Tag: Conspiracy

Liked Relationships are being torn apart by COVID conspiracies — once it passes, will our loved ones come back? by Virginia Trioli (ABC News)

My love for our friendship has not died. But I do not know how to talk to my friend. Like the miners’ wives, I’ll wait. I hope I don’t have to dig us out.

Bookmarked Plunging Into the Abyss – GEN by Douglas Rushkoff (gen.medium.com)

Those of us back here in reality must work together to enact a Gentle Awakening for our friends and loved ones who have gotten addicted to this video game. There is no man behind the curtain, no secret cabal controlling our destinies, no marvelous or nefarious plan driving Covid, vote counting, or global affairs. They need to awaken to something way way more frightening than politicians eating children: shit just happens, no one is in charge, and chaos reigns. There really is no scapegoat — never was. The only way through is to find ways of coming together, instead.

One step, and one day at a time.

Douglas Rushkoff reflects upon how people of all types and backgrounds are falling under the conspiracy fever. He explains that it is not about the truth, but rather the addiction of finding a missing piece of information in order to receive a hit of endorphin.

What are they addicted to? It’s not the Q myth, Trump, or any particular club or narrative. They’re addicted to staying online and reading and scrolling until they get that little dopamine rush that comes from connecting one dot to another. Fauci-China-Gates-Covid-Epsten…ah! It’s delightful. It makes temporary sense. And then if they post the idea, it gets a few hits and likes and comments from others, and ding ding squirt squirt….another hit of dopamine. And another and another.

This reminds me of Tom Chatfield’s work on social media as a game. It also makes me wonder if there can actually be too many dots?

Liked What are the motives? (Daily-Ink by David Truss)

What I don’t understand is the motivation behind these otherwise intelligent people choosing to talk about science fiction and call it science? What’s the benefit? Who gains from this? Conspiracy theories depend on so many people acting in bad faith, people across the globe in different countries colluding and keeping secrets, all for the purpose of maintaining a narrative that makes no sense.

That is a fascinating question David. Here in Victoria, we have had people protesting in the middle of a lockdown to hammer the Delta breakout. The lockdown is meant to expire on Tuesday, yet with the hoards of people gathering, I doubt that will be the case. We live in strange times.