Conspiracy Theories - Part 1

Every now and again I like to read about the latest updates to all of the favorite conspiracy theories out there. Today's conspiracy theory discussion is inspired by I Ain't No Oprah's 9/11 10th anniversary blog.

Since the towers fell on September 11th, 2001, there have been several conspiracy theories brought forth contending, among other things, that the government was not only aware but involved in the attacks. There are many organizations out there such as truth911.org who commit resources into finding "the truth" about the 9/11 attacks.

The name of this little bloggy is "Cynics Online", so you might expect me to go on in support of trains of thoughts such as these. On the contrary. I would say it's organizations like this that are deserving of outright skepticism and criticism. I could go on and on about about their theories and their loads of "evidence" as well as the counterpoints. But I think it's important to stop and question the types of people that harbor these types of conspiracy.

Is it the case that they really have a honest belief regarding this conspiracy? I mean, ockham's razor not withstanding, is it really that inconceivable that such an attack could occur? The United States of America had grown accustomed to being an untouchable entity. None of the World Wars happened on American soil aside from Hawaii (not a state at the time), unless you believe other conspiracies out there.

There are plenty of people out there who have unconventional beliefs, and who's to say they're wrong...or rather, that the thoughts are not right for those who partake? Look at Scientology. It's a remarkable entity. I've always believed that you should ask as many questions as you can and always question authority. That said, I believe anarchy is a moronic notion and society as a whole functions as it should. Can it be better? Absolutely. And the key is to question the status-quo.

So what about these theorists questioning the authority on the 9/11 attacks? Isn't this what I've just been rambling on about? Well, yes...to a point. And by that I mean it's important to recognize when you have your answers to the questions. Will we ever know the truth about the 9/11 attacks? Sure. We already do. There comes a time when these arguments become pedantic and should be evaluated as to their continued necessity.

You know, the buildings fell as they did as a direct result of the airplanes crashing into them and burning at tremendous temperatures that eventually melted the structural integrity of the tower and it collapsed under the tremendous strain and weight of each floor falling on another. The government was probably aware of the possibility of such an attack. They are also probably aware of many, many other plausible threats that occur with regularity. Were they involved with the plot? No need to answer that. They can't balance the budget successfully. Did President Bush sit in a classroom for 7 full minutes after being told the news? There is empirical evidence of this. How would you react to this news? Would you do differently? (yeah, I probably would have immediately got up and left to deal with the crisis immediately, too. But we're talking intelligencia here...).

So what does it all mean? Sometimes a horse is a horse is a horse. And sometimes people just need to argue otherwise.

Next time on Conspiracy Theories: The moon landing, UFOs, and the JFK Assassination.