Analysis of Conspiracy Theories - Essay Example

Conspiracy Theories Conspiracy has been given different meaning by different people. One and journalist, Jonathan Elinoff states that “conspiracy theory is a term that originally was a neutral descript for any claim of civil, criminal or political conspiracy.” He proceeds to say that “however, it has come almost exclusively to refer to any fringe theory which explains a historical or current event as the result of a secret plot by conspirators of almost superhuman power and cunning.” In my understanding, a conspiracy theory explains accusing two or more people, organizations or known groups of covering up a secret or causing a harmful situation. To conspire is coming together in a secret agreement in order to perform unlawful actions as a means of accomplishing lawful ends. Many scholars opt to use term conspiracy theory as a means of finding the secrets in either military, political deeds or banking industry that are aimed at taking away either power or freedom from citizens (Elinoff par 2-4). Many scholars have reasons why conspiracies are planned in society. According to them, conspiracies are a way of explaining power relations in social groups found in societies. Also, they are to bring to light the evil forces that are perceived to exist within these societies. Conspiracy theories touch on the obscurity found in much official documentation. They accompany most remarkable events, whether social or political. Theories give people a chance to pour out their feelings towards a given puzzled situation. Similarly, they allow people to speak out on what they believe is the real explanation of the unknown situation, thereby letting their powerless nature be known to many. This helps in avoiding instances of uncertainty thus people are able to create sense out of a given situation. On the other hand, conspiracy theories pin down the existence of noteworthy topics like the way science works (Jolley par n.d). This in return may lead to harmful repercussions to the entire public. People choose to believe in the conspiracy theories for one main reason; they feel that whatever is being given to them is only a fallacy. Most of the known conspiracies are created as a way of relieving tension in a given issue. In addition, they are created in order to hide some unclean mess within the involved group. In return, people tend to believe in them sometimes leading to the cropping up of many more theories on the same issue. Most of these theories are skeptical in their explanations since skeptics are crucial in attaining certain goals in reality view. However, skeptics can never be the other face of maintaining the official truth of an issue (Elinoff par 2-4). This paper outlines the genre of conspiracy theories in the society. There are four types of conspiracy theories classified as event, systemic and super-conspiracies (Brotherton par 1). All these conspiracy theories explain the happening of some events. Event conspiracy theory is the one that occur often. Event conspiracies are conspiracies focusing on a single event taking place at a place at a particular time. Mastermind of such conspiracies ensure that there is no counter activity when they are executing their plan. Notably, they usually have some inside allies within their target’s environment who assist in the execution of their plan (Brotherton par 1). Examples of event conspiracy are the assassination of US president John F. Kennedy and the September 11 terrorist attack on the twin tower in lower Manhattan. Systemic conspiracies involve compound systems planned for a long period (Brotherton par 1). Example of such a conspiracy is the establishment of one type of ruling government to rule globally by a group of elite individuals. Also, fluoridation of water by some top people within the government is an example of systemic conspiracy since it is done over a long period of time. The last type of conspiracy is the super-conspiracy. This type involves multiple but separate conspiracies revolving around a range of subjects. The subjects are then linked together creating a single complex master plan (Brotherton par 1). Notably, this last type of conspiracy is the most complex to understand and therefore many people have not yet unraveled the super-conspiracy puzzle. An example of this conspiracy is the formation of the New World Order. Hofstadter’s feature of “the paranoid style” has evolved over the years, bringing to light some hidden truths some confusing and others believable. In his writing, he described American politics as characterized by sub-culture aimed at undermining the effectiveness of the US democracy. According to him, the paranoid style “has more to do with the way in which ideas are believed than the truth or falsity of their content.” To back this he quoted the some examples from the Texas newspaper article done in 1855, a manifesto of the Populist Party (Hofstadter par n.d). In the article, he attacks the spread of illuminati in America, which came about the same time as the “Jesuit threat” as well as the anti-Catholic regime. All these connected to the great depression. The illuminati issue still exists to recent times. The anti-Catholic rallies have also been experienced in many parts of the world leading to formation of protestant religions. He is quoted talking about a conspiracy to attack people in their vulnerable quarter where they cannot defend themselves (Hofstadter par n.d). This has been repeated in the 21st century where attacks have been planned in nations causing massive dames and deaths of innocent people. Hofstadter’s style has explained reason why Bush felt he had not accomplished his mission after stepping down. He believed in total elimination of the enemy. He felt hopeless when he could not bane abortion, pass the anti-gay constitution and terminate all terrorist attacks. From the given examples, one can see the way conspiracy theories have changed over the past 50 years. The same style has been used to describe different conspiracies. For instance the death of Princess Diana was met with many theories. It is said that she committed suicide. There is a version that she was assassinated by her family while others point to political assassination. None of the theories has been proved right and therefore people are left to make their own conclusions. The only difference with Hofstadter’s paranoid style is that he wrote about issues that were long past while the current issues are highlighted immediately. This style has changed to meet either the needs of the political class or the citizens. This is because, when a government writer is writing on a certain conspiracy, he will give the government’s side of the story. For instance, in the 9/11, the government said it was a terrorist attack. However, another writer siding with the public or another group will give a totally different version. The 9/11 attack, some columnists said had been planned and the government was aware of the bombing. Questions arise from such writers as to how the building could fall down if no bombs were planted in different storey’s. Their argument is that the used jets could not bring the buildings down. The Ebola virus is another cause for conspiracy theories. There are a lot of controversies as to how the Ebola virus came to be. Some people think it was spread from wild animals such as bats, it was created from the lab accidentally while others suggest that it was created on purpose (Jolley par n.d). Similarly, some groups point to the fact that the virus was a type of cannibal ritual being covered up (Jolley par n.d). There is no specific answer explaining the way the virus came to be. According to Jolley, all the conspiracies regarding the virus could make not to use the required measures in curbing the dreaded virus. Also, people may avoid seeking the necessary treatment sine they have no specific answer as to where the virus originated from. An example of such reactions is when people with such views fail to get the advice of health attendants. Another example is where conspiracy theories have made people to think that by using condoms one should not seek HIV treatment (Jolley par n.d). This has contributed to the wide spread of the two viruses there by resulting to deaths of many people. According to Jolley, the exposure to conspiracy theories has led to the reduction of humans’ intention to participate in actions to change climate change, change the political systems of their countries as well as the vaccination of fictional children. All these I one way have affected human negatively. An example another controversy in the early 20th century is where the US claims to be the first to send people to the moon. However, many countries doubt this since the period between the US landing to the moon and the second person to land was more than thirty years. For scientists, the technology used during that time by the US could have been improved thereby the next landing would not have taken that long (Saletine par 4-7). This gives people more reason not to believe about the US landing on moon. The internet has been the major source of all the controversy theories we hear of. This is because majority of people are now literate and have used the internet to spread their own inclinations. Also, it has made communication possible for those who want to share truths as well as lies with other people. In addition, the internet has been stocked with so much information that was earlier stored in books making it possible for people to know about any conspiracy they have heard of. This does not exclude people from any demography since it is open to everyone wherever they are situated. Therefore it has made it possible for creators of these conspiracies as well as their believers to access information. From the explanations, it is evident that the conspiracy theories are different but they try to bring to light some bigger truth that citizens seek. This clearly shows that many people support and believe in conspiracy theories. This is because they are the only way to end their doubts regarding some hidden facts and truths. Some of the truths that conspiracy theories try to reveal are; who really killed JKF, what caused Princess Diana’s death, is illuminati control of the new world order, did Bush administration sacrifice 3000 people in the 9/11 attack? All these and many more are the truths that these theories seek. Many are the times when originators of the theories are charged at court of law for “telling lies” to the public. All there is that the opposers of the theories are the ones who tell lies. If they are not arrested, their lives are always in danger forcing them to hide from the authorities. Therefore, conspiracy theories are an effective tool in revealing truths. This is because they pressure the government or proprietors of a given act to work on the issue and come up with a valid explanation. Similarly, make it known to public and the whole world some hidden secrets of a given group or organization. For example, it clear that the new world order is under the control of illuminati and that the world largest economies are in the verge of controlling the smaller economies. Saletine, a writer poses the question, “how can so many people in the name of skepticism, promote so many absurdities?” The truth is that believing a conspiracy is not being skeptical. Rather, it is being a “selective doubter” like Saletine stated (Saletine par 4). This means majority of those who believe in conspiracy select what to believe and what not to believe. Similarly, those that give fallacies about unknown issues chose to make people believe their concoctions. They are aware that if people get to know the truth they might lose their positions or face some charges. Tom Rogan wrote that “conspiracy theories challenge Americas’ accomplishments and painfully undermine our suffering.” This means that the existing conspiracy theories have always made it difficult for the truth to be unveiled thereby leaving people in the dark. Also, it shows that citizens suffering are not understood by majority of those acting on the supposed truth. He continues and says that “these world theories are also testaments to our society (Rogan par 1-3) . They shoe that America is still a place that engages in a vigorous, unending exchange of ideas.” This means that Americans have not gone short of ideas since they are able to come up with different theories regarding the different issues that bother them. It shows that Americans quench for the truth has not yet died and that they will still try their best to get the hidden truth. He explains that the utility of these theories is more that creating awareness to the public. According to him, the conspiracy theories are of great value to the health of US (Rogan par 9-11) . By this he means that these theories have made the country to reach its current position both politically and economically. It is through the Americans conspiracy nature that they ensure that the government is anchored to people’s scrutiny and thus it has to fulfill its duties to the public. Therefore, he supports the theories as they to some extent, help in the development f the state as well the changing some past wrongs it did to its citizens. In conclusion, it is true that conspiracy theories play an important role in the running of a country’s affairs. The susceptibility to such theories is not a method of evaluating any evidence. Rather, it is a way of alienating the possibility of any truth. Majority of people following such theories do not trust their governments and therefore the only way for them is to scrutinize the government. Sometimes conspiracies are meant to keep the government on its toes in order to work on a given issues but this should not be used as a method of opposing the government. Also, governments should always come out clear on issues touching on the public in order to avoid instances of conspiracies. Therefore we should all acknowledge the existence of conspiracy theories in the current century. This is because they help us in unraveling some mysteries within our social and political environments. The study of conspiracy theories will help students in understanding the reason why conspiracies exists and reason why they should be believed or not. It is worth noting that most of these theories tell the truth only that the existence of many theories regarding one issue tends to confuse people. Works Cited Brotherton, Rob. The President is Dead: why Conspiracy Theories about the Death of JKF Endure. The Psychology of Conspiracy Theories. Retrieved from: . [Retrieved on March 12 2015] Hofstadter Richard. The Paranoid Style in American Politics. Harper’s. Retrieved from: < http://harpers.org/archive/1964/11/the-paranoid-style-in-american-politics/4/>. [Retrieved on March 12 2015] Jolley, Daniel. Ebola virus conspiracy theories. The Psychology of Conspiracy Theories. Retrieved from :< http://conspiracypsychology.com/>. [Retrieved on March 12 2015] Rogan, Tom. Why conspiracy theories are good for America. The Week. Retrieved from :< http://theweek.com/articles/465038/why-conspiracy-theories-are-good-america>. Retrieved on March 12 2015] Saletan, William. Conspiracy Theorists Aren’t Really Skeptics. The fascinating psychology of people who know the real truth about JKF, UFO and 9/11. The State of the Universe. Retrieved form :< http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2013/11/conspiracy_theory_psychology_people_who_claim_to_know_the_truth_about_jfk.single.html>. [Retrieved on March 12 2015] Read More