Anti Conspiracy Theories #6 wakey, wakey!

[daydreamer95]

It wasn’t a thrown grenade, I simply shared an article, as have many others posters without commentary.

No I have not put you on ignore and welcome future discussions. People are entitled to have their opinions, choice, views etc. Not sure what you mean, have I missed a post perhaps?

I put a post it’s a secret recording of FDA economist joking about blow darting hesitant minorities

Crazy how he feels comfortable joking like that in a public space to a stranger but I used it to ask you should people be free to choose or should it be mandatory and if necessary by force ?

*Edit including video here as well for context

 

[OwlAtTheMoon]

This is an interesting, sympathetically-written, short article, especially the second half, with tips on what to resist doing, and what to try, when faced with loved ones who are into CT beliefs. Its concluding sentence is lovely:

How to Love People Who Love Conspiracies

Fighting over the facts is unlikely to convince anyone.

www.theatlantic.com

 

[daydreamer95]

This is an interesting, sympathetically-written, short article, especially the second half, with tips on what to resist doing, and what to try, when faced with loved ones who are into CT beliefs. Its concluding sentence is lovely:

How to Love People Who Love Conspiracies

Fighting over the facts is unlikely to convince anyone.

www.theatlantic.com

That is a good article loved the ending too

However it still has this negative connotation that not accepting widely accepted narratives is having a paranoid state of being

conspiracy theory is the belief that powerful people have conspired to achieve a particular circumstance or event, and have done so in a covert way. Those who believe these theories often have what psychologists call a “conspiracy mentality,” or a general tendency to suspect that powerful people are acting in hidden ways

I would say it was healthy to have a distrust of people in power as a person that has an appreciation for history

 

[OwlAtTheMoon]

That is a good article loved the ending too

However it still has this negative connotation that not accepting widely accepted narratives is having a paranoid state of being

conspiracy theory is the belief that powerful people have conspired to achieve a particular circumstance or event, and have done so in a covert way. Those who believe these theories often have what psychologists call a “conspiracy mentality,” or a general tendency to suspect that powerful people are acting in hidden ways

I would say it was healthy to have a distrust of people in power as a person that has an appreciation for history

Like Ensay mentioned a few posts back, this thread came about for those wanting to discuss why CTs (including the more outlandish aspects of anti-vaccine beliefs) were/could be harmful, but also to share articles like this to try to understand the mindset that drives soemone to more extreme CT adherence.
In everyday life I'd say yes it's definitely healthy to be interested in, and to question, those in power. I can't think of anyone among my family/friends/colleagues right now who likes or trusts our current government one bit. But that's different to what the author describes here as a conspiracy mentality, which can lead to ideas about powerful people being taken to extremes, so you end up with QAnon pizzagate, 5g, Bill Gates population control, 9/11, covid vaccines as deliberate poison, etc etc.

 

[monga]

That is a good article loved the ending too

However it still has this negative connotation that not accepting widely accepted narratives is having a paranoid state of being

conspiracy theory is the belief that powerful people have conspired to achieve a particular circumstance or event, and have done so in a covert way. Those who believe these theories often have what psychologists call a “conspiracy mentality,” or a general tendency to suspect that powerful people are acting in hidden ways

I would say it was healthy to have a distrust of people in power as a person that has an appreciation for history

Look familiar

 

[OwlAtTheMoon]

Look familiar

Nothing 'hidden' or 'covert' about the egregious way the current government are operating to dismantle our social and health services. We all know this.

 

[Dollenganger]

Scientific studies have shown that people who believe in conspiracy theories are likely to be on a personality disorder spectrum of some kind.

The ones that I know are into magical thinking and have grandiose self belief and a superiority complex . Basically, if they feel that something is right then it must be. Which removes any possibility that they will use evidence based decision making. Which is a dangerous slippery slope.

Quite often, these people make themselves dislikable with their attitudes that they have special powers, superior immune systems, and an ability to discern information that the rest of us can’t.

Although, what they tend to do is reject sources of information that don’t concur with what they want to believe and promote those that do, however questionable,

 

[Deeznutslol]

Look familiar

How is this a conspiracy theory? This is just tory government policy. They’ve been slowly chipping away at peoples rights for years now.

 

[mcfeez]

That is a good article loved the ending too

However it still has this negative connotation that not accepting widely accepted narratives is having a paranoid state of being

conspiracy theory is the belief that powerful people have conspired to achieve a particular circumstance or event, and have done so in a covert way. Those who believe these theories often have what psychologists call a “conspiracy mentality,” or a general tendency to suspect that powerful people are acting in hidden ways

I would say it was healthy to have a distrust of people in power as a person that has an appreciation for history

I am not a CT and have an inherent distrust of most if not all political institutions.

The key to being properly informed in terms of media and information consumption is to read and consume a range of content as there is literally no such thing as an unbiased source. CTs on twitter etc from what I've seen do not for the most part do this - only trusting specific sources of information who back their ideas and thinking and entirely rejecting others.

The distrust of leaders or popular figures is similar in that it seems to be reserved mostly for specific groups or people and less so for figures that have been deemed 'trustworthy.' Everyone has an agenda, even those who are 'awake'.

 

[daydreamer95]

If you are a person that wants to relate to people with a CT interest my best suggestion is to not attribute labels, use shame or ridicule

The point I tried to emphasise especially with the joke about blow darting minority groups that nobody wants to touch is why there is hesitancy in the first place in particular groups such as experiments with black men and STDs, in developing countries black women were being given monetary incentives to be sterilised for population control this is not conspiracy it’s targeting specific groups in a negative way

It’s not good to go to any extreme and I agree it’s difficult to get information that is accurate and not slanted by an agenda

These crazy cults exist because there are unfortunately lots of people who are easily suggestible and extremely vulnerable so it’s important if you care about somebody in real life to not alienate yourself from them over a difference in thought because it will only push them further away from you

 

[Ensay]

I am not a CT and have an inherent distrust of most if not all political institutions.

The key to being properly informed in terms of media and information consumption is to read and consume a range of content as there is literally no such thing as an unbiased source. CTs on twitter etc from what I've seen do not for the most part do this - only trusting specific sources of information who back their ideas and thinking and entirely rejecting others.

The distrust of leaders or popular figures is similar in that it seems to be reserved mostly for specific groups or people and less so for figures that have been deemed 'trustworthy.' Everyone has an agenda, even those who are 'awake'.

Yes, it's all about questioning the source, but not just that, also really looking at what's being said when others use selective quotes.

I find statistics are so open to abuse. Two different articles can use the same stats as their source and lead with different headlines. Common things I look for are: What's the sample size? If it's small you run the risk of incorrectly applying findings to a wider population. What are the figures? Are they amounts, proportions, percentages, etc? I've seen some people incorrectly say a problem is worse in a country based solely on population numbers - when clearly you would expect the numbers to be higher in a country with more people. Also, who's publishing the stats?

And always go back to the original source. Don't just read someone else's interpretation of stats in a quick tweet. If they don't provide the source, ask them for it, and then study it. If you still agree with the tweet then by all means share it, but don't just hit retweet without doing at least a bit of analysis, as you could run the risk of spreading misinformation.

 

[monga]

How is this a conspiracy theory? This is just tory government policy. They’ve been slowly chipping away at peoples rights for years now.

I never said it was a CT .I’m pointing out how important it is to question things and not just follow any old narrative the government throws at us or hell knows where we’d end up.

 

[Deeznutslol]

I never said it was a CT .I’m pointing out how important it is to question things and not just follow any old narrative the government throws at us or hell knows where we’d end up.

But… who is saying that we shouldn’t question the government? I’m not really sure what you were getting at with that post to be honest.

 

[monga]

But… who is saying that we shouldn’t question the government? I’m not really sure what you were getting at with that post to be honest.

I was quoting this person

 

[Doctor_Wibble]

And always go back to the original source

This is the number one rule of checking fact checkers - if they don't provide a source for their claim or counter-claim they don't get linked.

They aren't my first port of call and by the time I get to one I've usually already seen a number of independent sources so have at least have a half formed opinion to agree or disagree with.
There's been a couple that I've agreed with but because they had too much of a political slant - which half the time that just creates opportunity for extra argument - I've left unlinked because mostly I just can't be arsed with party politics.

 

[Dollenganger]

If you are a person that wants to relate to people with a CT interest my best suggestion is to not attribute labels, use shame or ridicule

The point I tried to emphasise especially with the joke about blow darting minority groups that nobody wants to touch is why there is hesitancy in the first place in particular groups such as experiments with black men and STDs, in developing countries black women were being given monetary incentives to be sterilised for population control this is not conspiracy it’s targeting specific groups in a negative way

It’s not good to go to any extreme and I agree it’s difficult to get information that is accurate and not slanted by an agenda

These crazy cults exist because there are unfortunately lots of people who are easily suggestible and extremely vulnerable so it’s important if you care about somebody in real life to not alienate yourself from them over a difference in thought because it will only push them further away from you

Unfortunately, day to day life with someone displaying cult-like behaviour, even if you did care about them is so difficult that in some cases, removing that person from your life is all you can do to stay sane.

Unfortunately, I speak from experience.

The day-to-day logistics of spending time with someone who talks about chemtrails every time you go outside, aligns themselves with fascists and anarchists and is so paranoid that they believe they are being gang-stalked by the government is a nightmare. I don’t want to hear about this because it impacts my mental health, too.

Furthermore, it’s not my responsibility to make people feel accepted if they have these beliefs. If they have them, it’s their prerogative. But they can’t force me and others to respect their position.

 

[Prefrontalmedialcortex]

I put a post it’s a secret recording of FDA economist joking about blow darting hesitant minorities

Crazy how he feels comfortable joking like that in a public space to a stranger but I used it to ask you should people be free to choose or should it be mandatory and if necessary by force ?

*Edit including video here as well for context

Sorry I must have missed that post. As I said in my previous post, people are entitled to have their own opinion, choices they make, views etc.

I take issue with double standards which happen time and time again and when conversations lead to insults/personal attacks.

 

[monga]

Nothing 'hidden' or 'covert' about the egregious way the current government are operating to dismantle our social and health services. We all know this.

It’s not about the health service lol,everyone still followed their narrative even when they knew it was only a public ploy ,yet it was those members of the public that chose to make their own decisions were labelled the baddies

 

[struggs123]

It’s not about the health service lol,everyone still followed their narrative even when they knew it was only a public ploy ,yet it was those members of the public that chose to make their own decisions were labelled the baddies View attachment 1862965View attachment 1862966

I'm not really sure what this article is supposed to suggest, Boris through his history of voting on issues in Parliament, through his actions, his personal life amongst other things is largely a selfish and bumbling idiot. As prime minister part of the job is to impose guidance which benefits the population even if he as an individual thinks is stupid or whatever. If you believe Boris' presumed views on mask wearing are more likely to be accurate than scientists then...that's interesting. He also was hospitalised with covid so I'm not sure his actions towards it should be read into much.

Personally I have never berated, commented or judged people who didn't wear masks, but I hate the insinuation that anyone who did was an idiot or a sheep. When we removed mandatory mask wearing in hospital transmission rose rapidly, they've been researched for years and are worn as standard when people have respiratory illnesses in many countries; don't wear one if you don't want but berating those who are happy to gets boring. It's become for many just a way to fight the system, I agree it got out of hand with people judging and commenting on those who didn't wear a mask- but how about both sides just respect the actions of others.

 

[monga]

I'm not really sure what this article is supposed to suggest, Boris through his history of voting on issues in Parliament, through his actions, his personal life amongst other things is largely a selfish and bumbling idiot. As prime minister part of the job is to impose guidance which benefits the population even if he as an individual thinks is stupid or whatever. If you believe Boris' presumed views on mask wearing are more likely to be accurate than scientists then...that's interesting. He also was hospitalised with covid so I'm not sure his actions towards it should be read into much.

Personally I have never berated, commented or judged people who didn't wear masks, but I hate the insinuation that anyone who did was an idiot or a sheep. When we removed mandatory mask wearing in hospital transmission rose rapidly, they've been researched for years and are worn as standard when people have respiratory illnesses in many countries; don't wear one if you don't want but berating those who are happy to gets boring. It's become for many just a way to fight the system, I agree it got out of hand with people judging and commenting on those who didn't wear a mask- but how about both sides just respect the actions of others.

Didn’t the scientists take their pay and drive off into the sunset but we’re still left with the legacy that straying from the narrative is wrong.
Healthcare workers in full PPE are the most infected group in the world yet you think a cloth mask is going to stop spread.