# Popularity (not validity!) of conspiracy theories is a meaningful measure of honesty/openness **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [January 18, 2010, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popularity-not-validity-of-conspiracy-theories-is-a-meaningful-measure-of-honesty-openness/525437 "2010-01-18T16:45:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 5
**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:** [January 22, 2010, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popularity-not-validity-of-conspiracy-theories-is-a-meaningful-measure-of-honesty-openness/525437/81 "2010-01-22T01:17:41Z")
And why hasn’t the Kremlin opened its vaults to the world to reveal the facts about the death of Catherine the Great? We want to know the sordid truth about her ‘riding companion’. ---
**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:** [January 22, 2010, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popularity-not-validity-of-conspiracy-theories-is-a-meaningful-measure-of-honesty-openness/525437/82 "2010-01-22T01:25:23Z")
You want the truth? _You can’t handle the truth!_ If the Soviet Union released the classified files about Catherine the Great, why, it’d collapse and, wait, it did? See, that just proves my point! Conspiracy theories’ mere existence proves the fact that government is evil and we should start theorizing about all the conspiring it’s doing. ---
**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:** [January 23, 2010, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popularity-not-validity-of-conspiracy-theories-is-a-meaningful-measure-of-honesty-openness/525437/83 "2010-01-23T17:37:19Z")
So, should I take it from the fact that the OP has started another thread and still not clarified his OP here that I’m not getting my pony? ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2010, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popularity-not-validity-of-conspiracy-theories-is-a-meaningful-measure-of-honesty-openness/525437/84 "2010-01-23T18:05:12Z")
No pony for jooo, mon… -XT ---
**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:** [January 23, 2010, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popularity-not-validity-of-conspiracy-theories-is-a-meaningful-measure-of-honesty-openness/525437/85 "2010-01-23T18:24:06Z")
Ah-hah! I knew that the Jews were behind the pony shortage! ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2010, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popularity-not-validity-of-conspiracy-theories-is-a-meaningful-measure-of-honesty-openness/525437/86 "2010-01-23T18:31:39Z")
They™ are behind…eeeevvvvvveeeeerrrrrrryyyyyytttttthhhhhiiiiinnnnggggg… -XT ---
**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:** [January 23, 2010, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popularity-not-validity-of-conspiracy-theories-is-a-meaningful-measure-of-honesty-openness/525437/87 "2010-01-23T18:44:08Z")
Well, if only The Jews were more open and honest about what they’re really up to all the time, we wouldn’t have to theorize about all their conspiracies, ya know, hypothetically. (Just askin’ some questions here, is all, don’t mind me.) ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2010, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popularity-not-validity-of-conspiracy-theories-is-a-meaningful-measure-of-honesty-openness/525437/88 "2010-01-23T18:48:05Z")
If they did that, they wouldn’t be The Jews(tm, arr), would they? In which case, not only would Haiti still be earthquake free, but the World Trade Center would still be standing, JFK would still be president, aliens would have never landed in Roswell and started anally probing the locals, and…we’d ALL have ponies. _sigh_ -XT [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popularity-not-validity-of-conspiracy-theories-is-a-meaningful-measure-of-honesty-openness/525437.md?page=4)