# Conspiracy Theorists **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 27, 2023, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788 "2023-09-27T20:27:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2023, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/61 "2023-09-29T17:41:59Z")
Oh, I see you’re in on it too. 🤔 ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2023, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/62 "2023-09-29T17:49:25Z")
**FNORD** (Plus other words because fuck you Discourse you nanny wannabe piece of shit.) ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2023, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/63 "2023-09-29T17:54:37Z")
Other words? I only see the other words… ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/64 "2023-11-02T12:23:41Z")
I just heard this term for the first time, yesterday. Totally agree. It should be in the daily Dope parlance. Like I feel about the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, I’ll be glad if and when the word is obsolete, but … meantime … I support its increased use unreservedly. > **[Brandolini's law](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandolini%27s_law)** > > Brandolini's law, also known as the bullshit asymmetry principle, is an internet adage coined in 2013 that emphasizes the effort of debunking misinformation, in comparison to the relative ease of creating it in the first place. The law states the following: > The amount of energy needed to refute bullshit is an order of magnitude bigger than that needed to produce it. The rise of easy popularization of ideas through the internet has greatly increased the relevant examples, but the asymmetry princi... ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/65 "2023-11-02T14:28:49Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > How many of those encounters until _you_ would just make it all stop by coming forwards? Just as a point: we don’t know that these “crisis actors” actually received any threats, or were fired at. The whole thing could be fake. A fully designed operation, as it were. I mean, I couldn’t even prove Sandy hook was a real place. I’ve never been there. But, I trust MSM. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/66 "2023-11-02T16:27:38Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Just as a point: we don’t know that these “crisis actors” actually received any threats, or were fired at. The whole thing could be fake. A fully designed operation, as it were. Have you ever met Alex Jones? Or Joe Rogan? Or Bernie Sanders? I’m just asking questions! It isn’t like Bernie’s software would have to get any legislation passed. Has Cenk Uygur ever been seen in real life? Deepfakes can probably string together enough hateful idiocy to satisfy his fans, and then all you need is some ugly pictures! ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/67 "2023-11-02T16:33:26Z")
I can’t even prove YOU exist. I want to believe! ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/68 "2023-11-02T16:37:57Z")
I can’t even prove I exist. How deep does the rabbit hole (if rabbits and holes exist) go? ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/69 "2023-11-02T16:43:04Z")
I don’t exist and neither does my wife. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/70 "2023-11-02T16:49:45Z")
[![](https://www.media-marketing.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/na-internetu-niko-ne-zna-da-ste-pas.png) ](https://www.media-marketing.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/na-internetu-niko-ne-zna-da-ste-pas.png) ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/71 "2023-11-02T17:13:24Z")
If you believe something never happened even if there are numerous unrelated eyewitnesses who say it happened, and there are both still photos and videos showing it happening. If you still believe it deep in your heart … then you might be a conspiracy theorist. If you have to get another year out of your old beat up car because you send money every month to a loudmouth on the radio who says he’ll work to uncover the truth… then you might be a conspiracy theorist. If you refuse to let your children get a vaccine that prevents a life threatening disease… then you might be a conspiracy theorist. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/72 "2023-11-02T18:22:10Z")
_Brought to you by AI! I trimmed the list of 20 down to what I think are the funniest baker’s dozen._ 1. If you find yourself looking for hidden messages in cereal box codes, you might be a conspiracy theorist. 2. If you believe that pigeons are actually government spies, you might be a conspiracy theorist. 3. If you have a map on your wall with strings connecting random events, you might be a conspiracy theorist. 4. If you’re convinced that Bigfoot is just a misunderstood forest-dwelling creature, you might be a conspiracy theorist. 5. If you have a bunker stocked with canned food and survival gear, you might be a conspiracy theorist. 6. If you’re constantly worried about being tracked by the government through your smartphone, you might be a conspiracy theorist. 7. If you think that the Earth is actually flat, despite all scientific evidence, you might be a conspiracy theorist. 8. If you’re convinced that the Illuminati control every aspect of your life, you might be a conspiracy theorist. 9. If you think that the government is hiding evidence of time travel, you might be a conspiracy theorist. 10. If you have a collection of tin foil hats for every member of your family, you might be a conspiracy theorist. 11. If you believe that the number 23 has a mystical significance, you might be a conspiracy theorist. 12. If you’re constantly scanning the skies for UFOs, you might be a conspiracy theorist. 13. If you believe that the government is hiding evidence of Bigfoot’s existence, you might be a conspiracy theorist. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/73 "2023-11-02T19:08:55Z")
My personal belief is that CT is a symptom of a society in which almost everyone is powerless and no one really understands what is going on, because it is far too big and far too complicated. The sense that we are all at the mercy of a gigantic juggernaut in which we are but tiny disposable cogs is not wrong. The more common way to cope with this inescapable fact of modern life is to just wall off the parts that you don’t need to know about, and try to suffer as little as possible while seeking out little pockets of happiness. Some people **want to understand** , however. Because knowledge makes you feel in control, and control is what we are missing. Well, among a lot of other things. Here is where CT and reality part ways. Because CT isn’t about how things really work. It’s about how things really FEEL. They _feel_ nefarious, they _feel_ like there must be terrible secrets because otherwise why would things be so fucked up and scary? CT in its many forms gives the believer a sense of shared mission, a sense of purpose, a sense that through determined communal effort, we can find out why everything is so frightening now, and not be frightened because we, and we alone, understand it. ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/74 "2023-11-02T19:12:31Z")
Beautifully written. It also happens to be wholly consistent with the numerous ‘scholarly’ YouTube vids I’ve watched explaining in painstaking detail the etiology of CTs. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/75 "2023-11-02T19:14:56Z")
Gee, and here I thought it all up myself … ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/76 "2023-11-02T19:19:26Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > If you think that the government is hiding evidence of time travel, you might be a conspiracy theorist. - The government didn’t do that for another 23 years. ---
**Author:** ![Dandan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a87d85/32.png) [@Dandan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dandan)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/77 "2023-11-02T19:26:11Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > If you believe that the number 23 has a mystical significance, Wait, what??? Hang on, talk to me here… Dan ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/78 "2023-11-02T19:32:51Z")
Not a Michael Jordan fan, huh? ---
**Author:** ![Dandan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a87d85/32.png) [@Dandan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dandan)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/79 "2023-11-02T19:35:18Z")
Nope, don’t follow baseball. Dan ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2023, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788/80 "2023-11-02T19:47:02Z")
That only sort of worked 😉 > **[Michael Jordan, the real story of his baseball career](https://www.mlb.com/news/featured/michael-jordan-the-real-story-of-his-baseball-career)** > > The Official Site of Major League Baseball [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conspiracy-theorists/990788.md?page=5)