Having spent far too much time and energy over the last few years trying to get my head around the mentality behind Trump and QAnon and Brexit and anti-fact, anti-science, anti-vaxxers (or vaccers, as I would spell it) and all the rest, I turned to that reliably sober source of information and opinion known as the yoochoobdotcom.

I've come to feel great admiration for SciManDan, an English geezer whose down-to-earth, no-nonsense attitude backed up by proper, real, grown-up science, trashes every flat-earther and moon-landing denier going - and so much more craziness besides. Those well-worn nonsense theories are just the tip of a very deep and disturbing iceberg of human insanity, much of which Dan taps into. I get mad just watching the videos he debunks, so respect to him for taking the trouble to go through them point by point so we don't have to.

But what actually prompted this post was that tonight I watched a video by Professor Dave Explains which is just about the simplest and neatest ten-point debunking of Flat Eartherism (and, importantly, the psychopathies surrounding it and similar so-called conspiracy theories) that I've ever seen.

Conspiracy theories really interest me, not in the "well they must be right" way, just more what it says about the human condition to be able to blindly follow something that is so clearly incorrect.

It just goes to show we're not the logical, intelligent, supreme beings we claim we are and are really driven by emotions and emotional attachment to beliefs no matter what happens.

All this stuff is one major negative of the Internet. Whilst I will never advocate controls of Internet and freedom of speech, there has to be something that makes readers of false information aware its all hoccum.

Its the naive that are preyed on by these people and those are the ones we need to protect most.

The only answer that will have any chance of moving humans forward is education.
Unfortunately the supposed leaders of the world refuse to do this because then who would believe them.
Look across the world and you see destruction,wars,famine,genicide and the only people who benefit are the rich and powerful.
Human death tolls are collateral damage nothing more to the (Elite) although I have another name for such supposed leaders.
I am a realist nothing more.

The biggest conspiracy theories that the human race blindly follow without evidence is that of religion, a touchy subject I know, but alongside the mainstream religions, there are a myriad of different beliefs that all declare they are right and the rest are wrong.

I agree with all the above. “No heaven or hell below us, above us only sky”. Lennon was right. Religion causes so much stupidity, and the only solution must be education, education, education.

There was a Radio 4 programme a year or two back where all recent Prime Ministers and senior cabinet ministers still alive were interviewed. Asa final question the interviewer (it might have been Simon Sharma) asked, what do you most regret about your term in office? Without exception the response was a wish that greater emphasis had been placed on the importance of education during their time. It’s the only way we’ll change society for the better.

Lennon wasn’t right though about there only being sky above us.

With regards to the OP, there is a good documentary about at the moment called the Social Experiment, or something like that. I saw it on Netflix, and it seemed to explain neatly to me why we are seeing a rise in radical idiocy.

Definitely worth looking at this site http://www.their.tube/

It simulates how youtube behaves when you've got a history of looking for certain things.

Shows how dangerous and easy it is to get pulled into a whirlpool of misinformation

With regards to the OP, there is a good documentary about at the moment called the Social Experiment, or something like that. I saw it on Netflix, and it seemed to explain neatly to me why we are seeing a rise in radical idiocy.

Your friendly ol' OP posted on that very documentary on the 22nd September:

viewtopic.php?f=10&t=112211

It's scary sh1t, man, as highlighted by that there their.tube stuff too. Trouble is, I've been following this kind of thing for a few years now, and it's just the tip of a very dirty iceberg - and it's only going to get worse.

[Biggs]

Once someone gets on the conspiracy bandwagon, it's very hard to reason with them.

Show them a factual piece of information... 'it's been faked'

Introduce them to an expert on the subject... 'he's been paid off'

With most conspiracy theories, once you spend 10 seconds thinking what reason there'd be to cover it up, and then how many thousands and millions of people would have to keep quiet or be paid off... it all falls apart to any rational person.