You are that important and significant in the world
that the people elected to run the joint actively try to deceive and placate you while they get up to nefarious deeds.
( Je suis un vagabond is an unfunny, up your own arse middle class knob, Mon 5 Dec 2011, 16:31, 13 replies)

I recently read a quote from Alan Moore (I think)
who points out that all conspiracy theories are essentially comforting as they imply that someone is in charge of the world, as opposed to it being the directionless mess that it actually is. Personally, I think blaming a conspiracy is a good way of not blaming yourself for all of the bad decisions and stupidity in your own, pointless life.
(Kitty Fantastico "Dwarf, Anorexic and In a Fight ", Mon 5 Dec 2011, 16:42, closed)

I think it's interesting...
...That there are all these anti-semitic, "Jews run all the banks" conspiracies. It's clearly not the case.

If international banking were run by the Priory of Sion or the Zurich gnomes or the Illuminati, you'd think they'd do a better job of this Euro malarky, wouldn't you? That, maybe, they'd use their clout to prevent everything turning to crap.
(xaer0mancer, Mon 5 Dec 2011, 21:32, closed)

This does confuse conspiracy and paranoia a little though.
Not having a go at you but many people make the mistake of thinking that someone believing in, for example, the moon landings being faked is a paranoid nutter when that simply doesn't follow.
In fact, perhaps there's a plot to undermine conspiracy theories by suggesting that people who believe them all wear tinfoil hats and think that the government is targeting them?
(Me, I'm not... in any way intoxicated, Mon 5 Dec 2011, 16:54, closed)

It’s exactly the same thought processes though.
Conspiracy theorists are just Paranoid Schizophrenics without the sense of grandiose self importance.
( Ring Of Fire A petty, drooling belming butthurt retard., Mon 5 Dec 2011, 16:59, closed)

Without...?
It's far more intellectually arrogant.

Paranoid Schizophrenics don't tend to assume that you're too stupid to understand they are right. Actually, they're likely to believe you're in on the trick.

Conspiracy theorists are people who'd like to be cleverer than you, so make something up that creates that reality.
( prince-igor si tacuisses, philosophus mansisses, Mon 5 Dec 2011, 17:03, closed)

Ah but! Conspiracy theorists just believe that they’ve worked out how the universe works, your Paranoid Schizophrenic believes they are the fucking centre of the universe.
( Ring Of Fire A petty, drooling belming butthurt retard., Mon 5 Dec 2011, 17:28, closed)

You're doing it again.
Confusing psychological traits with opinions.
Yes, there are people out there who are paranoid, conspiracy-weaving nutters who either think they're the centre of the universe or know something everyone else doesn't. However, just beleiving tha the evidence for the moon landings is lacking enough, and the evidence to the contrary compelling enough, that the landing didn't happen does not make someone paranoid or self-important.
If someone spends months researching something in books and on the internet and decides the evicdence poits to a conspiracy this doesn't make them paranoid or self-important either -- it must means they evaluated the evidence differently. Of course research on the internet is not necessarily the best and often they do publish their ideas in self-agrandising ways -- but that is a seperate issue.
(For the record I think man landed on the moon, which is why I'm using it)
(Me, I'm not... in any way intoxicated, Mon 5 Dec 2011, 17:35, closed)

Your right conspiracy theorists do evaluate evidence differently, they evaluate it like PS's. They’re unable to take on board evidence that contradicts their ‘belief’ or psychosis as I prefer to call it. The conflation of unrelated causes and effects, the belief that large groups are ‘in on it’.

They don't spend months researching a subject, they spend months searching for data that reinforces their pet theory.

Like PS’s the conspiracy theorists construct alternative realities to make sense of their twisted view of the world, "Why aren’t scientists reporting that sugar is poison, because they’re part of the conspiracy."

The only difference is the conspiracy isn’t directed against them, they are a witness. A conspiracy theorist will believe that the Milk Marketing Board is putting rat poison in milk to boost profit, or attack white people or something. A PS thinks the Milk Marketing Board has employed a hit man to get them.
( Ring Of Fire A petty, drooling belming butthurt retard., Mon 5 Dec 2011, 18:51, closed)

What about the people who think smoking causes cancer?
They see a link but tobbacco companies seem to want to keep it quiet.
How about those who think that burning fossil fuel causes climate change but oil companies pay scientists to disprove it?
How about those who though the CIA were arming and training the Mujahideen in the 80s?
I take it only people who think the above are all bollocks are normal, sane people?
(Me, I'm not... in any way intoxicated, Mon 5 Dec 2011, 19:48, closed)

Nope.

Say a bloke down the pub says “I think the moon landings were faked, I don’t know anything about it really, but I just think they probably were.” He’s a man with an opinion, not a conspiracy theorist.

Another guy agrees and explains how he’s spent the last 5 years looking at every piece of evidence and is absolutely 100% sure that they were faked…how come the flag looks like it’s blowing in the wind etc etc, he’s someone with the thinking like a PS.

The difference between rational though and conspiracy thinking is the rational thinker can accept the evidence that doesn’t fit their theory and think again. Conspiracy theorists like PS’s are trapped in their delusion and can’t see beyond it.
They seek each other out and create their own orthodoxies re-inforcing each others delusion in exactly the manner they claim to despise with not a jot of self awareness.
( Ring Of Fire A petty, drooling belming butthurt retard., Mon 5 Dec 2011, 20:43, closed)

Ah.
So people who research climate change are paranoid then?
How about people whose research points to the Pearl Harbour attack being anticipated by the US government?
What you're describing is a conspiracy nut -- there are people put there who poined to a lot of what they thought were discrepancies in the official WYC attack and whilst most have been shown to be wrong not all were nutjobs.
Questioning something which doesn't seem right to you is a normal and useful behavior it is only when you ignore evidence that it points to something wrong with your reasoning -- I know I haven't had time to check out every conspiracy theory on the internet and work out which is true and which isn't but apparently you have.
(Me, I'm not... in any way intoxicated, Mon 5 Dec 2011, 20:55, closed)

Just because you are paranoid
doesn't mean they aren't out to get you.
(the other guy not the one that gave you coochie warts, Tue 6 Dec 2011, 2:10, closed)

Note:
They appear to be onto us. Cease operation 'Slightly pink'.
( Funkenschlag still likes dogs more than cats, Tue 6 Dec 2011, 20:45, closed)