Critical Q&A #454 – LIVE
Yesterday we had a fantastic live Q&A show where I got to give my most detailed breakdown of why Scientology TRs are just bad for… Read More »Critical Q&A #454 – LIVE
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Yesterday we had a fantastic live Q&A show where I got to give my most detailed breakdown of why Scientology TRs are just bad for… Read More »Critical Q&A #454 – LIVE
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
In this clip from my talk on conspiracy theories and Scientology recruitment, I ask some hard questions about modern conspiracy fantasies and how credible they are given the broken logic behind every one of them. Enjoy!
Read More »Scientology and Modern Conspiracy FantasiesIn this clip, I discuss conspiracy thinking and where I draw the line on credible vs ridiculous ideas on this subject. I have pushed back hard on Alex Jones-style conspiracy theories but that doesn’t mean bad people don’t do bad things. Enjoy!
Read More »Coughing up the Red PillYesterday we did a live stream about QAnon and I thought it went pretty good and it got me thinking about this whole topic. Any… Read More »Critical Conversations 9.9.20 – Conspiracy Theories
Conspiracy theories are rife in Scientology, and of course that makes sense given Hubbard’s paranoia and the way he told his followers about their special status as the most intelligent and special human beings on Earth. In this short clip I talk about how this manifests in Scientology. Enjoy!
Read More »Conspiracy Theories in Scientology“For the truth is that life on the face of it is a chaos in which one finds onself lost. The individual suspects as much, but is terrified to encounter this frightening reality face to face, and so attempts to conceal it by drawing a curtain of fantasy over it, behind which he can make believe that everything is clear.” – Jose Ortega y Gasset
Conspiracy theorists can be some of the most exasperating, frustrating and annoying people you will ever encounter online and in person. A few of us even know some of them or run into them at family gatherings. After listening to them ramble on, for hours if they are allowed to, we always walk away shaking our head, wondering what kind of idiot pill they must be taking to think the way they do. And that’s about all the significance they play in the day-to-day life of the average first-world citizen. We see and hear their crazy spin on such uncontroversial topics as the moon landings; the Bermuda Triangle; the spherical shape of our planet, the efficacy and safety of child vaccines; and, of course, what really happened on 9/11 and who was behind it. However, many other conspiracy theories branch off from these more weird and wild ideas which we don’t find so implausible, such as the possibility of secret government operations on our own citizens, carried out by three-letter agencies and paid for by black budgets which we are told are being done for our own safety. Those we might not be so sure about because we know that these kinds of conspiracies have really happened. Or the idea that large pharmaceutical companies or major cable companies are colluding to fix prices for their goods and services, basically creating hidden monopolies which unfairly pillage the pocketbooks of consumers. Or that social media platforms are actively searching for and deleting any content which disagrees with the political beliefs of its board members. When we hear something like that, depending on our own politics and exposure to social media, we might tilt our head and think “Yeah, I think that might be true.”Read More »What is Wrong with Conspiracy Theorists?