<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
</head>
<body>
<p>Hi David <br>
</p>
<p>As I was the only participant at this Saturday's craic who is
regularly accused of conspiracy theorizing I assume the article is
directed to me and requires a responce. I previously read this
dumb article designed to shame people who see the logical flaws in
the conventional narrative of social reality. Forest bases his
claims on his experience in grade school where in a debate he
convinced his class mates that the USA did not land on the moon.
He quotes First Corinthians " when I was a child ... I reasoned
like a child. When I became a man, I set aside childish ways."
My reading of his thesis is "conspiracy theories" are childish
thinking for one of the three reasons outlined below in David's
summary.<br>
</p>
<p>Forest's operational definition of Conspiracy Theory <span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white"><strong><span
style="font-family:"Georgia",serif"> “a
well-organized effort initiated by an elite group of
powerful men and women secretly working toward a singular
goal or vision that often involves collaboration between
government agencies and the media." </span></strong><span
style="font-family:"Georgia",serif">According to
this definition If I were to suggest the billionaire class
have colluded with government and media to increase their
wealth in 2020 by 34.2% I should be accused of childish
conspiracy thinking. <br>
</span></span></p>
<p><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white"><span
style="font-family:"Georgia",serif"></span><span
style="font-family:"Georgia",serif"></span><span
style="font-family:"Georgia",serif">The concept of
conspiracy theory is an effective propaganda tool devised to
discredit any discussion of <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0002764209353272">State
Crimes Against Democracy</a> even if they have merit with
fantastic claims of dubious merit often created by the
propagandists themselves. Theologian David Ray Griffin in
his 2010 book <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9236729-cognitive-infiltration#:~:text=Cognitive%20Infiltration%3A%20An%20Obama%20Appointee%27s%20Plan%20to%20Undermine,in%20cognitive%20infiltration%20of%20these%20groups%20in%20"><u>Cognitive
Infiltration: An Obama Appointee's Plan to Undermine the
9/11 Conspiracy Theory</u></a></span></span> reports on
an office in the Obama administration that used precisely the
formulation of dubious 911 narratives to confound any criminal
investigation of 911. <br>
</p>
<p><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">I
agree with Forest when he quotes St. Paul , “Don’t be gullible.
Check out everything, and keep only what’s good. Throw out
anything tainted by evil” Francis says in Laudato Si.
“Technocracy conditions our lifestyles and the social
possibilities to suit the interests of certain powerful groups”
Francis is saying that certain powerful groups are conditioning
our beliefs about social reality. Conspiracy Theory? Griffin
and Cornell West both say that as Christians we have to confront
the reality of evil. <br>
</span></p>
<p><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">For
me childish thinking is generalizing and labeling people who
don't agree with us as Conspiracy Theorists, accepting the
conventional narrative and the demonization of critical thinking
that takes us out of our comfort zone. <br>
</span></p>
<p><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">Regards
Art<br>
</span></p>
<p> 1/24/21 7:33 a.m., David Walsh via craic wrote:<br>
</p>
<blockquote type="cite"
cite="mid:YT1PR01MB3947409F18FA8AEC5DE1CCFAADBE0@YT1PR01MB3947.CANPRD01.PROD.OUTLOOK.COM">
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
<meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 15 (filtered
medium)">
<style>@font-face
{font-family:Helvetica;
panose-1:2 11 6 4 2 2 2 2 2 4;}@font-face
{font-family:"Cambria Math";
panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4;}@font-face
{font-family:Calibri;
panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4;}@font-face
{font-family:Georgia;
panose-1:2 4 5 2 5 4 5 2 3 3;}@font-face
{font-family:Tahoma;
panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4;}@font-face
{font-family:"Century Schoolbook";
panose-1:2 4 6 4 5 5 5 2 3 4;}p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{margin:0cm;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;}a:link, span.MsoHyperlink
{mso-style-priority:99;
color:blue;
text-decoration:underline;}a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed
{mso-style-priority:99;
color:purple;
text-decoration:underline;}p.msonormal0, li.msonormal0, div.msonormal0
{mso-style-name:msonormal;
mso-margin-top-alt:auto;
margin-right:0cm;
mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
margin-left:0cm;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;}span.EmailStyle20
{mso-style-type:personal-reply;
font-family:"Century Schoolbook",serif;
color:windowtext;
font-weight:normal;
font-style:normal;}.MsoChpDefault
{mso-style-type:export-only;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
mso-fareast-language:EN-US;}div.WordSection1
{page:WordSection1;}</style><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapedefaults v:ext="edit" spidmax="1026" />
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapelayout v:ext="edit">
<o:idmap v:ext="edit" data="1" />
</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]-->
<div class="WordSection1">
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"
style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span
style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif"
lang="EN-US">This article considers some points we
discussed in our CRAIC conversation yesterday. A
few summary points are outlined below if you don’t
have time to read the full article. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"
style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><b><span
style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif"
lang="EN-US">Subject:</span></b><span
style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif"
lang="EN-US">
<b>Why Your Christian Friends and Family Members
Are So Easily Fooled by Conspiracy Theories | by
Joe Forrest | Interfaith Now | Medium</b></span><span
lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"
style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span
lang="EN-US"><a
href="https://medium.com/interfaith-now/why-your-christian-friends-and-family-members-are-so-easily-fooled-by-conspiracy-theories-5c36a835ef07"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true">Why Your
Christian Friends and Family Members Are So
Easily Fooled by Conspiracy Theories | by Joe
Forrest | Interfaith Now | Medium</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Century
Schoolbook",serif">Summary Points<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Century
Schoolbook",serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">While </span><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%"><a
href="https://misinforeview.hks.harvard.edu/article/why-do-people-believe-covid-19-conspiracy-theories/"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="font-family:"Georgia",serif;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">most
conspiracy theories are driven by partisan
agendas</span></a></span><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">,
they’re not one and the same. You can have a
right- or left-leaning perspective on current
events and <em><span
style="font-family:"Georgia",serif">not</span></em> be
guilty of spreading unfounded conspiracy theories
— this is an important distinction to make. (And,
it should be noted, while my exposure to
conspiracy theories is conditional upon my social
environment — conservative and evangelical — </span><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%"><a
href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2014/08/21/conspiracy-theories-arent-just-for-conservatives/"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="font-family:"Georgia",serif;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">liberal
democrats have their own pet conspiracy
theories</span></a></span><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Century
Schoolbook",serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">For
the sake of my argument, by <em><b><span
style="font-family:"Georgia",serif">conspiracy
theory</span></b></em> I mean, <strong><span
style="font-family:"Georgia",serif">the
assumption that “a well-organized effort
initiated by an elite group of powerful men
and women secretly working toward a singular
goal or vision that often involves
collaboration between government agencies and
the media.</span></strong>”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Century
Schoolbook",serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">I’m
talking about conspiracy theories related to </span><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%"><a
href="https://www.vox.com/2018/10/25/18018606/false-flags-clinton-soros-alex-jones-infowars-cnn"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="font-family:"Georgia",serif;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">false
flag attacks</span></a></span><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">,
Deep State, Illuminati, Freemasons, QAnon, Flat
Earth, shadow government, or any other belief
system that hinges on <strong><span
style="font-family:"Georgia",serif">the
assumption that much of our lives are
controlled by plots hatched in secret places
by a select few individuals.<br>
<br>
</span></strong></span><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Century
Schoolbook",serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">In
a sense, most conspiracy theories aren’t much
different than the “<a
href="https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/myst/hd_myst.htm"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:0pt;text-decoration:none">mystery
cults</span></a>” the apostle <a
href="https://doctrine.org/pauls-mystery"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="color:#292929;text-decoration:none">Paul
had to contend with at the city of Ephesus</span></a>.
Mystery cults were very common in Ancient Rome,
and they attracted followers by promising to
reveal the “mysteries of the universe” to those
who joined. This was a very seductive hook. And
it’s one of the reasons conspiracy theories are
more likely to <a
href="https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2017/4/25/15408610/conspiracy-theories-psychologist-explained"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="color:#292929;text-decoration:none">spread
among people with lower levels of education</span></a>.
But that doesn’t mean people who are higher
educated are immune to their allure. Conspiracy
theories are just as likely to <a
href="http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.932.4588&rep=rep1&type=pdf"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="color:#292929;text-decoration:none">spread
among people with radical political ideologies</span></a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">In
a weird way, the idea of a secret cabal of
powerful men and women pulling the strings on
international events (like assassinations,
pandemics, terrorist attacks, world wars, etc.) is
somewhat comforting because at least it implies </span><b><span
style="background:white">someone is in control
of all this madness.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"
style="line-height:115%;box-sizing:
inherit;word-break:break-word;font-variant-ligatures:
normal;font-variant-caps: normal;orphans:
2;text-align:start;widows:
2;-webkit-text-stroke-width:
0px;text-decoration-thickness:
initial;text-decoration-style:
initial;text-decoration-color:
initial;word-spacing:0px" id="7b66">
<span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">So,
when someone posts a conspiracy theory video on
social media with the message, “</span><b><span
style="background:white">Don’t give in to fear!
Stay informed!</span></b><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">”,
they’re most likely writing to themselves.<br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">In
a modern world devoid of danger and threat, </span><b>conspiracy
theories help bring purpose and urgency to the
mundanity of our lives </b><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">—
which may help explain why they spread so quickly
among<a
href="https://www.insider.com/lifestyle-influencers-using-covid-19-to-spread-qanon-conspiracy-theory-2020-5"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="font-size:11.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:0pt;text-decoration:none"> lifestyle
bloggers</span></a>, <a
href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/stephaniemcneal/wayfair-qanon-influencers-instagram"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="font-size:11.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:0pt;text-decoration:none">Instagram
influencers</span></a>, and the <a
href="https://instrumentofmercy.com/2020/02/24/essential-oils-hoax/"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="font-size:11.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:0pt;text-decoration:none">“wellness”
community</span></a>.<br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">After
renowned pastor <a
href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/edstetzer/2020/april/christians-and-corona-conspiracies.html"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:0pt;text-decoration:none">Ed
Stetzer wrote an article for </span><i><span
style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:0pt;text-decoration:none">Christianity
Today</span></i></a> calling for Christians
to avoid posting conspiracy theories about
COVID-19, the Christian publication had to amend
the original article with a note commenting on the
flood of vitriol the article received.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white"><br>
And it’s important to note that a lot of
Christians share conspiracy theories out of good
faith. They believe they’re “exposing the truth.”
But most conspiracy theories are </span><b>rotten
at the core</b><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">.
It’s obvious they’re rooted in fear, insecurity,
and loneliness. And they’re often designed to give
us </span><b>more reasons to loathe our
ideological enemies</b><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">.<br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">“If
there was ever a group of people that should care
about the truth, it should be the people who
believe ‘the truth sets you free.’ Integrity
should matter for Christians, but too often it
does not.<br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">Conspiracy<a
href="https://www.economist.com/open-future/2019/08/12/conspiracy-theories-are-dangerous-heres-how-to-crush-them"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="color:#292929;text-decoration:none"> theories
aren’t harmless</span></a>. To this day, <a
href="https://www.npr.org/2019/12/14/788117375/his-son-was-killed-at-sandy-hook-then-came-the-online-harassment"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="color:#292929;text-decoration:none">conspiracy
theorists still harass the families of the
first-grade children who died in the Sandy
Hook school shooting</span></a>. <br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">In
his first letter to the church in Thessalonica, <a
href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Thessalonians+5%3A20-22&version=MSG"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><span
style="color:#292929;text-decoration:none">the
apostle Paul wrote</span></a>, “Don’t be
gullible. Check out everything, and keep only
what’s good. Throw out anything tainted by evil” (</span><i>The
Message</i><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">).<br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white">Before
sharing something, ask yourself: Does this
worldview diminish or ignore other people’s real
suffering? If the answer is yes, you probably
shouldn’t share or post it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"
style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;text-align:center"
align="center">
<strong><span
style="font-family:"Helvetica",sans-serif;color:#202020;background:white"
lang="EN-US"> “Darkness cannot drive out
darkness,</span></strong><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"
style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;text-align:center"
align="center">
<strong><span
style="font-family:"Helvetica",sans-serif;color:#202020;background:white"
lang="EN-US"> only light can do that. </span></strong><span
lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"
style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;text-align:center"
align="center">
<strong><span
style="font-family:"Helvetica",sans-serif;color:#202020;background:white"
lang="EN-US"> Hate cannot drive out hate,</span></strong><span
lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"
style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;text-align:center"
align="center">
<strong><span
style="font-family:"Helvetica",sans-serif;color:#202020;background:white"
lang="EN-US"> only love can do that.” </span></strong><span
style="font-family:"Helvetica",sans-serif;color:#202020;background:white"
lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"
style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;text-align:center"
align="center">
<span
style="font-family:"Helvetica",sans-serif;color:#202020;background:white"
lang="EN-US">Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. –
Strength to Love, 1963</span><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:115%"><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#292929;letter-spacing:-.05pt;background:white;mso-fareast-language:EN-US"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"
style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<br>
<fieldset class="mimeAttachmentHeader"></fieldset>
<pre class="moz-quote-pre" wrap="">_______________________________________________
craic mailing list
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:craic@lists.integralshift.ca">craic@lists.integralshift.ca</a>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://lists.integralshift.ca/listinfo.cgi/craic-integralshift.ca">http://lists.integralshift.ca/listinfo.cgi/craic-integralshift.ca</a>
</pre>
</blockquote>
</body>
</html>