What is a conspiracy theorist?
I know that there are people who read my emails and have sometimes labelled me a “conspiracy theorist”. What’s interesting to me is that they don’t appear to understand the meaning or history of the phrase.
Here are some of my thoughts.
Used to discredit
Throughout the Covid pseudopandemic, the phrase “conspiracy theorist” soared through the zeitgeist.
Suddenly, anybody found questioning the official story was deemed a “conspiracy theorist” worthy of censorship and, in some instances, jail time.
I remember, back in early 2020, when I was threatened with arrest for hosting David Icke on my podcast, because he claimed that COVID-19 is not real.
As it turns out, it appears that he was correct.
But it actually doesn’t matter, because nobody should be criminalised for their words. (History should be our guide, here.)
And, anyway, so what if people disagree on things?
What if the official story is wrong? (It often is.)
Without dissenting opinions, truth can’t be established.
The CIA knew this
The CIA knew this back in the 1960s.
… the “conspiracy theory” term a weapon to be wielded against almost any individual or group calling the government’s increasingly clandestine programs and activities into question. – James Tracy, circa 2013
In other words, the CIA did not want people questioning the assassination of JFK, and wanted to control public discourse. (Oh, hello, Operation Mockingbird.)
The directive, known as Document 1035-960, was released by the CIA in 1976, after a FOIA (Freedom Of Information Access) request by the New York Times, in which it details a series of actions and techniques for “countering and discrediting the claims of the conspiracy theorists, so as to inhibit the circulation of such claims in other countries.”
One example was to remind “friendly elite contacts (especially politicians and editors)” about the accuracy and soundness of the Warren Commission Report, and that “further speculative discussion only plays in to the hands of the [Communist] opposition.”
Basically, if you challenged the government’s story, then you were an evil commie.
I doubt that you’re an evil commie.
Critical thinking
The CIA also told its members “[t]o employ propaganda assets to [negate] and refute the attacks of the critics. Book reviews and feature articles are particularly appropriate for this purpose.”
The phrase “conspiracy theorist” is now a regularly used pejorative by those who unquestioningly eat what they’re fed, including those keeping the food warm (like the corporate media and academia).
Being a conspiracy theorist is a compliment because it means that you are not outsourcing your critical thinking.
Stay safe in the information war trenches!
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Tom
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If you think about it, everything’s a conspiracy theory until proven otherwise. There are only two possibilities…either the theory is the truth or it is a false conspiracy. Those that want to hide the truth will label anything that disagrees with their lies and the propaganda as a conspiracy theory. They further demonize dissenters as conspiracy theorists. So what? It’s no worse than being called an anti-vaxxer.
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John V
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I am glad you posted this. As JFK assassination buff, I have known this for over 30 years and try to educate anyone I can that the government has been in the misinformation game for a long time. Just like the Covid narrative has been shown to be total greed and population control, the JFK narrative put forth by the Warren Commission Report has been found to be lies to cover up a coup d’etat.
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monkey*poops
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it’s always interesting and annoying to see how people slowly change their mind.
for example: when you were talking about 911 that doesnt really make much sense and there are “just some things that doesn’t really fit together” you were conspiracy theorist….
after years more people got that feeling and the change their believes. the ones that ware strong defenders of the official narrative suddenly behave like they knew it all the way, from beginning. same poop with elections: the one that vote for the guy will then forgot their little contribution and behave like they would never do this….
bunch of spinless pricks… and that’s why we are where we are!
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Len Winokur
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Accusations of one being a “Conspiracy theorist” and of a narrative being a “Conspiracy theory” are assualt weapons and defences used by those with a “None are so deaf as those who won’t hear” mentality.
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