It’s one where chaos feels threatening, lack of control feels like powerlessness, a predictable world is soothing, and orderly patterns are reassuring. What I’ve concluded is that they’re actually playing out a version of their own Christian piety. I’ve spoken to people in my congregation who seem open to entertaining outrageous and totally unsubstantiated claims about COVID-19. ![]() Many of them are thoughtful, intelligent people who wouldn’t seem otherwise susceptible to ruse. What’s fascinating to me about all conspiracy theories, including those that intentionally sow conflict or nefariously foster danger, is the sort of people who end up becoming adherents. Bill Gates created the virus to further his plot to vaccinate the world. Such theories tend to thrive in times of uncertainty and crisis, and the coronavirus has provided the perfect backdrop for some crazy ideas: the “deep state” is manipulating data. Not surprisingly, the COVID-19 pandemic has unleashed a flurry of conspiracy theories. ![]() Today, we’re forced to put up with (or put down) every variety of incoherent claim, even or especially when there’s no supporting evidence that’s able to withstand the least scrutiny. A generation ago, most Americans would have found it preposterous to imagine that conspiracy entrepreneurs could successfully undermine essential science and fact-based scholarship through cockeyed suspicion. Their theories mutate, garnering huge online followings and creating broad distrust of reputable institutions. The people behind them hatch sinister plots and disseminate cruel disinformation. Conspiracy theories do not present the best face of contemporary culture.
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