Opinion POTWR 2019 Vol 19: What's Your Favorite Conspiracy Theory?

[Cubo de Sangre]

It's not true, but the Phantom Time Hypothesis is pretty interesting. Also interesting that it took more work than I think most people would expect to definitively debunk it.

Never heard of it.

Gonna go with other. I'll pick @TheComebackKid theory on African Americans pre-slavery vs U.S. History. Most riveting one I've heard in a long, long time.

Agreed. That's some fascinating shit and I almost asked TCK if he wanted to do a thread on it. The best argument I heard was made by some guy on the Rogan podcast. His point was why ship people all the way from Africa when they could have enslaved folks much closer to home.

 

[Jack V Savage]

Never heard of it.

https://allthatsinteresting.com/phantom-time-hypothesis
https://www.damninteresting.com/the-phantom-time-hypothesis/

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

https://allthatsinteresting.com/phantom-time-hypothesis
https://www.damninteresting.com/the-phantom-time-hypothesis/

Kooky. Guess that explains why the world didn't end on 12/21/12, since we're not there yet.

 

[Trotsky]

My "favorite" would have to be the left-wing MSM conspiracy theory. It's most interesting because it's plainly ludicrous that a bunch of corporations that exist exclusively to produce private profit would secretly be in a conspiracy to regulate and dissolve themselves. It's akin to thinking European Jews were secretly orchestrating the Final Solution. Yet millions of morons buy it.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

My "favorite" would have to be the left-wing MSM conspiracy theory. It's most interesting because it's plainly ludicrous that a bunch of corporations that exist exclusively to produce private profit would secretly be in a conspiracy to regulate and dissolve themselves. It's akin to thinking European Jews were secretly orchestrating the Final Solution. Yet millions of morons buy it.

I thought the conspiracy was tailoring the news to fit agendas. What's this about regulating and dissolving themselves?

 

[Trotsky]

I thought the conspiracy was tailoring the news to fit agendas.

That's equally - well, not equally, but comparably - asinine. Corporations do not have agendas except those adjacent to their profitability. Saying that media entities sensationalize or key on hot button issues that their viewers are more likely to consumer is grounded in reality. Saying that those entities exist to promote socialism and communism is a whole different kind of stupid.

What's this about regulating and dissolving themselves?

Greater regulation and reduction of profits is necessarily the consequence of moving governance leftward. Dissolution of their ownership/profit model is endemic to moving toward socialism and communism.

We can assume that when conservative posters use the term "leftist media," they are doing so without remote knowledge of what that entails politically and are just saying that, because those media institutions don't pander to their delusions or engage in open disparagement of minorities, they are leftist. More accurately, this would be termed as "liberal," but the raging horde has pretty well worn out the scariness in that word.

However, when they go a rhetorical step further to calling them socialist/communist, that's when giving them the benefit of the doubt that they are just stupid runs out and you necessarily get into CT territory.

The leftist communist media is attempting and succeeding at putting people at each other's throats.

You're surprised that Communist News Network is spreading Marxist propaganda?

Hurry up and have libby spank-fest before this becomes BS, like all the other shit the socialist media conjures up.

I'm pretty sure it is communist agenda-driven.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

Greater regulation and reduction of profits is necessarily the consequence of moving governance leftward. Dissolution of their ownership/profit model is endemic to moving toward socialism and communism.

We can assume that when conservative posters use the term "leftist media," they are doing so without remote knowledge of what that entails politically and are just saying that, because those media institutions don't pander to their delusions or engage in open disparagement of minorities, they are leftist. More accurately, this would be termed as "liberal," but the raging horde has pretty well worn out the scariness in that word.

However, when they go a rhetorical step further to calling them socialist/communist, that's when giving them the benefit of the doubt that they are just stupid runs out and you necessarily get into CT territory.

So is this an actual CT or just you extrapolating from common sentiment (i.e. that the media leans left)?

 

[Islam Imamate]

, but I'm also going to say that I'm also a fan of the the Trudeau and Prince Harry cuck-spiracies.

Love the Trudeau one.

It's not true, but the Phantom Time Hypothesis is pretty interesting. Also interesting that it took more work than I think most people would expect to definitively debunk it.

Never heard of it but I agree, that is a fascinating one.

I picked Alien contact because I think its interesting to think about and kind of, almost plausible I think(especially in light of the declassified footage from the Navy of UFOs). I feel similarly about Bigfoot and spirits. Even if all three are not true I think its possible that there is a yet to be understood phenomenon behind them that would explain them, kind of like how people believed in Miasma theory before germ theory. It was technically incorrect in how it described the mechanism of disease transfer but in a sense was partly right since the sources of miasma were often also the sources of germs(e.g. corpses, human waste, trash etc).

Maybe Bigfoot doesn't exist but there's some rare subspecies of bear that has yet to be discovered or maybe spirits don't exist in the way we think they do but it could be that there's some phenomenon that's only barely perceptible to certain kinds of people like the way certain frequencies are only audible to children. Unlikely? Sure but still fun to think about it.

 

[Jack V Savage]

So is this an actual CT or just you extrapolating from common sentiment (i.e. that the media leans left)?

Note that only about 3/5ths of the public perceives the MSM as being biased, and among those who do, the perceived bias is against them. A higher percentage of Republicans think that the media is biased (and overwhelmingly, when asked to name an organization that is not biased, they select Fox News) so that portion skews right, and the perceived bias is thus slightly left.

But that's not the CTers. There's a portion within that group that thinks not only that the media has an unconscious bias to the left, but that the MSM regularly fabricates stories to hurt Republicans, and in a coordinated way. That would have to be described as a CT, and a truly crazy one.

 

[Rational Poster]

Australia isn't real.

 

[Higus]

Love the Trudeau one.

Never heard of it but I agree, that is a fascinating one.

I picked Alien contact because I think its interesting to think about and kind of, almost plausible I think(especially in light of the declassified footage from the Navy of UFOs). I feel similarly about Bigfoot and spirits. Even if all three are not true I think its possible that there is a yet to be understood phenomenon behind them that would explain them, kind of like how people believed in Miasma theory before germ theory. It was technically incorrect in how it described the mechanism of disease transfer but in a sense was partly right since the sources of miasma were often also the sources of germs(e.g. corpses, human waste, trash etc).

Maybe Bigfoot doesn't exist but there's some rare subspecies of bear that has yet to be discovered or maybe spirits don't exist in the way we think they do but it could be that there's some phenomenon that's only barely perceptible to certain kinds of people like the way certain frequencies are only audible to children. Unlikely? Sure but still fun to think about it.

CT's are often like the parable of the blind men touching the elephant. They have some detail that is correct, but the theories they derive from the details are largely off by miles. Take the Pizza Gate CT. A vast conspiracy that enables rich and powerful men to diddle children is somewhat plausible, but the details of it being run by a Clinton consultant in the basement of a pizza shop are way off.
There's a theory that people behind conspiracies have realized that its easier to disseminate a million bullshit theories that touch the real problem rather than to try to completely cover them up. Someone like Alex Jones is useful for muddying the waters and is likely part of it, although his degree of direct involvement is unknown.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

Note that only about 3/5ths of the public perceives the MSM as being biased, and among those who do, the perceived bias is against them. A higher percentage of Republicans think that the media is biased (and overwhelmingly, when asked to name an organization that is not biased, they select Fox News) so that portion skews right, and the perceived bias is thus slightly left.

But that's not the CTers. There's a portion within that group that thinks not only that the media has an unconscious bias to the left, but that the MSM regularly fabricates stories to hurt Republicans, and in a coordinated way. That would have to be described as a CT, and a truly crazy one.

Cool, but nobody is out there claiming the MSM is trying to regulate and dissolve itself. Or are they?

 

[lilelvis]

That's equally - well, not equally, but comparably - asinine. Corporations do not have agendas except those adjacent to their profitability. Saying that media entities sensationalize or key on hot button issues that their viewers are more likely to consumer is grounded in reality. Saying that those entities exist to promote socialism and communism is a whole different kind of stupid.



Greater regulation and reduction of profits is necessarily the consequence of moving governance leftward. Dissolution of their ownership/profit model is endemic to moving toward socialism and communism.

We can assume that when conservative posters use the term "leftist media," they are doing so without remote knowledge of what that entails politically and are just saying that, because those media institutions don't pander to their delusions or engage in open disparagement of minorities, they are leftist. More accurately, this would be termed as "liberal," but the raging horde has pretty well worn out the scariness in that word.

However, when they go a rhetorical step further to calling them socialist/communist, that's when giving them the benefit of the doubt that they are just stupid runs out and you necessarily get into CT territory.

https://duckduckgo.com/l/?kh=-1&uddg=https://cdn.quotesgram.com/img/11/60/332200411-Khrushchev_2.jpg

 

[all caps]

Yea but.... that's different!

Those are Nazis! And we are the freest and best most advanced society in the history of the world! We would never fall for that!

 

[MMAisGod]

Yea but.... that's different!

Those are Nazis! And we are the freest and best most advanced society in the history of the world! We would never fall for that!

 

[Jack V Savage]

Cool, but nobody is out there claiming the MSM is trying to regulate and dissolve itself. Or are they?

If the CT were true, the implication would be that they're trying to be regulated more heavily and pay more taxes, while also hurting their revenue.

 

[Jack V Savage]

"You Americans are so gullible. You'll believe any fake quote going around the internet as long as there is a picture attached and a date. Also, 9-11 was an inside job."
--Adolf Hitler, 1936

 

[kpt018]

It's aliens for me. It's a fun topic for so many reasons - implication that they're far more advanced and intelligent, pose an existential threat, the government is covering up evidence of their existence to prevent hysteria, etc.. It's also cool because it's probable (some say highly probable) they exist in some form.

This CT has had a massive impact on pop culture (countless movies, video games, TV shows, etc.).

 

[kpt018]

Cool, fun thread @Cubo de Sangre . But are you trolling with the "climate change" option? I'm sure some crazies do think it's a CT.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

If the CT were true, the implication would be that they're trying to be regulated more heavily and pay more taxes, while also hurting their revenue.

Maybe. I was just curious if anyone was actually running around saying that's what the MSM is up to.