Right Wing Conspiracy Theories, Pt 3

(Photo courtesy of WikiMedia.)

This is the third part of a series discussing right wing conspiracy theories. This article will discuss the issues of Common Core and education, as well as conclusions presented in Newsweek magazine's recent article, “The Plots to Destroy America,” written by Kurt Eichenwald.

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Common Core is the newest educational gimmick proposed and accepted by most states in the U.S.  Only Texas, Alaska, Minnesota, Nebraska and Virginia have not accepted the plan that was developed by the National Governor’s Association.

Typical right wing fear mongering meme.
Image Credit educationnews.org

Despite Common Core's very common beginnings as a brain-child of the nation's governors, that fact hasn't stopped conspiracy proponents from calling it “Obamacore.”  I’m not a huge fan of Common Core, but I do understand that it is meant to advance educational standards and to identify the math and literacy skills every student should possess based on their grade level.

Common Core is a topic that deserves debate, but such discussion has been destroyed by those who claim Common Core is a secret agenda to promote homosexuality brought to us by anti-religious groups.  Many Christian right-wing parents are railing against Common Core because they foolishly think it teaches anti-Christian, anti-Catholic and anti-American beliefs.

Terry Bratton, a Tea Party activist, is quoted as saying, “We don’t want our children to lose their innocence, beginning in pre-school or kindergarten, told that homosexuality is OK and should be experienced at an early age and that same-sex marriages are OK.”

Since Common Core required reading consists ONLY of the Preamble to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence and Lincoln’s Inaugural Address, it is difficult to understand why opponents are so worried about a homosexual agenda.  

image credit Eric Owens; govtslaves,info

Then again, with images like these going around on social media, it seems clear enough where the paranoia originates from. These images are designed to provoke an emotional response (fear). Once the emotional response is triggered, many people have difficulty thinking critically. This type of emotional exploitation is not accidental. It's purposeful, and it can be easily identified as psychological manipulation by those who aren't entirely susceptible to it. 

Right wing fear-mongering has taken a toll.  Common Core may be perfectly worthwhile (even though I’m not a fan so far), but because of the more than 200 bills about Common Core filed by legislators to slow or stop the adoption of Common Core, we may never know. 

This is the same tactic the right wing uses to advance other purely partisan political agendas in Washington, including phony scandals and carrying out their non-stop partisan investigations and hearings on everything from 'Fast and Furious' to Benghazi. Unfortunately GOP representatives abuse their positions, using the power of their elected positions to 'legitimize' all kinds of conspiracy theories such as those previously mentioned, like Agenda 21 and Obamacare death panels, as well as an entire spectrum of other fringe ideas. 

The obvious tactic here is that followers of these bogus conspiracy theories can then say 'Look there was an official hearing on this," or "See, there was a bill introduced on this in Washington." The sad thing is the bills introduced and the investigations carried out are no more based in reality than the memes on social media. 

The GOP has a long history of abusing the power of government to advance bogus conspiracy theories, from McCarthyism to the John Birch Society, to the modern day Tea Party: photo credit motherjones.com

Once again, fear trumps any rational debate of pros or cons.

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has conducted research into where conspiracy theories come from.  In tracing the origins of the “Aztlan Conspiracy (which holds that Mexico plans to invade the U.S. and take back 7 southern states), it was determined that the theory started with a radical anti-immigration group consisting of about half a dozen Americans.  The idea was picked up by other groups and promoted until finally, Lou Dobbs mentioned it on CNN.

The SPLC says this is the typical life-cycle of a conspiracy theory.  A fringe group believes some farcical idea, which then spreads outward among other groups until it jumps into a more mainstream group’s awareness, circulating until it ends up being reported on national news programs.

image credit thelastofthemillenniums.com
Debunking Republican Conspiracy Theories

Once a theory appears on TV, it cloaks itself in legitimacy and upsets every attempt to discuss the real issues.  Because a conspiracy preempts logic, trying to debate an issue becomes all about trying to disprove something that isn’t real, to people who refuse to abandon their fantasies of plots and their fear of domination by shadowy overlords.

News outlets have proliferated, even as investigative journalism has declined.  But it is the impact of social media and the Internet that has caused conspiracies to spread like wildfire.  These crazy ideas are like contagions, infecting the brains of more and more people who find support in each other, and feel legitimized when the nutty conspiracy gets attention on national television.  They feel that all information that doesn’t support their theories are part of the plot against them or their ideas.

Research has shown that even intelligent people can get caught up in conspiracy theories.  While we used to write off such ideas as dumb, and those who believed in them as ignorant, it has been shown conclusively that even highly intelligent people can find confirmation of their thinking everywhere once it hits the airwaves.  At the root of this problem is that we are all prone to wanting proof of the things we want to believe in.  So even a Mensa level IQ can be swayed into belief of a theory once the theory is discussed on their news show of preference, whether or not the coverage supports the theory.

Researchers have found some very confusing things to be true about those who believe in conspiracies.  One study showed that people who believe Princess Diana was murdered in 1997 are also more likely to believe that she is still alive.  Another study showed that people who believe Osama bin Ladin was dead before Seal Team 6 raided his compound in 2011 are also more likely to believe he escaped.  The conclusion is that the ability to hold two conflicting thoughts goes to the nature of those who believe in conspiracy theories, as well as that of the theories themselves.

The only consistent way to predict who will believe in a conspiracy is whether that person believes in other conspiracies.

Let’s go back to Sarah Palin and her death panels.  A study conducted exposed participants to Palin’s allegations, then provided information showing Palin’s claim to be false.  People who dislike Palin, or who had little political knowledge, were able to conclude that her claims were false.  However, people who were politically knowledgeable and supported Palin could not be persuaded that death panels are a fantasy.  Such people grew more convinced that death panels exist the more facts were presented to the contrary.

This means some folks will just never be able to be convinced that their conspiracy of choice is false.  What to do about extreme conspiracy theorists is a matter under discussion.  In groups who might be mobilized to commit violence, it’s possible that “cognitive infiltration of extremist groups” could be effective in raising doubt among members.  The potential danger is, of course, that infiltrating such groups can backfire, adding to the legend of the conspiracy.

Kurt Eichenwald, author of the Newsweek article made light of the likelihood that, by publishing this article, Newsweek will be viewed as part of the conspiracy by those who succumb to such theories.

So, in an effort to ward off any similar accusations, I’d add the disclaimer that I am merely reporting on what is out there, and am neither promoting or mocking any specific theory.  However, I will go on record by saying, bollocks to all of them!

Read part 1 
Read part 2

image credit themindunleashed on facebook