How Conspiracy Theories Get Started

Conspiracy theories would never get much traction if all the facts were laid bare for the public to see at the time of the incident. Unfortunately, those who have something to hide from the public usually do hide it. And sometimes those who have nothing to hide simply mishandle the situation and thus fuel suspicion.

Governments tend to be mistrusted because they are usually big power wielding entities that have a history of being less than truthful with the folks. Sometimes they do it to “protect” the people and sometimes they do it to protect themselves from the people. Sometimes they do it because revealing certain information could help our enemies get the better of us. Sometimes they do it to avoid taking an action that could escalate an existing tension.

The nature of humans is to seek an answer that satisfies their curiosity about a particular incident. (That is why detective and mystery novels are so popular.) If the answer they are given sounds incredible, they will usually try to formulate an answer that seems more plausible. Worse still, if they are given no answer, others, often with little or no real knowledge, step in to explain the cause and the rumor mill really gets to grinding.

Sometimes this is to the benefit of those who prefer the facts remain unknown. Conspiracy theories help them cover up or obscure the truth. The crazier the theories that are out there, the better it becomes for them, because then all theories become suspect. So those theories that are actually based on fact and are reasonable get tossed on the pile with all the rest.

These theories provide countless hours of entertainment for millions of people and are an industry unto themselves; spawning books, websites, movies and endless hours of discussion.

It usually starts with an incident that grabs the public’s attention. Those directly involved, whether it be government or individuals, release either minimal information or none. Then the search for answers to those unanswered questions begins.

Eventually the incident fades from the memory of most people and the people who know the facts either move on or die of old age. The truth may actually be told fifty or on hundred years later, but by then, the truth is pretty much useless especially if a crime is involved, as no action can be taken against the perpetrators.

I’m sure you can think of at least four or five incidents that have conspiracy theories revolving around them.

I think I am seeing one in the making right now; Questions about the President-Elect’s birth certificate have been making the rounds of the internet, with all kinds of wild claims being made. Like all the rest, it will eventually become a legend, because some people believe they are being deceived about his citizenship and so they will come up with an explanation that satisfies their need for an answer.

And so it goes on and on.