Sunday 6 December 2009

Just Because I'm Paranoid....

I like to hope I am not overly gullible. I am quite content for example to accept the latest theory re the premature death of film star Marilyn Monroe as the most probable (ie she was so used to taking sleeping tablets to get to sleep every night that her tolerance built to the point that a. she was taking more than most people and b. they no longer worked so well and she woke up one night, woozily forgetting she'd taken any, and accidentally downed a second lot). Not least as uppers, downers and sleepers were par for the course if you were a film star in the 50s and 60s, and many stars including Elizabeth Taylor have memories of being drugged up to the eyeballs much of the time. However I find that some conspiracy theories really do play on my mind.

When 9/11 happened, like everyone else, I was mesmerised by the horror of the unfolding TV news, and that such an atrocity could happen on such an unprecedented and audacious scale to a giant complex I had once myself visited. It seemed inconceivable. It never occurred to me to question my own eyes. I thought I was jarred by the footage purely because it genuinely was so shocking. Many documentaries and some years later, I have grown dispassionate enough to find myself bothered by how neatly and completely (not to mention speedily) the towers collapsed almost into their own footprint leaving virtually none of the expected twisted floors or major debris. I have watched one or two videos by the detractors and listened to foreign demolition experts whistle in admiration at 'what a neat demolition job' it was in their professional opinions. I won't go into all the mysterious deaths and disappearances which allegedly ensued. I would just suggest that presuming one considers the conspiracists' take for one moment, one can't deny that it was indeed a handy excuse to start a war, despite the human 'collateral' damage, if the theory holds any water. Then there is the mysterious and unexplained matter of how the 9/11 bombers were apparently all from Saudi Arabia yet Bush chose to wreak revenge by invading Iraq/Afghanistan. This in turn is now rapidly becoming Pakistan.

A minute later and I feel guilty for even thinking that any government could orchestrate such an inside job on its own people, but then you never know... World powers are not exactly known for their morality, and if you think back to the mid-20th century, have previously demonstrated themselves capable of almost anything. And on a smaller scale we all know top weapons expert and bio-scientist David Kelly, about to expose Tony Blair as a liar on the WMD justification for invading Iraq, did not accidentally fall on that rusty pen knife in those woods to bleed to death from an unfeasibly small wound to his wrist and virtually no blood surrounding him. That conspiracy we know for sure has legs.

The second conspiracy theory that really bothers me is that the whole global warming thing is a myth - supposedly cooked up by world powers to keep us under the thumb and have us living in fear, since religion and educational ignorance has almost lost its grip in this sense. A handy way also to keep control of world resources and manipulate their prices in addition to curbing the development of third world countries to the point they risk becoming serious threats to Western economies.

Lastly I wonder if I should also be losing sleep over Common Purpose, an organisation which apparently seeks to appoint strategic people all over Britain to 'lead beyond authority' - ie to deliberately dismantle all infrastructure to bring the UK to its knees so it is then fit to be taken over by the new EUSSR. This is said to be behind 'Broken Britain', though personally if true, they may not be doing anything that those fine modern British qualities of substance abuse, moral laxity, laziness and unfettered workplace access to Facebook and e-Bay are not already.

So yes, the conspiracy theorists COULD be a bunch of fruit loops (and many undoubtedly are - sic 'Ripperologists'), but I do think they also raise many valid questions that need to be answered, considering the potentially powerful motives of the equally powerful vested interests who stand to gain as a result of many of these extraordinary world events and crises.

Which isn't to say we shouldn't turn down that central heating and put on an extra jumper. Like it or not, oil remains a finite resource and being anti-waste of our planet's resources is definitely a good and worthy ideal to aspire to, whether or not it turns out we are also destroying the Polar Bear's habitat/our own by indulging. And before the Green thing became as ridiculous and OTT as the Health and Safety thing, I must confess I really wanted to be part of that Koala-cuddling, right-on, knit-your-own-compost-bin, feel-good-about-yourself-while-you-work world and land a good job in it (my vested interests at work!)

Dismissing all major issue and event questioners/detractors as 'conspiracy theorists' or 'climate change deniers' as if on a par with 'holocaust deniers' does strike me as a jolly good means of censorship when it comes down to it. Though a sizeable number admittedly do not help themselves in the credibility stakes!

20 comments:

UberGrumpy said...

And what about those so-called moon landings? Ah ha!

Owen said...

What disturbs me perhaps the most is that it is nearly impossible to determine these days where the truth stops and the spin begins... there is so much flagrant, blatant dishonesty out there, corruption, cynical fear mongers everywhere... arrrgghhh, I often wish I could start fresh on a different planet... Alot of food for thought in your post here... (and is that genetically modified food or organically grown ? :-)

Steve said...

Human beings, alas, are often sneaky, self serving and deceiving. Politicians and MD's of multi nationals with billions to win or lose are moreso. I daresay most conspiracy theories are cooked up by disenfranchised nuts with too much time on their hands and too easy access to the internet... but, there is very often no smoke without fire.

Wisewebwoman said...

Great post, Laura, enough to feed multiple paranoia(e?).

Corporations are pschopathic by their very nature and as I believe that these entities are running the world and not the pols., any evil doing is possible.

Ever since JFK, yeah: I'm that old, my cynicism knows no bounds.

XO
WWW

Nota Bene said...

The whole world is against me. I know it is. And I suspect that we never now the full truth about very much these days....

Rol said...

Yeah, but who REALLY killed Michael Jackson? Where were you that night, Laura? Eh?

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The Sagittarian said...

The man on the grassy knoll strikes again....

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Dan said...

Maybe the powers that be want us to believe the conspiracies as a smokescreen for the real conspiracy, eh? Eh? Hehe. Thought-provoking stuff!

garfer said...

I don't know what to say to that.

I think I'll suck on a Fox's Glacier Mint.

On this occasion the teacake will not suffice.

I feel the need to commune with a caramel log.

I'll get back to you.

Anonymous said...

Oooh all these deleted comments. something is definitely going on here.

There are lots of things I don't believe in actually but obviously I cannot talk about them here.

Not even anonymously.

The Poet Laura-eate said...

Actually my blog seems to be attracting lots of spammers trying to hawk porn in the comments column - I suspect it's a conspiracy! ;-)

Snowed under with Christmassy things at the moment/prior to which, birthday things - but normal blogging service will be resumed soon.

The Sagittarian said...

Merry Christmas to you and yours Laura, all the best and see you in blogland again soo. Take care, Amanda.xx

The Poet Laura-eate said...

Ubergrumpy, the moon landings are one whole other ball park!

Owen, I think finding out various peoples'/countrys' agendas is the key re determining what is fact, fiction and conspiracy.

Steve, I totally agree, my point is that some nutters could be serving a useful purpose in making us stop and think before blithely accepting all that we're asked to believe.

WWW - thanks. Interesting that you should say the nature of corporations is 'psychopathic' as that is exactly the conclusion the documentary 'Corporation' which sought to explore the history of the Corporation arrived at.

Notabene - quite!

Rol - I had nothing against Michael Jackson - far less than he seemed to have against himself anyway. I suggest his death was either passive suicide owing to his reliance on prescrition drugs/reluctance to eat or bungling of the private doctor he hired.

Sagittarian - that reminds me - my father says he remembers exactly where he was standing when Kennedy was shot - on a grassy knoll somewhere in Dallas!

Dan, you might well have a point!

Garfer, just remember that caramel log is not all it seems - in fact it is probably carob masquerading. Or at least a lot of cocoa fat.

2-infinity - thanks for dropping by - all the deleted comments are would-be pornographers so I guess they are an alien invasion of sorts. I think you should pluck up the courage to share what you know re the conspiracies! I am sure it would prove interesting.

Merry Christmas one and all! I trust you also know the truth about Santa and his elves!

Dan said...

"my point is that some nutters could be serving a useful purpose in making us stop and think before blithely accepting all that we're asked to believe."

Laura - those nutters often discredit the more real concerns about nepotistic governments and falsely presented interests (see: Iraq War) - but I guess that is the good and bad of democracy.

The Poet Laura-eate said...

I hope you are not proposing anything other than democracy Dan? :-)