and todays tweet about Trump being a victim of a weaponized justice department?  Or is the consolidation of conspiracy theorists into a singular unified force attempting to bring about the downfall of American society simply the result of the random chaos in the world?

There are certainly people who benefit from their attempt to remake America through chaos & violence, and there are certainly people pushing for it to happen.  The only thing that separates that from being a conspiracy is that it is unclear whether those people have engineered this context together, or are simply catching a random wave of chaotic opportunity as individuals.  Maybe it doesn't really matter, except that if it's the result of a conspiracy, there may be a head to chop off the snake.

Edited October 12, 2023 by Goredho

[Willfully Horn 8048]

Attended the funeral of a man with whom my parents had a decades long friendship. He was a respected lawyer, and his kids were college educated. I ought have known to just bail when the oldest tells me he was a flat earther. Hell, I knew they were nuts-religious. But, I was seeking to shed light of my own. After hearing disparaging remarks about government, I made the statement that government actually designs, builds, and maintains roads more cost effectively than does private business, because I knew a spouse of the second son was the assistant executive of infrastructure for the North Texas Tollway Authority, and she would back up my claim. Which she did. Didn’t make a shit. Those folks, as a group, were hopeless. They weren’t about to acknowledge any benefit came from society acting on behalf of all.

[Biff Tannen 45715]

34 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

But it's actually MORE comforting to think there's some vast plan, some script that everyone is following, as opposed to the truth: they're all just making it up as they go along, and nobody knows exactly what comes next.

For me personally, it's the opposite.  I have no problem taking a step back and realizing we are just dumb monkeys figuring shit out by trial and error and have done so for all of our existence.  Makes me calm down because none of this shit really matters. 

I think that's why Seinfeld is so brilliant.  He literally just disconnects from human life and comments on how absurd this entire thing is.

[Biff Tannen 45715]

29 minutes ago, Goredho said:

The only thing that separates that from being a conspiracy is that it is unclear whether those people have engineered this context together, or are simply catching a random wave of chaotic opportunity as individuals. 

I believe it to be the latter.  These people are grifters and opportunists that only think short term (as most humans do).  Most of them are fairly dumb and probably sociopaths, but smart enough to understand how to manipulate other dumb people.  

[David Dennison 18946]

America has a long history with this stuff.

https://harpers.org/archive/1964/11/the-paranoid-style-in-american-politics/

[elfenix 34331]

One I heard yesterday: Michelle O is formerly Michael, and the Obamas had Joan Rivers offed for outing them

[Hugo Stiglitz 23367]

Perhaps our reality/shared existence is built on an insurmountable foundation of bullshit that fertilizes the ground for gullible people to buy into seductive conspiracy theories.

[That Guy 959]

2 hours ago, Goredho said:

We often half-joke about living in a simulation.  We aren't…

Stopped reading here. 

[UpperWestside 6187]

2 hours ago, Aqua Buddha said:

"Behind the Curve" is a documentary from a few years ago about the Flat Earthers.  It's not so much about that particular conspiracy theory but about them in general and how people get roped into them and can't leave.

Most excellent watch.

Will Kyrie Irving be in the follow-up to this? If so I’m in. He has the intellect of someone that’s been repeatedly concussed when he’s talking. It’s easy to see how he gets pulled into the conspiracy vortex.

[SydneyCarton 48155]

2 hours ago, Francisco 2.0 said:

 

He's not stupid, but he wants a convenient excuse(s) why everything in his life (and society as a whole) has gone to shit.  Hence, conspiracy theories.  It's a self-perpetuating cycle.

 

 

 

 

Yeah, that's stupid. 

2 hours ago, Red Five said:

I know someone who got really into conspiracy theories, seemingly overnight. Probably a few years ago. Now they see them in everything, even when there are perfectly logical explanations. "Nope, I think what really happened is......"

That would be the chemtrails. 

1 hour ago, Herpa Derpa said:

I think they're naturally born out of a mixture of things that have always been around. Boredom, feelings of emptiness/loneliness, lack of real control in daily life, etc.  But we've now added instant (dis)information to the mix and shit be starting to boil over due to an exponential increase in theories and believers.

All of this is true to a degree, particularly the last part. But the human brain has been conditioned since the beginning of time to try and create explations for that which it cannot explain on it's face. Welcome to the creation of the Greek Gods, who controlled the movement of the sun, the seasons, death, etc. Move on to every other God. To explain things we can't understand. It's not dinosaur bones, it's the bones of a Cyclops!! Most of our guiding concepts come from a fundamental need to understand things, becuase we can't handle not being able to know or understand things we cannot explain. The more advanced we get, sometimes we don't like the answers. Particualrly in this day and age of "My whole life should be perfect, why isn't it?" Well, it's the Government/Liberals/Globalists/Black Lives Matter people. 

At the end of the day, it's a mix of everything folks have posted in this thread, mixed together with a lack of accountability for one's own life situation, shaken together with some of the most sad and deplorable and selfish aspects of humanity. 

[smuggs 9353]

Shortly after the birth of our first daughter, my wife's friend and her husband from Colorado flew in to visit us and "see the baby". My wife and I were in zombie-mode, getting zero sleep while taking shifts with an infant all night. That didn't stop our guests from spending the whole weekend on our back deck boozing, smoking weed and rolling out of bed at 11am. At one point during the visit, homeboy spots a daddy long legs on our porch and promptly lets us know that daddy long legs are the most venomous spider on the planet but alas - their fangs are too small to inject that ultra deadly venom. I told him that was the dumbest old wives' tale in existence, not to mention the particular creature we were observing was not even a true spider. He put up a half-assed stoner argument but obviously couldn't produce any specific details to prove his point.

Anyway - the night before they were to fly home a breaking NBC News alert pops up on TV, and then President Obama tells us that Osama Bin Laden is dead. Before Obama even continued on with his next sentence, both Cheech and Chong immediately start in with "Lol, what a load of bullshit. He's a liar. No fucking way Bin Laden is dead." I couldn't believe the speed at which these two imbeciles heard that first statement, processed and then straight-faced determined it to be some kind of grand hoax. I asked them if they were serious, to be sure, and they said yes. So I said, "that's even dumber than the world's most venomous spider bullshit."

They wound up getting divorced a few years later so that was the last time I ever saw the husband. I've only seen her friend a handful of times since and she doesn't really talk to me beyond pleasantries. And as far as I know Osama Bin Laden hasn't been spotted grabbing Starbucks anywhere.

[Evil Bill Obrien 3293]

I love me a good conspiracy theory but mostly intrigued by ones that don't involve horrific intentions like one world government, globalist cabals, or just really sad and pathetic ones like the flat earthers. My favorite by far: Stevie Wonder isn't really blind
 

Theres an old Deadspin (yes I know) article with the evidence laid out that sadly most of the links and pictures are broken because Deadspin (and Twitter post Musk) haven't done a good job keeping things around, but can get the general gist here:

https://deadspin.com/stevie-wonder-is-not-blind-the-evidence-1641795715

Really wish I could find the last picture posted because it was dead ass Stevie Wonder holding a camera view finder up to his eyes to take a picture of the Michael Jackson wax sculpture. The ones of him following basketball plays courtside are pretty good too.

[Boss Hogg 808]

1 minute ago, Evil Bill Obrien said:

I love me a good conspiracy theory but mostly intrigued by ones that don't involve horrific intentions like one world government, globalist cabals, or just really sad and pathetic ones like the flat earthers. My favorite by far: Stevie Wonder isn't really blind
 

Theres an old Deadspin (yes I know) article with the evidence laid out that sadly most of the links and pictures are broken because Deadspin (and Twitter post Musk) haven't done a good job keeping things around, but can get the general gist here:

https://deadspin.com/stevie-wonder-is-not-blind-the-evidence-1641795715

Really wish I could find the last picture posted because it was dead ass Stevie Wonder holding a camera view finder up to his eyes to take a picture of the Michael Jackson wax sculpture. The ones of him following basketball plays courtside are pretty good too.

My favorite harmless conspiracy is that Michael Jordan’s first retirement was due to an investigation into his gambling. 

[TexasEd 8074]

Tell him the AI he is using to write the book is an Alien mind control technology. 

[Pescado_Rojo 19428]

1 hour ago, Goredho said:

Fair, so let me re-characterize.  He has shown himself capable of intelligence, rational thought and critical thinking in many other aspects of his life earlier in his life.  In the run up to 2016 his life started to go off the rails.

I've got an old friend like this. I've posted about him before. We grew up across the street from each other, and were closer than brothers up until around the middle of high school when we went our separate ways. He was one of those guys that would get interested in something and consume any and everything he could find on the subject and have a masters level of understanding of it in about a week. He was in honors everything, in the school G&T program, magnet middle and high school, all of that. He was also kind of socially awkward, as those types usually are. We lost touch after my grandparents passed and I moved away from Port Arthur. He found me on FB 6-7 years ago, and at first I thought he had been hacked by a Russian Troll account. He grew up to be literally the worst person imaginable. Everything is the fault of the evil democrats and their jew masters. He's a "pastor" at some strip mall Pentecostal  church in the DFW 'burbs, has like 5 kids, and spends most of the time at his blue collar job posting conspiracy theory memes about the Clintons, Covid, Epstein, globalists, gun pr0n, etc. He's so prolific I occasionally have to mute him for 30 days for my own sanity. The only reason I don't block him completely is his parents mean the world to me, and they're in their 80s and 90s now, and I'd for them to pass and not know it. 

Fast forward to a couple years ago, and I got paired up at work with an engineer with Autism. He was so frustrating I was ready to quit after a few weeks. I ended up learning a lot about Autism Spectrum Disorders in an effort to figure out how to work with the guy, and one day it hit me..."Holy shit, my childhood friend is autistic". Both guys are 100% sure of their intellectual superiority and neither one of them has a bullshit detector, so if they learn something through their own research it's almost impossible to convince them they're wrong. Add in the social awkwardness and hyperfocus and it's a ripe target for conspiracy shit. 

 

TL;DR, lots of undiagnosed Autism in conspiracy circles. 

 

[Evil Bill Obrien 3293]

13 minutes ago, Boss Hogg said:

My favorite harmless conspiracy is that Michael Jordan’s first retirement was due to an investigation into his gambling. 

Thats another really good one that really might just be the gods honest truth. Id believe that one 100%.

[BamaATL 16593]

4 minutes ago, Evil Bill Obrien said:

Thats another really good one that really might just be the gods honest truth. Id believe that one 100%.

Well, I do think his Dad got killed because he stiffed some bookies over bets.  

But I have always enjoyed the Stevie Wonder isn't blind one.  It's mostly harmless, and while untrue, it's funny.  

[Herpa Derpa 6129]

29 minutes ago, BamaATL said:

Well, I do think his Dad got killed because he stiffed some bookies over bets.  

But is this because you know of factual information to back such a claim or because it's easier to digest than the seemingly random chaos of the act? As someone who had a relative murdered in a similar circumstance for no reason other than he was there at that time, I can tell you that shit just happens for no rhyme or reason. Sometimes that shit happens to someone that makes the news because of their status, but there was still no grand conspiracy behind it. See Ennis Cosby. A random act of violence that we only know about because of the victim.

[Neonmoon 38130]

I dont know if the Jordan dad gambling one is entirely harmless, but whatever. 

My favorite is Flat Earthers. It’s so hilariously untrue that I would watch hours of TV about them. 

[BamaATL 16593]

3 minutes ago, Herpa Derpa said:

But is this because you know of factual information to back such a claim or because it's easier to digest than the seemingly random chaos of the act? As someone who had a relative murdered in a similar circumstance for no reason other than he was there at that time, I can tell you that shit just happens for no rhyme or reason. Sometimes that shit happens to someone that makes the news because of their status, but there was still no grand conspiracy behind it. See Ennis Cosby. A random act of violence that we only know about because of the victim.

No, I'm certainly not an expert on the situation.  I do know that bad things happen when people skip out on bets, especially back then when it was almost entirely illicit for the general public, and would have been specifically illicit for him given his profession.  That having been said, I have zero evidence to support such a thing, and it could entirely be coincidence.  I also have to concede that I am biased because I've long felt Jordan is complete dirtbag.  Even in the off chance this correct, I wouldn't chalk it up to being some grand conspiracy theory, more of just a run of the mill criminal conspiracy, with a tragic outcome.  

[Biff Tannen 45715]

2 minutes ago, Neonmoon said:

I dont know if the Jordan dad gambling one is entirely harmless, but whatever. 

My favorite is Flat Earthers. It’s so hilariously untrue that I would watch hours of TV about them. 

I met a flat earther in real life a few months back.  I was floored.  I asked him like three times if he was just fucking with me, but he was 100% serious.  Everyone else at the hotel bar immediately vacated and I did shortly after as well.

[BamaATL 16593]

2 minutes ago, Neonmoon said:

I dont know if the Jordan dad gambling one is entirely harmless, but whatever. 

My favorite is Flat Earthers. It’s so hilariously untrue that I would watch hours of TV about them. 

Discovery Plus had a docu series about homemade rocketry, and it was one "Mad" Mike Hughes, the guy that raised money by claiming to be a flat earther to fund his rocket.  It's four episodes or so, and pretty much like watching a train wreck.  Of course the final episode includes his final flight.  It doesn't end well.  

[Jiggy-Z 3435]

The Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories always stuck with me because, individually, they were more plausible then what actually happened...allegedly.

[Goredho 17416]

14 minutes ago, Biff Tannen said:

I met a flat earther in real life a few months back.  I was floored.  I asked him like three times if he was just fucking with me, but he was 100% serious.  Everyone else at the hotel bar immediately vacated and I did shortly after as well.

Maybe he's not a flat-earther, maybe he just has figured out the secret to not having to engage with overly social strangers at the hotel bar.

Gonna try it out next time I'm on a flight sitting next to an old lady that wants to gab on and on about her grandson.

"That's nice.  How old is your grandson?  Do you have a picture?  Oh my, yes.  He looks delicious.  Oh, sorry, I couldn't help but notice.  I'm a member of the liberal child-cannibalism cabal."

[Evil Bill Obrien 3293]

5 minutes ago, Jiggy-Z said:

The Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories always stuck with me because, individually, they were more plausible then what actually happened...allegedly.

Was probably the Mob and they got Jimmy Hoffa too.

[BamaATL 16593]

22 minutes ago, Goredho said:

Maybe he's not a flat-earther, maybe he just has figured out the secret to not having to engage with overly social strangers at the hotel bar.

Gonna try it out next time I'm on a flight sitting next to an old lady that wants to gab on and on about her grandson.

"That's nice.  How old is your grandson?  Do you have a picture?  Oh my, yes.  He looks delicious.  Oh, sorry, I couldn't help but notice.  I'm a member of the liberal child-cannibalism cabal."

 

[Boss Hogg 808]

1 hour ago, BamaATL said:

No, I'm certainly not an expert on the situation.  I do know that bad things happen when people skip out on bets, especially back then when it was almost entirely illicit for the general public, and would have been specifically illicit for him given his profession.  That having been said, I have zero evidence to support such a thing, and it could entirely be coincidence.  I also have to concede that I am biased because I've long felt Jordan is complete dirtbag.  Even in the off chance this correct, I wouldn't chalk it up to being some grand conspiracy theory, more of just a run of the mill criminal conspiracy, with a tragic outcome.  

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/131997-mjs-1st-retirement-was-it-a-secret-suspension

 

 

[956 Worldwide 34748]

@Goredho, you’re overthinking this one a bit:

Quote

There is a conspiracy between powerful conservative politicians, the Republican party, Donald Trump, Vladmir Putin, Elon Musk, Fox, OAN and fringe militia groups to motivate people like my ex-roommate to disrupt the current function of our country and ultimately completely remake it into something more amenable to their ends.

These actors, at least all of them together, are not capable of coordinating their own actions and strategies. As you drill down, you can find collusion and cooperation, especially between actors with clear overlapping loyalties like Trump/GOP/Fox/OAN. But the reality is more that these actors have overlapping interests and aims and that calls for using similar tools and even amplifying each others’ bullshit.

Putin and the Kremlin have an influence strategy for America, and it has many of the same aims for the GOP’s influence strategy: undermine public trust, encourage sympathy for authoritarianism, attack the current Democratic organization, turn up the dial on cultural conflagrations.  The GOP wants to do this because that will help them come into power. The Kremlin wants to weaken the United States. They will deploy similar tools and messages and may at times even directly or indirectly support the others’ efforts. But they are not conspiring together, the Kremlin doesn’t even need to. 
 

The grander the conspiracy, the less likely it is to be true or even possible. A huge, society influencing coordinated campaign between actors this diverse isn’t possible or even desirable for them. 

[Bullneck 19205]

3 hours ago, BamaATL said:

Discovery Plus had a docu series about homemade rocketry, and it was one "Mad" Mike Hughes, the guy that raised money by claiming to be a flat earther to fund his rocket.  It's four episodes or so, and pretty much like watching a train wreck.  Of course the final episode includes his final flight.  It doesn't end well.  

 

[Goredho 17416]

1 hour ago, 956 Worldwide said:

@Goredho, you’re overthinking this one a bit.

Well, I did say I was fucking high 😜

[Baboontyme 2821]

I look at 9/11 as the turning point in the conspiracy theory world. 

I do not think there is a grand conspiracy in these conspiracy theories. The 9/11 truther movement really started on the Internet with underground nerds and took off from there. As others have said, I think the crooks among us are just using the opportunity to enrich and empower their selves and their agendas. I do appreciate a good high deep thought, tho.

And the best conspiracy theory by far is Stevie Wonder can see. 

[Neonmoon 38130]

11 minutes ago, Baboontyme said:

I look at 9/11 as the turning point in the conspiracy theory world. 

I do not think there is a grand conspiracy in these conspiracy theories. The 9/11 truther movement really started on the Internet with underground nerds and took off from there. As others have said, I think the crooks among us are just using the opportunity to enrich and empower their selves and their agendas. I do appreciate a good high deep thought, tho.

And the best conspiracy theory by far is Stevie Wonder can see. 

 

JFK was the turning point. That’s when the loonies went mainstream. All the good conspiracy theories came about in 1970s. Moon Landing, Roswell, JFK

[Okie State 3846]

I dont know if the Jordan dad gambling one is entirely harmless, but whatever. 
My favorite is Flat Earthers. It’s so hilariously untrue that I would watch hours of TV about them. 

It's hard to imagine how dumb you'd have to be to believe the Earth was flat. Incomprehensible.

[Beau Vine 54395]

5 hours ago, Jiggy-Z said:

The Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories always stuck with me because, individually, they were more plausible then what actually happened...allegedly.

Yeah, the "official" story is ridiculously implausible.   I mean, what are the odds that he'd get shot right in front of the Kennedy Memorial?

[Born to Run 6569]

It's hard to imagine how dumb you'd have to be to believe the Earth was flat. Incomprehensible.

I drank beer at Shortys in Port A with a flat earther. Played bass in some band and lived in Palacious, probably with his mother. I leaned into for the lulz and asked questions.
He bragged about who he played with, BB King etc, offered CIA contacts in Jaco CR should I need Anything. Then got into Alex Jones shit, then flat earth stuff.
My Favorite thing, was he suggested I take a level on my next plane ride, so i could see that the bubble on the level never moves. Dramatic pause/ "The Earth is flat". The logical disconnect was fascinating. Even if the Earth is flat you can see planes climbing and going up at an angle. It was the smoothest brain argument I've ever heard. And he couldn't wait to share his own research with anyone.

That's the core of it. Low IQ losers wanting to have something special about themselves, even if it's insane bullshit.

[TwiceHorn 31533]

One of the things that drives this is education and understanding.

A person can be quite smart, but if they don't have fundamental knowledge of how civics, society, and the rest of the world works, they're vulnerable.   

We, as a society, lack first-hand knowledge of just about everything that goes on outside of our personal perception.  We rely on reports, often journalism, to know what's going on and to explain it, if it needs explaining or is susceptible to explanation.

If we have a firm grasp on how various aspects of government, or society, or the world at large, actually work, we can "dead reckon" that what is reported to us is, for the most part, correct.

If we do not have that firm grasp, or it has been undermined, then we become susceptible to believing that what is reported is not correct, at least for the most part, and some bullshit that some asshole on xtwatter or youtube came up with is the actual truth.  And you confuse that with critical thinking and start thinking you and the asshole are actually smart.

Edited October 13, 2023 by TwiceHorn

[Dnaguy 12054]

4 hours ago, Bullneck said:

 

The earth was indeed flat for him in the end. 

RIP. Rest in planar.