by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner
Because we live in such uncertain times, a lot of people get a lot of comfort from conspiracy theories. The idea that there is this or that conspiracy that is “really” running the world gives order to an otherwise pretty fucking up situation.
And, yet, big conspiracies don’t hold up. Now, let me be very specific about what I’m talking about — conspiracies that are a secret and are really controlling the world around us. There have been a number of actual conspiracies over the years — the one organized by Islamic extremists to cause the 9/11 attacks being one of them — but that was a specific quasi-military conspiracy that we all know about now.
I’m talking more about the type of conspiracy that 9/11 “truthers” believe in — that a still secret, massive conspiracy was really behind the 9/11 attacks. It’s conspiracies like that which are just bullshit. So, there have been plenty of subtle conspiracy-like events over the years — must of them done by the CIA, natch — but, again, they’re well known now (at least in certain circles) and aren’t on-going.
The biggest obstacle to any major conspiracy working — and staying secret — is people are generally dumb. Any actual massive conspiracy to control the world would either fall apart or be discovered or both.
Most real conspiracies that are going on around us are actually known about and people just lulz them. This sometimes leads people who maybe are already not all that stable to freak out and lose their minds. And, also, a lot of things one might see as “conspiracies” are more simply a lot of powerful people know each other and have a vested interest in this or that thing happening — or not happening.
So, when people like Trump, who is a very lazy would-be autocrat — wants to do something stupid and tyrannical and they don’t get their way, they think there’s some sort of secret cabal Deep State that is standing in their way. What they refuse to admit is they could very well get exactly what they want –an autocracy — if they were willing to do the hard work of being an autocrat. They would have to knock some heads and risk a popular revolt. But Trump, specifically is very lazy and stupid and so he feels stymied by the “Deep State.”
Additionally, there is the occasional small-scale conspiracy that does happen but even then, they always are exposed.
One of the arguments for there NOT being a Kennedy assassination conspiracy is it’s generations later and we still have no proof that one existed. If one had happened, someone, somewhere would have been sloppy, or had a deathbed confession — with proof — and we would all know what “really” happened.
This type of argument could also be used for even bigger supposed conspiracies. It’s difficult to imagine that governments around the world would be able to keep First Contact with aliens a secret. Of course, occasionally, some random scientist or military person who is really old starts to blab about this very thing…but without any proof. It’s just really, really, hard to keep a huge secret in any government forever.
So, yes, there probably are a few conspiracies floating around the world, but I seriously doubt there all that powerful in the lives of the average person in any concrete manner. There are plenty of Powers That Be that have constructed a “reality” that they have a vested interest in maintaining, but that’s just human existence.
