True words
Tuesday, June 10th, 2008“Those of us interested in building a free society have to face certain inconvenient facts about human psychology. One of the most inconvenient is that the majority of people are conspiracy theorists. Most people believe that there is a massive conspiracy by the rich and powerful to help and protect the average citizen.”
- Bill Walker, “Days of Deceit: 12-7-41 and 9-11-01,” in Strike the Root; emphasis added.
Let me repeat the heartmeat of that quote: a massive conspiracy by the rich and powerful to help and protect the average citizen.
The Google Gods must be smilin’ on me today: I’ve been searching for the source of that phrase for years. It seems to strike directly to, well, the root of our little tyranny problem. (If you know an earlier source for the notion of a conspiracy by the rich and powerful to benefit us, please let me know.)
I don’t reject “conspiracy theory” out of hand - indeed, is there a sillier, or more pernicious, concept abroad than the contention that no conspiracies exist and those who claim to perceive them can be ab initio dismissed as crackpots who cannot possibly have anything worthwhile to say? If you’ve fallen prey to that habit, one of these days I’ll write an essay to kindly and gently pound that nonsense out your head.
Clearly, all conspiracy “theories” - okay, it’s an imprecise usage: suffer it - aren’t right. Any more than any other models, hypotheses, or explanations are all correct. Isn’t it obvious that the conspiracy theory outlined above isn’t right? Do you really believe such a conspiracy exists, or ever has, or will?
Yet isn’t that what any of us really is saying, when we claim the State exists to do good things for us? That there exists a massive conspiracy by the rich and powerful to help and protect you?
Why should the State ever do anything with the primary goal of benefiting you?