Re: A Better Way to Think About Conspiracy Theories

On Sunday, March 7, 2021 at 6:56:46 PM UTC-5, ajohnstone wrote:
> Just for further background reading, this interview 
> 
> PART 1 https://www.salon.com/2021/02/20/conspiracy-theories--unmasked-from-winston-churchill-to-qanon-in-a-few-easy-steps/ 
> PART 2 https://www.salon.com/2021/03/06/the-dark-truth-about-conspiracy-theories-theyre-everywhere-can-they-be-stopped/ 
> 
> Just on a purely personal note, i became a skeptic when as a schoolboy i 
> fell hook, line and sinker for Von Daniken's 'Chariot of the Gods', to 
> later discover his blatant distortions of facts and events and concluded 
> that they were not blunders but purposeful deceit. 
> 
> Selective reading of only 'friendly' and 'trusted' sources reinforces a 
> closed mind. 
> 
> As witnessed, my politics are far apart from those here (even your 
> resident 'dissident', Anthony Marsh, is a right-winger compared to me) yet 
> we can find common cause in understanding one particular incident, the 
> murder of JFK by LHO. It is one of basic analysis on how to accept and how 
> to reject particular evidence. 
> 
> Do i deny conspiracies exist? No, not at all. But they are hard to 
> distinguish from the 'normal' practice of media manipulation and political 
> spin.

One thing that I find particularly suspicious about our left wing media is 
they all seem to be singing from the same hymnal. We can expect that they 
would all cover the same stories but it is quite common for them to have 
the same talking points and even use the same buzzwords. Not only are the 
talking heads using the same words, but so are the left wing politicians 
who are their guests. It's as if somebody at a central command post is 
sending out daily memos telling people what talking points to drive home 
and what words to do it with. It happens far too often to think it is just 
coincidence. It is clearly a coordinated effort between the media and the 
left wing politicians. I suspect it is the DNC which is pulling the 
strings but since I'm not on the mailing list, I can't be sure who is 
calling the shots.