Comments on: The Conspiracy Mindset http://www.afilsforyourthoughts.com/blog/2008/02/19/the-conspiracy-mindset/ Where Ideas are Valued.. and Evaluated Sat, 12 Mar 2011 14:02:52 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Haider http://www.afilsforyourthoughts.com/blog/2008/02/19/the-conspiracy-mindset/comment-page-1/#comment-300 Haider Sun, 23 Mar 2008 05:28:46 +0000 http://www.afilsforyourthoughts.com/blog/2008/02/19/the-conspiracy-mindset/#comment-300 Seth, I wasn't familiar with the term "fiat currency" before you mentioned it, and don't know the specifics of how the economy operates. Once I find out, I'll be posting an article on it where we can discuss the issue further :) Thanks for all the info.. Seth, I wasn’t familiar with the term “fiat currency” before you mentioned it, and don’t know the specifics of how the economy operates. Once I find out, I’ll be posting an article on it where we can discuss the issue further :)

Thanks for all the info..

]]> By: Seth http://www.afilsforyourthoughts.com/blog/2008/02/19/the-conspiracy-mindset/comment-page-1/#comment-279 Seth Sat, 22 Mar 2008 16:58:17 +0000 http://www.afilsforyourthoughts.com/blog/2008/02/19/the-conspiracy-mindset/#comment-279 In Germany before World War 2 their fiat currency became meaningless. Men had worked their entire lives to accumulate wealth to protect their families, and then they were burning the money to keep warm at night because it was absolutely worthless. Now I want you to imagine New York City were the same thing to happen in America. Manhattan has enough food to last three days. Then people begin to starve. Starve, Haider. Not run out into the country and pick an apple tree. Starve. And if it is winter they will freeze. Millions of people. America, what many believe to be the richest nation in the world, has an EIGHT TRILLION dollar deficit. Like, what's the point in even keeping count now? Our citizenry has no true buying power, except for the small percentage who have invested in gold and have it on hand. And all major industries have been centralized into the hands of a miniscule minority, most of whom have influence over the value of our currency and our government's policies. I am out of auotpilot mode, but this does not change the grave situation my country and the world will face when this system collapses. In Germany before World War 2 their fiat currency became meaningless. Men had worked their entire lives to accumulate wealth to protect their families, and then they were burning the money to keep warm at night because it was absolutely worthless. Now I want you to imagine New York City were the same thing to happen in America. Manhattan has enough food to last three days. Then people begin to starve. Starve, Haider. Not run out into the country and pick an apple tree. Starve. And if it is winter they will freeze. Millions of people.

America, what many believe to be the richest nation in the world, has an EIGHT TRILLION dollar deficit. Like, what’s the point in even keeping count now? Our citizenry has no true buying power, except for the small percentage who have invested in gold and have it on hand. And all major industries have been centralized into the hands of a miniscule minority, most of whom have influence over the value of our currency and our government’s policies. I am out of auotpilot mode, but this does not change the grave situation my country and the world will face when this system collapses.

]]> By: Haider http://www.afilsforyourthoughts.com/blog/2008/02/19/the-conspiracy-mindset/comment-page-1/#comment-247 Haider Wed, 19 Mar 2008 05:09:16 +0000 http://www.afilsforyourthoughts.com/blog/2008/02/19/the-conspiracy-mindset/#comment-247 I agree, but have to stress that it doesn't have to be up to world leaders to determine the course of our lives. We just have to come out of autopilot mode. I agree, but have to stress that it doesn’t have to be up to world leaders to determine the course of our lives. We just have to come out of autopilot mode.

]]> By: Seth http://www.afilsforyourthoughts.com/blog/2008/02/19/the-conspiracy-mindset/comment-page-1/#comment-236 Seth Tue, 18 Mar 2008 15:35:59 +0000 http://www.afilsforyourthoughts.com/blog/2008/02/19/the-conspiracy-mindset/#comment-236 Like I said, I share your frustrations with those people who declare themselves helpless in the face of a conspiracy, and I agree that some "conspiracy theorists" are irrational. I simply advocate that we should not throw the baby out with the bathwater, as you also seem to advocate in your opinion on Western media. I think we can both agree that we are facing serious problems that have been orchestrated by world leaders (Iran is a wonderful example) and I think that the first step in solving these problems is understanding how they came to be in the first place. Like I said, I share your frustrations with those people who declare themselves helpless in the face of a conspiracy, and I agree that some “conspiracy theorists” are irrational. I simply advocate that we should not throw the baby out with the bathwater, as you also seem to advocate in your opinion on Western media. I think we can both agree that we are facing serious problems that have been orchestrated by world leaders (Iran is a wonderful example) and I think that the first step in solving these problems is understanding how they came to be in the first place.

]]> By: Haider http://www.afilsforyourthoughts.com/blog/2008/02/19/the-conspiracy-mindset/comment-page-1/#comment-232 Haider Tue, 18 Mar 2008 14:57:08 +0000 http://www.afilsforyourthoughts.com/blog/2008/02/19/the-conspiracy-mindset/#comment-232 Dear Seth, I don't deny that there are factual conspiracies, some of which we may not feel comfortable accepting because we can't understand how a government can have the power that it has, or question the intentions of people we revere. We cannot overlook conspiracy theories simply because we do not wish to accept that they are true. However, my issue with conspiracy theories is that they become the default explanation to everything, and I mean EVERYTHING. For example, I have some ideological and political disagreements with Iran, and I can explain to you what these disagreements are and why I have them. But a conspiracy theorist isn't prepared to consider my reasons. By simply undermining Iran and its Islamic vision, I am accused of working with the US as part of its conspiracy against Iran and Islam. Conspiracy theories have no end, and they make us dismiss important factors that exist beyond the authority of the conspirator. I accept that my ideas can be used by others to further their own ends, but a conspiracy theorist would accuse *me* of sharing the same intentions as the conspirator, or at least accusing me of being a sell out. A "conspiracy theorist" once posted a message on an Islamic forum that we shouldn't listen to anything in Western media, to which I replied that we cannot dismiss everything coming from the West entirely. He sent me a personal message accusing me of being a non-Muslim, and an enemy of Islam! You see, it makes more sense to him that everything is directly connected to a conspirator, rather than accept that there are other issues that come into play, which we have to understand. I would also say that the reason why conspiracies work so well is because our cultures operate on autopilot, and so it's very easy for political institutions to influence culture, and predict how people would behave, and what needs to be done to steer people in different directions. In other words, *we* are easy pawns in the hand of a conspirator, not because we are being brainwashed, but because we don't make use of our brains the way we should, and can easily fall into the traps of those in authority. There's no use in simply blaming the conspirator, but must change our culture so that we become more educated and have a better understanding of politics, economics, etc, so that we are not manipulated so easily. Dear Seth, I don’t deny that there are factual conspiracies, some of which we may not feel comfortable accepting because we can’t understand how a government can have the power that it has, or question the intentions of people we revere. We cannot overlook conspiracy theories simply because we do not wish to accept that they are true.

However, my issue with conspiracy theories is that they become the default explanation to everything, and I mean EVERYTHING. For example, I have some ideological and political disagreements with Iran, and I can explain to you what these disagreements are and why I have them. But a conspiracy theorist isn’t prepared to consider my reasons. By simply undermining Iran and its Islamic vision, I am accused of working with the US as part of its conspiracy against Iran and Islam.

Conspiracy theories have no end, and they make us dismiss important factors that exist beyond the authority of the conspirator. I accept that my ideas can be used by others to further their own ends, but a conspiracy theorist would accuse *me* of sharing the same intentions as the conspirator, or at least accusing me of being a sell out.

A “conspiracy theorist” once posted a message on an Islamic forum that we shouldn’t listen to anything in Western media, to which I replied that we cannot dismiss everything coming from the West entirely. He sent me a personal message accusing me of being a non-Muslim, and an enemy of Islam!

You see, it makes more sense to him that everything is directly connected to a conspirator, rather than accept that there are other issues that come into play, which we have to understand.

I would also say that the reason why conspiracies work so well is because our cultures operate on autopilot, and so it’s very easy for political institutions to influence culture, and predict how people would behave, and what needs to be done to steer people in different directions. In other words, *we* are easy pawns in the hand of a conspirator, not because we are being brainwashed, but because we don’t make use of our brains the way we should, and can easily fall into the traps of those in authority.

There’s no use in simply blaming the conspirator, but must change our culture so that we become more educated and have a better understanding of politics, economics, etc, so that we are not manipulated so easily.

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