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There's already some conspiracy theories about the swine flu. What do you think of conspiracy theories? Any favorites?
voted interesting: interzone
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The truth is...
There is no actual swine flu, and no one has died. The whole fuss was concocted by Jason Calacanis as way to boost the number of questions on Mahalo Answers.
While he was supposedly travelling to Japan and Korea, he was in fact in Mexico and various other places around the world. There he bribed a number of journalists, doctors and public officials to spread the story. I believe the bribes ranged from a Wii for the some of the local journalists to a Tesla for the Minister of Health.
A close study of Jason's methods will reveal that he has been described as "a master of self-promotion" and that he is obsessed with increasing questions on Mahalo. He will stop at nothing, including raffling Teslas to all and sundry.
When the Swine Flu story reaches pandemic proportions in the global media, he will ask on Mahalo Answers if anyone can find a cure. This is a setup, and @robbrown will come forth with a prepared answer. This supposed cure for the non-existent disease will then be disseminated worldwide through all of the journalists and medics on Jason's payroll, and Mahalo will achieve instant global fame, and become the fifth most trafficed site in the world. Also Jason will become the second most famous and popular person on the planet.
Remember, you heard it hear first!
Pass this on before the Mahalo secret police censor this post!
There is no actual swine flu, and no one has died. The whole fuss was concocted by Jason Calacanis as way to boost the number of questions on Mahalo Answers.
While he was supposedly travelling to Japan and Korea, he was in fact in Mexico and various other places around the world. There he bribed a number of journalists, doctors and public officials to spread the story. I believe the bribes ranged from a Wii for the some of the local journalists to a Tesla for the Minister of Health.
A close study of Jason's methods will reveal that he has been described as "a master of self-promotion" and that he is obsessed with increasing questions on Mahalo. He will stop at nothing, including raffling Teslas to all and sundry.
When the Swine Flu story reaches pandemic proportions in the global media, he will ask on Mahalo Answers if anyone can find a cure. This is a setup, and @robbrown will come forth with a prepared answer. This supposed cure for the non-existent disease will then be disseminated worldwide through all of the journalists and medics on Jason's payroll, and Mahalo will achieve instant global fame, and become the fifth most trafficed site in the world. Also Jason will become the second most famous and popular person on the planet.
Remember, you heard it hear first!
Pass this on before the Mahalo secret police censor this post!
source(s):
In order to protect my sources, I'm afraid I can't reveal either their names or their species.
In order to protect my sources, I'm afraid I can't reveal either their names or their species.
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Brilliant. Give that man a cigar!
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you saw nothing....
http://www.flickr.com/photos/33749589@N07/3484180600/
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OMG. best.answer.ever
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That's an interesting question. My immediate response was - yes, I like a good conspiracy theory - and that's still my short answer to your question.
Long answer is that quite legitimate attempts to uncover suppressed information, and/ or expose wrongdoing, are often labeled "conspiracy theory" in order to discredit these genuine efforts. What is more, all kind of disinformation and half truths are disseminated in order to further confuse matters, which makes it evermore difficult to evaluate any information that goes around.
So, I'd say one should keep ones mind open. Never reject an idea only because it violates your notion of what can, and cannot be. At the same time, that open mind must remain a critical one, inquisitive, probing, questioning mind.
My favourite one is the (in)famous 1947 Roswell UFO crash conspiracy, which says that an alien spacecraft crashlanded in New Mexican desert in 1947, and that the US Air Force subsequently retrieved the remnants of the craft, complete with its alien crew. Of course, they're keeping it under wraps ever since.
I actually subscribe to this theory. There is a hitch, though: I believe, and this is my own twist to the story, that the craft and the bodies were not genuine, but rather, the whole event was staged by aliens. The purpose of this staging was to face us with a dilemma, and a choice to make: do we respond to this poor crashed souls with compassion, or with fear.
I'm afraid we freaked out.
Long answer is that quite legitimate attempts to uncover suppressed information, and/ or expose wrongdoing, are often labeled "conspiracy theory" in order to discredit these genuine efforts. What is more, all kind of disinformation and half truths are disseminated in order to further confuse matters, which makes it evermore difficult to evaluate any information that goes around.
So, I'd say one should keep ones mind open. Never reject an idea only because it violates your notion of what can, and cannot be. At the same time, that open mind must remain a critical one, inquisitive, probing, questioning mind.
My favourite one is the (in)famous 1947 Roswell UFO crash conspiracy, which says that an alien spacecraft crashlanded in New Mexican desert in 1947, and that the US Air Force subsequently retrieved the remnants of the craft, complete with its alien crew. Of course, they're keeping it under wraps ever since.
I actually subscribe to this theory. There is a hitch, though: I believe, and this is my own twist to the story, that the craft and the bodies were not genuine, but rather, the whole event was staged by aliens. The purpose of this staging was to face us with a dilemma, and a choice to make: do we respond to this poor crashed souls with compassion, or with fear.
I'm afraid we freaked out.
i have always loved this conspiracy theory. because why not. but your take on it - that i have never heard or thought of before. nice. i like it because we human beings believe that we are smarter. funny thing is, if we are so smart, how come we haven't gotten to the alien's planet before they got to our planet?
also - your theory just legitimizes this altogether because if our way of thinking is true - the aliens were smart enough to get here, but then "became" stupid. lol
your theory keeps them just a tad smarter than us. i like that. because that gives us hope - hope for survival.
also - your theory just legitimizes this altogether because if our way of thinking is true - the aliens were smart enough to get here, but then "became" stupid. lol
your theory keeps them just a tad smarter than us. i like that. because that gives us hope - hope for survival.
I like the twist, never thought of it that way
The most plausible conspiracy theory is the Vaccines used to inoculate the pigs are intentionally contaminated with a strain of H5N1 (bird flu) virus.
Just like the scandal Baxter International's mixing H3N2 seasonal flu shots vaccine with unlabeled H5N1 viruses. In the Czech Republic, they tested a couple of ferrets with the H3N2 flu shots and it DIED!
Pharmaceutical companies have stockpiles of bird flu vaccines on inventory. So far their prediction of a massive pandemic has never happened. What better way to get rid of this excess inventory is to introduce this bird flu virus to humans?
I have to credit this conspiracy theory from the podcast "No Agenda" by Adam Curry and John C. Dvorak.
Just like the scandal Baxter International's mixing H3N2 seasonal flu shots vaccine with unlabeled H5N1 viruses. In the Czech Republic, they tested a couple of ferrets with the H3N2 flu shots and it DIED!
Pharmaceutical companies have stockpiles of bird flu vaccines on inventory. So far their prediction of a massive pandemic has never happened. What better way to get rid of this excess inventory is to introduce this bird flu virus to humans?
I have to credit this conspiracy theory from the podcast "No Agenda" by Adam Curry and John C. Dvorak.
source(s):
Baxter: Product contained live bird flu virus
http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2009/02/27/8560781.html
No Agenda podcast
http://noagenda.mevio.com
Episode: NA-092-2009-04-26 - Swine Flu: It's a Beta! - 4/27/09
http://www.mevio.com/episode/152299/NA-092-2009-04-26
Baxter: Product contained live bird flu virus
http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2009/02/27/8560781.html
No Agenda podcast
http://noagenda.mevio.com
Episode: NA-092-2009-04-26 - Swine Flu: It's a Beta! - 4/27/09
http://www.mevio.com/episode/152299/NA-092-2009-04-26
Interesting answer. I don't tend to agree with most conspiracy theories but they are interesting to think about.
We have evolved to identify patterns and to understand (empathize) with the motivations of others. As such, we tend to ascribe meaning or intention to random events, especially when those events involve some human interaction. I think that's why we find conspiracy theories so appealing.
But the prime characteristic of conspiracy theories and their adherents is that they generally do not admit the reality of evidence that falsifies the theory. Any such evidence is assumed to be more proof of the subtlety and power of the conspirators in misleading the public. They are like Creationism in that sense.
Never ascribe to malice what can be explained perfectly well by stupidity and incompetence.
But the prime characteristic of conspiracy theories and their adherents is that they generally do not admit the reality of evidence that falsifies the theory. Any such evidence is assumed to be more proof of the subtlety and power of the conspirators in misleading the public. They are like Creationism in that sense.
Never ascribe to malice what can be explained perfectly well by stupidity and incompetence.
Absolutely. We have trouble taking a series of random events as random. Science supports the idea that the virus mutations are random and that the fact that the virus has so many different strains of different viruses is a product of evolution.
I always like to think that 99.9% of the time, conspiracy theories are there because we always need to rationalize randomness.
I always like to think that 99.9% of the time, conspiracy theories are there because we always need to rationalize randomness.
@rickg - I think you're putting too much emphasis on purely Darwinian aspects of it, whereas the phenomenon is largely a cultural one, and as such cannot be entirely reduced to evolutionary biochemistry.
Abuse of power is a matter of historical record and collective human experience. People KNOW that authorities cannot, and should not, be taken for granted. It's as simple as that.
Abuse of power is a matter of historical record and collective human experience. People KNOW that authorities cannot, and should not, be taken for granted. It's as simple as that.
@interzone - Well, yes and no. Of ourse we are right to question and be skeptical of powerful interests. That's an essential function of investigative journalism. Corruption, venality, mismanagement, incompetence--these are all common characteristics of all sufficiently large human endeavors (and even a lot of small ones!).
But conspiracy theories, like religions (and I say this as an active member of a religious community), are social constructs often used to organize a number of (possibly spurious) observations that have nothing to do with one another into a whole that fits some preconceived pattern. All evidence to the contrary is explained away as part of the conspiracy.
Some kinds of conspiracy theories are surely particular to our society. But it seems clear to me that, although believing in them may not have any particular evolutionary advantage, the tendency to organize our observations around some core explanatory mechanism does have advantages. Thus the natural appeal.
I grant that "just because you're is paranoid doesn't mean no one's out to get you." However, *real* evidence of malfeasance among the powerful doesn't imply the kinds of all-powerful, secret-society conspiracies are really out there. Skull and Bones to the contrary notwithstanding :).
But conspiracy theories, like religions (and I say this as an active member of a religious community), are social constructs often used to organize a number of (possibly spurious) observations that have nothing to do with one another into a whole that fits some preconceived pattern. All evidence to the contrary is explained away as part of the conspiracy.
Some kinds of conspiracy theories are surely particular to our society. But it seems clear to me that, although believing in them may not have any particular evolutionary advantage, the tendency to organize our observations around some core explanatory mechanism does have advantages. Thus the natural appeal.
I grant that "just because you're is paranoid doesn't mean no one's out to get you." However, *real* evidence of malfeasance among the powerful doesn't imply the kinds of all-powerful, secret-society conspiracies are really out there. Skull and Bones to the contrary notwithstanding :).
@rickg - IF you define conspiracy theories as
"social constructs often used to organize a number of (possibly spurious) observations that have nothing to do with one another into a whole that fits some preconceived pattern"
THEN your critique of them is correct.
Nevertheless, I think it's more prudent to view a conspiracy theory as just that - a theory - and to examine it on the face of evidence, as one would do with any theory.
Actually, if one adds only a single word to your definition - the word is "seemingly", you figure out where it should be inserted - then you have a perfect description of what EVERY theory of ANY kind does: a theory is an intellectual attempt to correlate seemingly unrelated bits of data, and interpret them as a meaningful whole that fits "some preconceived pattern", namely, that of the theory itself. And yet, instead of summarily discarding theories as products of wasteful, delusional activity, we carefully examine them, don't we? Why should conspiracy theories be treated any different?
Additionally, a conspiracy does not require "all-powerful, secret-society" - "malfeasance among the powerful" will suffice. In fact, it's unwarranted concentration of power in the hands of the MEDIOCRE that most often leads to abuse of it. Conspiracy, in turn, is conditio sine qua non of every abuse of power - it has to be done in secrecy, by definition.
"social constructs often used to organize a number of (possibly spurious) observations that have nothing to do with one another into a whole that fits some preconceived pattern"
THEN your critique of them is correct.
Nevertheless, I think it's more prudent to view a conspiracy theory as just that - a theory - and to examine it on the face of evidence, as one would do with any theory.
Actually, if one adds only a single word to your definition - the word is "seemingly", you figure out where it should be inserted - then you have a perfect description of what EVERY theory of ANY kind does: a theory is an intellectual attempt to correlate seemingly unrelated bits of data, and interpret them as a meaningful whole that fits "some preconceived pattern", namely, that of the theory itself. And yet, instead of summarily discarding theories as products of wasteful, delusional activity, we carefully examine them, don't we? Why should conspiracy theories be treated any different?
Additionally, a conspiracy does not require "all-powerful, secret-society" - "malfeasance among the powerful" will suffice. In fact, it's unwarranted concentration of power in the hands of the MEDIOCRE that most often leads to abuse of it. Conspiracy, in turn, is conditio sine qua non of every abuse of power - it has to be done in secrecy, by definition.
I don't think that all conspiracy theories should be dismissed out-of-hand. It's an easy tactic but logical fallacy to simply call something a conspiracy theory as a way to discredit it.
Are there real conspiracies? Of course. But we only ever hear about the ones on a smaller scale or stupid enough to get caught. Rarely does something like Watergate come to light.
My favorite obviously false conspiracy theory has to do with a blog that states the Chinese are actually Africans possibly imported by the Chinese government to do medical experiments on as a way of infiltrating the U.S. It's just so ludicrously awful as to be funny. Warning: this is a REALLY racist blog:
http://stoptheinvasionoforegon.wordpress.com/2009/01/18/chinese-are-really-branch-of-negroids-or-why-i-dread-the-invasion-of-swarthies/ (warning: this is a really racist blog).
Are there real conspiracies? Of course. But we only ever hear about the ones on a smaller scale or stupid enough to get caught. Rarely does something like Watergate come to light.
My favorite obviously false conspiracy theory has to do with a blog that states the Chinese are actually Africans possibly imported by the Chinese government to do medical experiments on as a way of infiltrating the U.S. It's just so ludicrously awful as to be funny. Warning: this is a REALLY racist blog:
http://stoptheinvasionoforegon.wordpress.com/2009/01/18/chinese-are-really-branch-of-negroids-or-why-i-dread-the-invasion-of-swarthies/ (warning: this is a really racist blog).
voted helpful: interzone
I love conspiracy theories. I even came up with one of my own that I think is pretty plausible, but others would disagree: all professional sports games are completely scripted down to every pass and dribble. I have many reasons for thinking this: 1) Everybody knows that professional wrestling is "as choreographed as any ballet" (quote from Lisa Simpson), so why is it so far-out to think that professional basketball or professional baseball is staged. 2) I find it hard to believe that a game could be that close; I've seen a few elementary/high school basketball games in my time, and about 90 per cent of the ones I've seen end in some crushing defeat, like 50-12 or 75-14. I've never seen a score margin like that in a professional basketball game; it seems like they're always down to the wire - 102-103 with five seconds left...
Anyway, I'd have to say my favorite conspiracy theory that I didn't dream up while watching a basketball game would have to be the one about extraterrestrials helping earthlings build all the great structures of the ancient world, such as the Sphinx and the pyramids (both in Africa and South America). How did they get there? Each stone in the pyramids weigh several tons. It would've taken a lot of manpower to build those. Even more impressive and surprising is the fact that many of the pyramids around the world are built so that the sun will rise directly over it's corners at the solstice and the equinox. Either ancient people were stronger and smarter than we give them credit for or they got some help from little green men in flying saucers. Also, there's the related theory that aliens also built the supposed "face" on Mars. Coincidence? Probably, but I choose to think not. Looks a bit like the Sphinx... Hmmm... It's a little "iffy" but it's definitely there:
Anyway, I'd have to say my favorite conspiracy theory that I didn't dream up while watching a basketball game would have to be the one about extraterrestrials helping earthlings build all the great structures of the ancient world, such as the Sphinx and the pyramids (both in Africa and South America). How did they get there? Each stone in the pyramids weigh several tons. It would've taken a lot of manpower to build those. Even more impressive and surprising is the fact that many of the pyramids around the world are built so that the sun will rise directly over it's corners at the solstice and the equinox. Either ancient people were stronger and smarter than we give them credit for or they got some help from little green men in flying saucers. Also, there's the related theory that aliens also built the supposed "face" on Mars. Coincidence? Probably, but I choose to think not. Looks a bit like the Sphinx... Hmmm... It's a little "iffy" but it's definitely there:
voted helpful: interzone
I like your basketball conspiracy!
None of the conspiracy theories is true. In fact, all the evidence for all the conspiracies is faked. There is a secretive organization known as the League of Insane Elder Storytellers based in the basements of a small village in the Black Forest of Bavaria which has agents everywhere. They have amused themselves for centuries by starting absurd stories and planting the evidence here and there around the world. Their greatest invention was the Internet, Gore was just an unwitting dupe. Once the Internet took hold, their stories became unkillable.
Some of the houses above those basements:
Some of the houses above those basements:
voted helpful: interzone
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