On one of the other hubs (about the legacy of George Bush Jr.), there were some conspiracy theories that were put forward. There was talk of the "mainstream media" selling people information that was not true about incidents like 9/11, etc. Well, I thought its about time this topic was discussed at length. Some of us are obsessive about propagating and believing in conspiracy theories and some of us (like me) are just plainly disgusted by suggestions of events like 9/11 being orchestrated by official (secret) figures in the establishment.

Well, so what is a conspiracy theory? It is basically a theory put forward questioning the official version of events. It may not be supported by undeniable facts but somehow these gain popularity among a section of people. What makes conspiracy theories stand out is, for one, the outlandishness of it all. Apart from that though, conspiracy theories are significant in that they offer broad and vague arguments (opinions in most cases) - often unrelated events joined up to form a narrative.

Theoretically, of course, every major world incident (even minor ones) can be questioned. It doesn't take much to sit around and look for things that can be questioned and then weaved into a complex, fantastic story. Certainly, conspiracy theories don't require much effort. There is no responsibility (for example) to support their opinions with evidence. Evidence doesn't matter to conspiracy theorists - they've in fact made up their mind that the officials have stage-managed a particular incident. So, it does not matter to them if a few of their arguments or opinions are punctured and rubbished, they just come up with new questions. So, as you can see, it takes nothing at all to be a conspiracy theorist. All you need is lots of spare time to idle around, thinking up questions to ask.

The question does arise though as to how so many people buy into conspiracy theories. Well, psychologically, it seems a person who is given to believing in one conspiracy theory will almost certainly believe in others too. So, it seems that certain people are more susceptible to believing in them than others. Also, conspiracy theories depend on reinforcement. So, you have like-minded individuals reinforcing their beliefs to each other and spreading it within groups and communities.

Perhaps, the most popular conspiracy theory in recent times has been about the 9/11 attacks when the Twin Towers were brought down. The conspiracy theorists, in this case, allege that 9/11 was carried out by highly-placed officials in the U.S. Government. Apparently, this was carried out to justify going to wars overseas and to increase military spending. According to these folks, the Twin Towers were brought down through a "controlled demolition" and that one of the hijacked planes was shot down by the military. Apparently, according to them, no plane crashed into the Pentagon.

While all these assertions may seem outlandish and ridiculous to most of us, there are a determined fanatical bunch of believers out there who continue to propagate such claims without any meaningful evidence to support them. One can't imagine news channels like the BBC and all "mainstream media" acting in coordination to suppress a "grand conspiracy" like the 9/11 attacks. Are all these folks on the payroll of some secretive group that in fact runs the world? Rubbish!!

These conspiracy theorists are best ignored. Have you tried arguing with them - its pointless. They are so fixed in their view of things - they are not open to reason. They have already come to conclusions and are only interested in raising new questions and doubts. They are not truth diggers - they aren't interested in the truth. The just like to live in a fantasy world.