Conspiracy Theories

By Dr Sudip Kumar Nanda - 2007-09-05 Find more articles like this in our Disability Articles category.

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Whether it is an event or an incident, a movement or an action, there are some who perceive and interpret and explain them in a manner different from what they appear.

When such inferences are made with a religious faith as if they are correct casting aspersions or doubts on the veracity of facts, such perceptions appear taking form of a conspiracy view point.

Beginning from the landing in the moon in 1969 and prior to that the assassination of President Lincoln and the subsequent events like the murder of President Kennedy, the seizure of Afghanistan capital or the Iraqi War, each of these events is considered as an expression of a clandestine intention with ulterior motives, by theorists who swear by conspiracy logic.

It is difficult to call all who believe in separate set of facts or fictional conclusions from the real issues as freaks. At the same time, they cannot be also be classified as pure objective analysts since they suffer from preconceived notions and a sense of cultivated bias while interpreting the world and its events. Such brand of people who believe in orchestrated or preconceived notions, claim themselves to be the authors of new truth and are like the fifth estate of the society.

The people who propagate, profess and adhere to fixed notions and evaluate a given set of facts and call them as false or see a hidden meaning are authors of conspiracy theories. Such theories find favour with those who examine facts closely not on their face value or who harbour resentment to a substantial degree against the powerful, rich and the ruling class and try to read ulterior or attribute motives. Usually, such perceptions are made in the context of most successful, powerful and tall persons or nations, who they say, are driven by some hidden objectives or secret agenda. The proponents who make their theory loud everywhere may not already have evidences to adduce to their view points and usually are seductive to ideas of anti-establishments, cynical assessment and a negative or pessimistic portrayal of the eventual facts.

Mr. David Icke known, as a popular conspiracy author does not refrain even from referring to a group called “the Illuminate” who has been holding the baton of power since ancient times. This “Illuminate” is referred to as a secret blood line of the “reptoids”. 1

The race of space aliens who bred with humans to create a royal line of successors which include Rock fellers, British Royal Family as well as most presidents of USA. There are also others in the same conspiracy group of thinking like Bill Kaysing who said“ we never went to the moon”. Even people like Henry Ford also hold the opinion that the Jews are working secretly to control the world. Such conspiracy provoking authors remain not only confine themselves to political and real world events but also take the same view actuated by fiction ridden premises in other fields viz. medicines, vaccines, space craft missions. Some also go to the extent of saying that pharmaceutical companies create new markets by inventing fears and sell their injections and medicines while others feel that the vaccines are not less than traps and contain toxicity. Websites, such as Crank.net, Serendipity website are also available which pronounce special motives behind 9/11 event or an event like capture of Iraq. The serendipity website which is totally modelled on philosophy of John Stuart Mill is opposed to emerging concepts of new world order, barrier less trading and advocates the right of people to live their lives in an unobstructed manner away from levers of powers and shackles of domination. They view the dominant state in the world as one rapacious in nature and are opposed to high tech capital corporates. They also look at the sprouting religious organizations as symbols of authoritarianism, which deprive the common people from enjoying life, freedom, health and happiness. 2

As regards assassination of Abraham Lincoln, the conspiracy theorists believe that shooter John Wilkes Booth was only a tool used by Vice President Andrew Johnson to kill him. Some others believed it to be a conspiracy by powerful international bankers, since President Lincoln started a reconstruction policy by avoiding hire interest loans and pursuing protection policies. 3

In the similar manner, the proponents of the new world order conspiracy theory which was a subject of hot debate in July, 2004, believe that history is manipulated by leaders, powerful and tall in stature in international system and hold on to the view that all moves and counter moves have the ulterior motive of gaining control of the masses something akin to German Concentration Camps in 1940. Such a roof to bottom view helps spinning off new stories highlighting the babbles that are spewed in all News channels and Broadcast Stations. Even the website of the Propagandamatrix.com goes to the extent of accusing American Government of sponsoring terrorism and evolving concept of new world order meant for overall control.

The American Space programme also provides grist in the mill to the conspiracy loving Europeans that American domination is meant for “do it alone” or “go it alone” ways. After the Iraq war the President of USA’s recent announcement to have a space programme to Mars, has raised eyebrows that this world is not enough for USA. The profligate and ambitions spending is seen by some in the same light as President Kennedy’s Apollo Project in 1961 which was announced to recreate a new role for USA and future vision of the State. The conspiracy theorists view the unfolding of an event or action and analyze the points, belonging to either a new concept, or group or an event or for a particular place or any compulsion leading to an event from viewpoint of their legitimate beliefs, even if they look outlandish unconventional or emotional in content.

Be it Dianna’s death or Lincoln’s assassination, the event is not taken at face value but various other hidden factors, vested interests and personal factors are also attributed to have exerted the decisive role. The theorists may not be totally wrong but the theory starts with rejection of what is told and the value of any conspiracy story depends to what extent the why, how and when factors are logically explained since without these rational explanations, it can’t evolve its logic and be acceptable down to all throats.

Take the case of the Moon Landing in 1969, the skeptics question whether actually such missions ever took place; the spacecraft landed or it was simply a trick or tactic to outpace the Soviet Sputnik Shock effects that were floating in the horizon? This debate got activated and presented in February, 2001 when Fox Television aired a programme “Conspiracy Theory”. 4

It said that NASA didn’t have technology but wanted to win one up in space race and the Apollo Mission was the brainchild of NASA. The arguments made to justify this were that the pictures transmitted did not include stars and that the flag was waving though there was no presence of air or breeze in Moon.

In this programme of Hoax Moon landing, the NASA quickly refuted these claims through press releases websites and other discussion forums. It was explained that astronauts walking across the bright lunar surface in thin whitish sunlit suits were dazzling and setting any camera with proper exposure for such glaring spacesuit would make the background stars too faint to be seen.

Similarly, as regards the pictures of Astronauts erecting a flag, bending and rippling, with no breeze around, it was explained that when they planted the flagpole they rotated it back and forth to have the grip and it would naturally bring momentum seen through waves and ripples on its surface. The Fox documentary shot out several questions and NASA promptly came with rebuttals. 5

The evidence that the Apollo programme was ongoing was enough. A dozen astronauts with cameras walking between 1969 to 1972 were all portrayed and out of them nine are still alive and can narrate their experience. They did not come back also empty handed, since they brought 841 pounds of Moon Rock to Mother Earth. The Johnson Space Centre of NASA is still the storehouse for these rocks. Dr. David Mckay, Chief Scientist who looks after the Lunar laboratory project said “they differ from earth rocks in many respects”.6

Similarly, Dr. Marc Norman a lunar geologist at University of Tasmania had to say that particles of fresh glass were found in the rocks which meant continuous lava flow due to volcanic eruptions with no traces of water.7

Any person with commonsense can obviously make out the structure and appearance from geology and chemistry angles.

The presence of meteoroids having effects on the moon and also the cosmic rays leaving imprints on Rocks were also brought into the polemics after the Fox show, highlighting the fallacies of Hoax or Apollo conspiracy theory. The process of Isotopes on Moon surface unlike Earth due to nuclear reactions with cosmic rays was also explained. No one could recreate such a matter with exclusive features under any conditions was the smart denial of NASA.

The argument of the programme aired on Fox TV was also that when the lander took off from Moon to bring astronauts into orbit there was no flame and so it was fake. But it was explained that the fuel contained a mix of hydrazine and denitrogen tetroxide which could not produce a flame when ignited since the product was transparent in nature. It was also argued that radiation would kill astronauts when the passed through the “Van Allen” zone, although in reality the Zone is above earth’s surface and the spaceship passed this zone quickly and the metal hull of spaceship blocked the radiation and astronauts could not die.

NASA scientists called conspiracy theories as HB (Hoax Believers) who were gaining credence just because people tended to believe and be carried away with no knowledge of facts. Conspiracy theory start with premise that news is manipulated, information concealed and events are coloured by official propaganda tools. The strength of arguments can only be in their logic and rational explanations and not buckets of doubts and needles of suspicions only which explained Iraq Was as a discharge of obligation towards President election campaign contributors.

The evidence that the conspiracy theory is actually believable or not finally rests on public opinion. In 1999 a Gallup poll showed that only 6% Americans doubted the Moon landing and not 20% as claimed by Fox TV programme. 8

The issue of Moon landing - A Hoax, has not doubt silenced due to overweighing of evidences in favour of the mission and also the true scientific and rationalistic explanations offered. The net answer would be that Rocks could not have been collected or manufactured save Apollo sending spaceman to get them to this globe. In short the theorists who spin a conspiracy angle are after all an embodiment of some world view. This view has to meet the logic of reason; prudence and evidence in order to survive as otherwise it would be categorized as another Hollywood best seller full of fiction and whimpers creating no bang.

About the Author: He is a Government Civil Servant in Government of Gujarat- India. He can be contacted via email on sknanda56@yahoo.com.