Superior intellect/ "conspiracy theorists"

Work said:
I could be wrong but it seems to me that all the anti gov, anti federal reserve, anti liberal conspiracies have a pro fossil fuel nexus.
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More like just being pro human as in people not needlessly starving to death or freezing despite living in developed nation because of some ideologues and corrupt officials decided that the rest of the population didn't need affordable energy.

 
Work said:
I could be wrong but it seems to me that all the anti gov, anti federal reserve, anti liberal conspiracies have a pro fossil fuel nexus.
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I'm not sure what your direct point is, but following money always leads to interesting conclusions
 
Roses In The Vineyard said:
You really don't have a point.
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My point is ...all the right wing conspiracy theories are pushed by organizations funded by the fossil fuel industry. take the council for national policy as a for instance... All the gold backed currency folks and the crypto folks are, at root, funded by the fossil fuel industry, all the pro russian news outlets funded by russian oil interests. the fossil fuel folks are behind the anti democratic/ pro minoritarian political movement. Even the anti vax/ covid hoax conspiracy have their roots in the fossil fuel industry. Shut downs= low fuel consumption.
we have a monkey on our back and it is pushing a knife into our spleen.
 
I'll try to answer this honestly as there was a time when I did think like this...I think.

For me, it was because my intellect was the only thing I had ever received positive feedback about and it was the thing that set me apart from others so it was easier to think that people didn't like me because I was smart and they weren't instead of taking seriously all the other valid reasons they probably had. I (unconsciously) felt inferior in many ways so they probably did too.

What made me snap out of it was meeting a few very intelligent people who were actually applying their intelligence and allowing myself to feel a bit inferior, to be a small fish in a big pond where I'd always only known, and semi-consciously preferred, the reverse.

Getting back in touch with some emotion after being really bottled-up was mind-blowing for me and the first ones to come back with a vengeance were anger and fear which lend themselves quite nicely to conspiracy theories. I could admit to being angry, afraid notsomuch. A kind of, ugh...love...also re-emerged but it was clumsy and grandiose because it could find nothing/no-one tangible to attach to because of the fear. So, it finds manifestation in a pseudo-Jesusey "love" combined with a self-righteous anger.

Essentially, all the messy shit is messy and easily avoided if you're that way inclined. Conspiracy theories project the messiness into the world and into others.

It's not to say that it's not there. Projections need a hook to keep them going and there is enough shady shit done by the so-called good guys (here's lookin' at you, yank) that's quite findoutaboutable. Problem is, the more one denies that projection is at work, the more boring the real conspiracies become so eventually you have to actually do some research and realise you're not that smart which is worse than any conspiracy theory.
 
aeon said:
I wonder if a propensity to believe in conspiracy theories is a maladaptive coping strategy for relief of anxiety in those with a lower threshold for activation of their amygdala with associated release of cortisol, i.e., a fear/disgust → stress response.

Such a lower threshold has been shown to have a strong positive correlation with those who hold conservative values, i.e., resistant to change/preference for tradition.
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What are you saying about yourself here? Others?

What about conservatives?
 
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just me said:
What are you saying about yourself here? Others?

What about conservatives?
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That there may be a biological correlate to a propensity for conservatism/traditionalism. Nothing other than that, and no moral or value judgement one way or the other.

Cheers,
Ian
 
Work said:
My point is ...all the right wing conspiracy theories are pushed by organizations funded by the fossil fuel industry. take the council for national policy as a for instance... All the gold backed currency folks and the crypto folks are, at root, funded by the fossil fuel industry, all the pro russian news outlets funded by russian oil interests. the fossil fuel folks are behind the anti democratic/ pro minoritarian political movement. Even the anti vax/ covid hoax conspiracy have their roots in the fossil fuel industry. Shut downs= low fuel consumption.
we have a monkey on our back and it is pushing a knife into our spleen.
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You sound like those rich brats over in the UK (climate cultists) that happily deface historic paintings with tomato soup and glue themselves to the floor.
 
Everybody please try to make an effort not to turn this thread into insulting each other based on differing opinions and instead focus on the actual topic.

Granted, I understand the way this thread was started was quite heavy handed to begin with so I take responsibility for that tone.

NONETHELESS

Trrryyy to stay on topic?
 
just me said:
Maladaptive and lower thresholds: do you rank those people as more likely to be conservative?

I'd like to use three simple words for a reason: creation, natural, and artificial. I shall use something as simple as a bridge.

A bridge can be natural. A dead, fallen tree in the right place could be a natural bridge, if the tree fell there by nature. The tree placed there by someone would be an artificial bridge. In this instance, someone most likely created the bridge in their brain before it existed.

" Drawing on her studies of writers in the Iowa Writers' Workshop and other scientific evidence, Andreasen asserts that while creativity may sometimes be linked to mental disorders and may be partially due to familial/genetic factors, neither is inevitable nor needed for creativity to flourish.
Scientist's increasing understanding of the brain's plasticity suggests even more possibilities for nurturing the creative drive, and Andreasen looks ahead to exciting implications for child-rearing and education. The Creating Brain presents an inspiring vision for a future where everyone—not just artists or writers—can fulfill their creative capacity. copied, The Creating Brain

"If creativity is defined in terms of the quality of a product, such as a song, invention, poem or painting, then the left hemisphere plays a key role," said Drexel's John Kounios, who led the study along with David Rosen. "However, if creativity is understood as a person's ability to deal with novel, unfamiliar situations, as is the case for novice improvisers, then the right hemisphere plays the leading role." copied National Science Foundation

We use memory, sight, calculations, imagination, and "gifts" in the brain to create something. When we speak of gifts, the findings of where they come from can take just as much effort. People with gifts can sometimes be those who are lacking in something else. Not everyone who is gifted can be understood, so we might call those "slow. Mozart was a musical genius. Does it take the top 2% to be liberals? I do not see how.

Not many wise men shall inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. Bible

It seems to me our biggest problem with science falls between what is natural and what is created. This should not be the biggest difference in liberal and conservative views, but many claim it to be. Most people vote for who they feel or think who will think like themselves. How can we judge in our minds what to believe in campaigns? Show me what you did the last term: how you voted and what you created. If people created things out of their own boundaries with money from people they represent, they are walking with the wrong people and, therefore, representing the wrong things.

Are they working for themselves and their friends? In my pursuit of happiness, which we are entitled to within boundaries, I cannot vote for those of no faith. All men are created equal. All men are created equal.

Swear on the Bible! I'd read and re-read it and pray before swearing on it.
JFTR, I use both "sides" of my brain

In the never-ending fight we seem to be fighting for God, we have those fighting for themselves and what they want. Stepping on God is no way to create a new world. We were told to care for this place: to subdue it. "King James Bible
And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
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Given the use of the word "Mal"adaptive I can see why you would have taken it as a derogatory remark. Easily we could just say it is an adaptive behavior, which I think speaks a more neutral tone, don't you agree?

Also I just want to point out that what we would call "conspiracy theorists" do *not* have a specific political party and are not conservatives that are being discussed here. This is


NOT

a thread where we are trying to classify people as left or right and generalize their beliefs based on that. I bring this up because I think a lot of you are following the typical patterns of threads here where people who generally have different political beliefs flip out on each other and try to explain why their belief is ok to have because they feel like the side is trying to attack them.

That's not what is thread is about and I'm worried y'all are going to derail it.

There are plenty of LEFTIST conspiracy theories such as:

The rich elites control everything to suppress the poor

JFK was assassinated by the government because of the military industrial complex and he wanted to end wars

There exists unlimited energy that the government knows about that they used during 9/11 but they keep it secret to keep everyone in wage slavery and make coal companies rich.

You see what I'm getting at here?

Conspiracy theories aren't about political views or if you believe in God or not. I'm not even trying to debate if a conspiracy theory is true or not, because conspiracies are real, there are just some that aren't real and it's hard to know which is which.

What I'm talking about is the way that people who do have these beliefs belittle others and talk down to them. That others are inferior in knowledge and intellect because they don't share the same idea. This can be anyone about anything but I see it FREQUENTLY with anyone who believes in anything that is a "secret", and this is the topic of that thread: why do people do this? Does it feel good to think you're better and smarter than everyone else?

I'm not saying you do this, specifically. But maybe you can think of a time where somebody called you stupid or sheeple for not buying into some theory they have.

This is the topic - not religion and not conservatives.
 
Thanks for the clear picture what this is not about. Yes, removing "mal" would make me feel better.

slant said:
What I'm talking about is the way that people who do have these beliefs belittle others and talk down to them. That others are inferior in knowledge and intellect because they don't share the same idea. This can be anyone about anything but I see it FREQUENTLY with anyone who believes in anything that is a "secret", and this is the topic of that thread: why do people do this? Does it feel good to think you're better and smarter than everyone else?
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May I rethink this over while removing my earlier reply? Thank you.
 
just me said:
Thanks for the clear picture what this is not about. Yes, removing "mal" would make me feel better.

May I rethink this over while removing my earlier reply? Thank you.
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Of course! I am very excited to see what thoughts you add to this discussion :)
 
I was taught keeping a secret at a very young age, while someone was doing something they wanted that I should not disclose to anyone. As I grew older, I learned to not answer questions or statements. Figured if it was a secret, I would keep it to myself. I acted like I knew nothing of their words.

slant said:
What I'm talking about is the way that people who do have these beliefs belittle others and talk down to them. That others are inferior in knowledge and intellect because they don't share the same idea. This can be anyone about anything but I see it FREQUENTLY with anyone who believes in anything that is a "secret", and this is the topic of that thread: why do people do this? Does it feel good to think you're better and smarter than everyone else? unquote

I always felt keeping my mouth shut showed me how weak others were. Why? The tongue can no man tame, they say. Feel better than them? No. People with high security clearances(not claiming that for myself) don't get there by blabbing about everything they know. It is not in the best of interest of others to spill one's wine everywhere...anywhere. I don't share certain information. I may feel thankful for achieving such knowledge, but never look down on those that did not have the same life as I.

While some folk go to a bar and talk away about things they might know which others do not know, I see a person not at the same level of understanding as I. I think we are talking about life experiences here, not IQ.

I used to see what you speak of, but don't go to those places any longer. The people I know will not give me a direct statement about certain things. I can count them on one hand and consider they have lived as I throughout time.

People will almost fight over someone's blabbering and bragging of something they know many others do not know. While it might disturb me, I stay out of it unless it gets out of control. Not my business until others become at risk.
 
I wish there were more conspiracy theories around lettuce. There's been a constant shortage of lettuce and salad herbs where I live for the last year. I've really noticed it, because I often like to have salad at dinnertime, and the ingredients have been very expensive, and poor quality.
 
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