# Conspiracy Theories **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [July 17, 2009, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352 "2009-07-17T16:30:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/141 "2009-07-21T10:58:21Z")
> [@FinnAgain](#): > > No. People have shown, and pointed out, plenty of actual conspiracies. The OSP is one I just mentioned, IIRC. > Bonus points, though, for working in the name of the [Kook Bible](http://www.captaincanadacrusades.ca/articles/none-dare-call-it-conspiracy%5B1%5D.pdf). Can you find me a PDF of John Stormer’s _None Dare Call It Treason_? And actually, both NDCIT and NDCIC are both rather tame as far as CTs go. I collect them both whenever I see them at used-book sales to give to friends (along with copies of _Atlas Shrugged_.) ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 11:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/142 "2009-07-21T11:12:12Z")
Hmmm… not seen that before. This bit somewhat resembles my thoughts. > [@](#): > > Everyone knows that Adolph Hitler existed. No one disputes that. The terror and > destruction that this madman inflicted upon the world are universally recognized. Hitler > came from a poor family which had absolutely no social position. He was a high school > drop-out and nobody ever accused him of being cultured. Yet this man tried to conquer > the world. During his early career he sat in a cold garret and poured onto paper his > ambitions to rule the world. We know that. > > Similarly, we know that a man named Vladimir Ilich Lenin also existed. Like Hitler, > Lenin did not spring from a family of social lions. The son of a petty bureaucrat, Lenin, > who spent most of his adult life in poverty, has been responsible for the deaths of tens of > millions of your fellow human beings and the enslavement of nearly a billion more. Like > Hitler, Lenin sat up nights in a dank garret scheming how he could conquer the world. > We know that too. > > Is it not theoretically possible that a billionaire could be sitting, not in a garret, but in a > penthouse, in Manhattan, London or Paris and dream the same dream as Lenin and > Hitler? You will have to admit it is theoretically possible. Julius Caesar, a wealthy > aristocrat, did. And such a man might form an alliance or association with other likeminded > men, might he not? Caesar did. These men would be superbly educated, > command immense social prestige and be able to pool astonishing amounts of money to > carry out their purposes. These are advantages that Hitler and Lenin did not have. > It is difficult for the average individual to fathom such perverted lust for power. The > typical person, of whatever nationality, wants only to enjoy success in his job, to be able > to afford a reasonably high standard of living complete with leisure and travel. He wants > to provide for his family in sickness and in health and to give his children a sound > education. His ambition stops there. He has no desire to exercise power over others, to > conquer other lands or peoples, to be a king. He wants to mind his own business and > enjoy life. Since he has no lust for power, it is difficult for him to imagine that there are > others who have … others who march to a far different drum. But we must realize that > there have been Hitlers and Lenins and Stalins and Caesars and Alexander the Greats > throughout history. Why should we assume there are no such men today with perverted > lusts for power? And if these men happen to be billionaires is it not possible that they > would use men like Hitler and Lenin as pawns to seize power for themselves? ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/143 "2009-07-21T16:19:55Z")
Wait. What? No, I don’t think it’s possible, Hitlers, Stalins and Alexanders occur exceedingly rarely. So you have to find them, first. Then make them indebited to you. Then take control of them. Then keep control of them. Exactly how the hell you’d control Hitler or Stalin is left as an exercise for the student. And you have to do all this while remaining completely invisible to the rest of the world. When you could just take control to start with, because you have all that money. ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/144 "2009-07-21T20:14:28Z")
But that would take all the fun out of it! Thought this bit was interesting. > [@](#): > > When the Federal Reserve System was foisted on an unsuspecting American public, there > were absolute guarantees that there would be no more boom and bust economic cycles. > The men who, behind the scenes, were pushing the central bank concept for the > international bankers faithfully promised that from then on there would be only steady > growth and perpetual prosperity. However, Congressman Charies A. Lindberg Sr. > accurately proclaimed: > “From now on depressions will be scientifically created.” ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/145 "2009-07-21T21:46:22Z")
_“Is it not theoretically possible that a billionaire could be sitting, not in a garret, but in a penthouse, in Manhattan, London or Paris and dream the same dream as Lenin and Hitler? You will have to admit it is theoretically possible.”_ There you go - everything they’ve been saying about the Illuminati must be treated with respect. It could happen! _"When the Federal Reserve System was foisted on an unsuspecting American public, there were absolute guarantees that there would be no more boom and bust economic cycles. The men who, behind the scenes, were pushing the central bank concept for the international bankers faithfully promised that from then on there would be only steady growth and perpetual prosperity. "_ I smell the strawiest of straw men here. I’d love to see where the Federal Reserve System was claimed to guarantee perpetual prosperity. Dunno why the author(s) of this phlegm took the trouble to write out “international bankers”. It’s so much simpler just to say “Jews”. Yes, **ivan** , it’s veerry interesting. 🙂 In honor of some new conspiracy glurge making the rounds of the antivaxers (the proposed Obama health plan will send teams of uniformed government stooges to your house to vaccinate your kids), here’s [a groovy little webpage](http://www.flickr.com/photos/illuminating9_11/3489921251/) dealing with the swine flu plot (the flu conspiracyphiles have been relatively dormant of late\*, but wait until the vaccine becomes a threat to our precious bodily fluids). I especially love the scary illustration. In fact, I absolutely have to have it on a T-shirt. _The swine flu was created in a government lab! It’s a plot to convince us to vaccinate! Then we’ll all be mind-controlled and sterilized!! It could be true!! Remember Tuskeegee!!!_\* \*\*Not the Airmen. ---
**Author:** ![FinnAgain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finnagain/32/12500_2.png) [@FinnAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinnAgain)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/146 "2009-07-22T00:33:10Z")
Yeah, and what’s with all this talk of “space weasels” bringing down the WTC? I keep saying, sure, lots of people talk about “space weasels” but we really prefer the non-pejorative, Space Jews. … what? ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/147 "2009-07-22T06:43:28Z")
> [@FinnAgain](#): > > 1. If you believe there were any personal attacks you should report the post. I haven’t’ personally insulted you. > 2. I have addressed your point, several times, directly. > 3. You still do not understand, and the fact that you call the accepted usage “corruption” underscores that. If a group of native language speakers use a phrase a certain way it’s not a corruption, it’s what it means. I wasn’t insulted. I meant claiming I don’t understand because I don’t agree with you. But I’ll try to remember number 3 when Y’awnto becomes proper English. 😉 > [@](#): > > Yet again, those who were claiming it was bullshit would call it a CT, those who were claiming it wasn’t would dispute that. Whether or not it really was would be an objective matter regardless of the label. And yes, some people might have called it bullshit even when it wasn’t. You’ve yet to explain how that’s at all different from anything else that’s called bullshit. You are using a slang term and trying to call it the ‘proper’ usage. It’s NOT the proper usage, it’s common colloquialized slang. The way I am using it is the ‘proper’ usage, by recognizing that conspiracy and theory are words with accepted meanings. > [@](#): > > 1. Yes, it does. That’s what makes something have meaning in a language. > 2. Ironically enough, if the language wasn’t “debased”, you’d simply have said hoi polloi since “the” is redundant grammatically but correct in common English usage. Nawmean, Nawmsayin? > [@](#): > > This is silly. > You’ve called my argument bullshit. > Should I really need to point out that electrons are not bovine fecal matter? > Should I get upset that you are “debasing” the language? > Should I really need to point out that calling bullshit on anything, from supposed government action to message board arguments is completely kosher and not a problem? Should I really need to point out that bullshit has a much longer and more entrenched usage and is still considered, ‘slang’? > [@](#): > > Do I need to point out that I wasn’t really saying that my message board argument was created in accordance with hallaichic law? 😉 If you like. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/148 "2009-07-22T07:04:30Z")
I have a Conspiracy Theory where a bunch of executives from Goldman Sachs got jobs in the Department of the Treasury and used their position to siphon billions of tax dollars toward shoring up their position and that of their buddies over at JP Morgan. Luckily it can’t be true because it’s a conspiracy theory! EDIT: Did I say Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan? Sorry I meant Jews and the Illuminati right **Jackmanny**? ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/149 "2009-07-22T10:47:06Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > You are using a slang term and trying to call it the ‘proper’ usage. It’s NOT the proper usage, it’s common colloquialized slang. The way I am using it is the ‘proper’ usage, by recognizing that conspiracy and theory are words with accepted meanings. So? Putting the two together into a phrase has an accepted meaning that differs slightly from the meaninings of the constituent members of the phrase. That is hardly a new revelation. “White” and “trash” have separate meanings that, when brought together in the phrase “white trash” has a meaning slightly different than that of the two words used independently. Your claim for “corruption” is ludicrous. As is your (deliberate?) confusion between regional pronunciations of recognizable phrases and neologisms. If you asked anyone who actually said “Nawmsayin” (if such a person besides a single advertising character actually even says that), to write it out, they would write the words “know what I’m saying.” I eagerly await your public condemnation of the teaching of Shakespeare in schools, based on the wide use of neologisms attributed to him in his works, that sly corrupter of language. (Interestingly, while you are wasting all the bandwidth to attack FinnAgain in this silly hijack over Conspiracy Theory, I notice that you ferequently use the word “disrespect” as a verb–a coinage that is several years newer than the meaning of the phrase Conspiracy Theory to indicate an irrational attachment to a belief in an inprobable conspiracy. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/150 "2009-07-22T22:11:42Z")
> [@tomndebb](#): > > So? Putting the two together into a phrase has an accepted meaning that differs slightly from the meaninings of the constituent members of the phrase. That is hardly a new revelation. “White” and “trash” have separate meanings that, when brought together in the phrase “white trash” has a meaning slightly different than that of the two words used independently. Your claim for “corruption” is ludicrous. Except that absent the colloquialism of white trash there is no grammatically correct meaning other than if I put some of my trash in white bags and some in black bags and I said, “Can you take out the white trash, the black is recycling.”, someone would understand perfectly. Otherwise you are just reiterating **FinnAgain** ’s 20 posts. > [@](#): > > As is your (deliberate?) confusion between regional pronunciations of recognizable phrases and neologisms. If you asked anyone who actually said “Nawmsayin” (if such a person besides a single advertising character actually even says that), to write it out, they would write the words “know what I’m saying.” > I eagerly await your public condemnation of the teaching of Shakespeare in schools, based on the wide use of neologisms attributed to him in his works, that sly corrupter of language. No one has answered the question of what we should call a theory of a conspiracy that may very well be true. > [@](#): > > (Interestingly, while you are wasting all the bandwidth to attack FinnAgain in this silly hijack over Conspiracy Theory, I notice that you ferequently use the word “disrespect” as a verb–a coinage that is several years newer than the meaning of the phrase Conspiracy Theory to indicate an irrational attachment to a belief in an inprobable conspiracy. My use of the word disrespect doesn’t supersede and supplant other meanings. Apparently you don’t really know the meaning of the word, ‘hijack’, though. You’d think as a mod you would, Peter Principle I suppose. ;p ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/151 "2009-07-23T01:07:01Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > Except that absent the colloquialism of white trash there is no grammatically correct meaning other than if I put some of my trash in white bags and some in black bags and I said, “Can you take out the white trash, the black is recycling.”, someone would understand perfectly. Otherwise you are just reiterating **FinnAgain** ’s 20 posts. You appear to be unaware of the actual two separate meanings of “white trash” that are current as well as insufficiently imaginative to come up with any others. You should be thanking **FinnAgain** or his patience in attempting to show you your error for that many posts. However, I suspect that we all know that your position is based on a contrarian stance rather than principle. That does not, however, make your point. The phrase “conspiracy theory” has an established meaning as well as a separate meaning based on its constituents parts. This is fairly common in English and is not the result of “corruption” or any other terrible term you would like to employ. > [@mswas](#): > > No one has answered the question of what we should call a theory of a conspiracy that may very well be true. Hypothetical conspiracy. Proposed conspiracy. Suggested conspiracy. No one has bothered to answer that question because the answer(s) were so obvious it appeared that you were simply being contrary. > [@mswas](#): > > My use of the word disrespect doesn’t supersede and supplant other meanings. So what? It is a neologism for which there were other forms of expression in existence. Pretending that a phrase that has provided a fairly specific meaning, (well within the range of normal ambiguity), is some new “corruption” on this message board is just slly when it has been employed in American English with a well understood meaning for thirty years, or more. > [@mswas](#): > > Apparently you don’t really know the meaning of the word, ‘hijack’, though. You’d think as a mod you would, Peter Principle I suppose. ;p I know very well what a hijack is and have allowed your semantic whining to proceed this long only because the thread, itself, had pretty much run out of momentum. You might also want to recall that personal insults are not permitted in this Forum and you have now launched two against me while falsely accusing **FinnAgain** of launching one against you. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/152 "2009-07-23T04:53:16Z")
> [@tomndebb](#): > > You appear to be unaware of the actual two separate meanings of “white trash” that are current as well as insufficiently imaginative to come up with any others. > You should be thanking **FinnAgain** or his patience in attempting to show you your error for that many posts. However, I suspect that we all know that your position is based on a contrarian stance rather than principle. Yes your magnificent brilliance, I am unaware of the meaning of the term ‘white trash’. Is that really the level of argument you’ve got? I mean really? > [@](#): > > That does not, however, make your point. The phrase “conspiracy theory” has an established meaning as well as a separate meaning based on its constituents parts. This is fairly common in English and is not the result of “corruption” or any other terrible term you would like to employ. Yes, but it’s not me who doesn’t understand the counter argument, it is you and **FinnAgain** who do not understand MY argument. I understand yours perfectly, in fact I knew the argument before he made it and you chimed in with your silliness about White Trash. The usage for it that he is espousing and you are tagging along with is ‘slang’, like EVERY OTHER EXAMPLE the two of you have come up with from bullshit to white trash. > [@](#): > > Hypothetical conspiracy. Proposed conspiracy. Suggested conspiracy. No one has bothered to answer that question because the answer(s) were so obvious it appeared that you were simply being contrary. Oh I see, so you’re definitely \_ \_ \_ \_ \_ \_ \_ \_ \_ and are saying that other people probably are too. Let me ask you this. Why do you do this time and again? You argue with me for several posts and then tell me you didn’t address the core of my argument because you thought I was trolling. > [@](#): > > So what? It is a neologism for which there were other forms of expression in existence. Pretending that a phrase that has provided a fairly specific meaning, (well within the range of normal ambiguity), is some new “corruption” on this message board is just slly when it has been employed in American English with a well understood meaning for thirty years, or more. Yes, it’s a neologism, the problem isn’t that it’s a neologism, as pointed out by your hopelessly stupid example of White Trash, because it’s not the usage that bothers me, it’s the argument for proper exclusivity. I never said anything about the corruption being unique to this message board. That’s another one of your common straw men. > [@](#): > > I know very well what a hijack is and have allowed your semantic whining to proceed this long only because the thread, itself, had pretty much run out of momentum. Oh yes, I am allowed to post based on your whims. I know, it’s all about you. > [@](#): > > You might also want to recall that personal insults are not permitted in this Forum and you have now launched two against me while falsely accusing **FinnAgain** of launching one against you. He has claimed that I don’t understand several times when I clearly and obviously understand his point. I just DON’T AGREE WITH IT. So saying I don’t understand what I obviously do understand IS a personal attack, it’s calling me STUPID. I know you both think that your intellects are so magnificent that one must misunderstand you in order to not agree with you, but I came into this debate knowing your side of it, neither of you has told me anything I didn’t ALREADY KNOW. You just assumed a very pedantic posture. I mean how seriously am I supposed to take your argument when you say I don’t know what white trash means? You don’t even address the core of my argument, and you claim it’s ME who doesn’t understand. Funny how that works right? Try honestly addressing my argument sometime, you might find it refreshing. Then again maybe not. You’re not here to actually discuss things with me, you’re here because it bothers you that I don’t respect your authoritay. Why would I? Half the time you respond to me is to insult me, and then act all scandalized when I respond in kind. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/153 "2009-07-23T05:36:43Z")
[Who gives a shit who gives a fuck](http://howardsternbits.com/play/748), this is a ridiculous hijack. This nonsense that does nothing but detract from topics and give everyone around here a trigger finger shouldn’t even be allowed in this forum and yet here we have a mod mud-wrestling about it. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/154 "2009-07-23T06:03:47Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > [Who gives a shit who gives a fuck](http://howardsternbits.com/play/748), this is a ridiculous hijack. This nonsense that does nothing but detract from topics and give everyone around here a trigger finger shouldn’t even be allowed in this forum and yet here we have a mod mud-wrestling about it. Well the point I was making was that not everyone agrees that conspiracy theories can be dismissed out of hand. Which is a direct response to the OP. These will continue to find favor for as long as there are people who disagree that something can be dismissed merely by calling it a ‘conspiracy theory’. As for mud-wrestling, the usage of conspiracy theory is actually a pet peeve of mine. If people don’t want me to talk about it they shouldn’t respond to me. That’s called… Well I’m not allowed to say what it’s called on this forum right? ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/155 "2009-07-23T06:28:07Z")
I’m actually interested in that discussion, and disagree with you for a number of what I feel are good reasons, but I don’t think this is the place to hash it out. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/156 "2009-07-23T06:29:06Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > I’m actually interested in that discussion, and disagree with you for a number of what I feel are good reasons, but I don’t think this is the place to hash it out. Well I consider the bell rung on this thread regardless. ---
**Author:** ![crypto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b3f665/32.png) [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/157 "2009-07-23T07:46:48Z")
Based on the comments in this thread, I am going to spin off a JFK only thread. I don’t necessarily think it’s a hijack, but it would be easier to follow in its own thread. And people can tell me where to get my tin-foil hat sized. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![kidchameleon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/898d66/32.png) [@kidchameleon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kidchameleon)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/158 "2009-07-23T17:04:50Z")
Sometimes I think that only a conspiracy theory can explain why **mswas** isn’t banned. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/159 "2009-07-23T17:19:26Z")
> [@kidchameleon](#): > > Sometimes I think that only a conspiracy theory can explain why **mswas** isn’t banned. Sometimes I think only a conspiracy theory can explain why adults make statements like these in forums like this, and then I remember that you only have to be 13 to post here. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2009, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352/160 "2009-07-25T03:15:17Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > Well the point I was making was that not everyone agrees that conspiracy theories can be dismissed out of hand. Which is a direct response to the OP. These will continue to find favor for as long as there are people who disagree that something can be dismissed merely by calling it a ‘conspiracy theory’. And you spent all your time whining about “corrupting the language” instead of actually focuising on what you now claim to have intended. _::: shrug :::_ Actually, this is simply one more example of you picking irrelevant fights just because you like to fight, then making the whole matter personal when you don’t get enough traction with your poor arguments. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theories/503352.md?page=9)