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I think two important points which distinguish many implausible conspiracy theories from real conspiracies are 1) disregard for what humans are actually capable
by alexdowad 5y ago
I think two important points which distinguish many implausible conspiracy theories from real conspiracies are 1) disregard for what humans are actually capable of doing and 2) not having any reasonable motive to attribute to the purported conspirators.
Any theory which alleges that some group of people secretly controls the world falls under #1. Trying to keep just 50 or 100 people organized and getting them to all do what you want is incredibly hard, let alone the entire world.
An example of #2: Here in Zambia, when the government started offering free COVID-19 vaccines, various conspiracy theories spread on social media: some said that anyone who accepted the vaccine would turn into a chimpanzee, others said that their bodies would become magnetic and attract iron objects, while others said that vaccinated persons would become sterile and be unable to produce children.
I don't think any advocate of these theories ever explained why the government would want to turn their citizens into chimpanzees, though.
- alexvoda 4y agoI believe both points have their origin in an underdeveloped "theory of mind". Understanding the capabilities and motives of others depends on haaving developed a theory of mind. Going by Keagans developmental stages, people are getting stuck in stage 3.