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As it was getting closer to a family reunion I received some subtle and some not so subtle messages from family members, that it would be better if I did not use the opportunity of the reunion to share any of the various so called “conspiracy theories” I am interested in.
What were they talking about?
“A conspiracy theory is an explanation of an event or situation that invokes a conspiracy without warrant. Generally one involving illegal or harmful acts carried out by government or other powerful actors,” says Amazon’s Alexa. At least that’s what it told me in her female, Alexa electronic voice.
Alexa never tells me to stop asking about conspiracy theories, at least not yet. I can easily imagine how powerful actors could easily listen to what I ask Alexa about. It doesn’t take much of an imagination these days. However, if I talk too much about powerful actors plotting against me, some in my family might begin to wonder if I was starting to lose my mind. Any signs of that would understandably worry my family.
Presently I don’t believe that anybody is plotting against me as an individual. I am a prone to the next guy to being manipulated by powerful elites by being a member of the non-powerful masses, but I don’t think that there is anything personal going on. At least not yet. So, I have no secrets from my family in that regard.
I am going through what I believe many men go through after retirement when it comes to talking about stuff. In retirement I have become more talkative, in informal social settings. I usually catch on pretty quick as to what I can easily talk about. The weather, something I bought or am thinking about buying, or a vacation trip, sports, restaurants, movies, popular books, movies and television shows or something embarrassingly funny that happened to me recently. All are usually good things to talk about. Unwarranted theories about what caused harmful situations involving powerful actors, not so much.
History is full of unwarranted theories becoming warranted over time. This process is typically aided by talking about them, rather than not. Many, who really admit that this is true, still don’t want to talk about the unwarranted until after it is popularly warranted.
One problem with conspiracies is that they tend to be complicated, when people like their theories simple. If a truth has too many moving parts most want something with fewer gears that need to mesh to understand.
Take crime for example. Many prefer their crime reporting to be local and straight forward. They may believe that organized crime exists but not in their neighborhood. We read about street level drug dealers getting busted all of the time. Heads of drug cartels and government officials rarely and then mostly in the movies, where the dealers are the interesting guys.
Most understand that very organized crime exists and obvious secrets stay secret all of the time. Part of the reason is our short, narrowly focused attention span. We may shake our heads in disgust when we hear about over-prescribing pain medication doctors who march to the tune of over advertising pharmaceutical drug pushing corporations, but not think twice about why the poppy harvests in Afghanistan, which is over run by US military forces, continues to be so robust.
Many powerful actors use their awareness of short attention spans to get us to think about why we don’t like what President Donald Trump has to say about opiate addiction and not about the illicit drug business in general.
Back before the popularity of the inter net, powerful actors, who were secretive, were often rumored to exist, but like the phenomena of people claiming to see ghosts, were mainly seen as entertaining novelties. Illuminati, Free Masons, Shriners, Jesuits , or Satanist bad actors and the like were largely fictional, folklore or were charitable do good organizations being slandered by those who lacked the social charm to gain membership or tiny fringe groups with power over only the feeble minded. Nowadays we know better.
Knowing however can be scary. Very, very scary and who wants that? We so easily turn away from the truth because it sucks being afraid.
With open eyes, ears, nostrils, minds and hearts and holding on to our balls, men can allow themselves to glimpse the utter depravity of the world around us with greater or lesser evil powerful players everywhere. As men, knowing what we know to be true, what do we then do about it? I hate to be the one to break to you, if you don’t already know; there is only a very narrow range of things that can be done.
Many conspiracy theories take the form of you needing to know what harmful things are going on so you can join others who know what is going on to do something about it now or in the future.
Examples of entities that need to be stopped include, but are not limited to: Donald Trump, Aliens for Outer Space, Demons, Lucifer, the Illuminati, some of the Free Masons, Climate Change deniers, and the Boston Red Sox. Now, the Boston Red Sox may be influenced by those men who can afford tickets to a New York Yankees game cheering extra loud, but it is more difficult to think of what you can really do to derail the others, even if you had the courage to do something powerful.
Other conspiracy theorists just want to let you know how the World and everything else is going to end sooner than later. They differ on whether or not they can tell you the day. They differ on whether or not it is possible to meet the end your way. They differ as to whether those with posh housing situated deep underground will be safe or screwed like the rest of us.
I prefer those who offer the most hope. I am going with those who suggest, urge, beg or plea that believing in the grace of Jesus Christ is the way to go, whether the going is predicted to be spectacular or otherwise.
I don’t rule out any theorist who would like me to buy their book, but if I got to buy to be informed as to how things are and will be, I’m not buying.
I would never go by a post that I read on goodmenproject.com by itself. I frequently go there to look for pieces to the puzzle of how to live, while I’m alive.
The editors at goodmenproject.com are not part of any secret conspiracy that I am aware of. The Good Man Project will gladly sell you a tee shirt, but this is not required to access their content.
Something big is about to happen. While you are waiting, keep checking out goodmenproject.com, while you still can.
Photo: Pixabay
