Not on a single occasion have I ever thought: “Hmm. What if conspiracy theorists are right and I am wrong?” Never have I listened to the likes of David Icke and thought: “What if he is right and in fact Buckingham Palace is full of lizards? Or that Chemtrails are actually a thing, 9/11 was an inside job and that Lee Harvey Oswald didn’t kill John F. Kennedy.” But, sadly, there are many people who do think that way so what do I do about it?
A person I have known longer than anyone else in my life sincerely believes in all that stuff. If there is a conspiracy theory out there, then they believe in it. And if I do not believe it, on account of there being no evidence whatsoever, then I am one of the sheeple. To quote one dictionary, I am “docile, foolish and easily led.”
I remember being laughed out to because I said that Chemtrails were a nonsense. To quote wikipedia (so it must be true): “The chemtrail conspiracy theory is the erroneous belief that long-lasting condensation trails left in the sky by high-flying aircraft are actually “chemtrails” consisting of chemical or biological agents, sprayed for nefarious purposes undisclosed to the general public.” And why? Because I could not disprove this nonsensical theory. Surely, I pointed out, it is up to you to prove something exists, not for me to try to disprove it? After all, I cannot prove there are no fairies at the bottom of my garden but they are as unlikely to exist as, say, chemtrails. (More laughter.)
I joke, but there is a serious side to all this. To be a fully-fledged conspiracy theorist, you need to believe every wacky theory that has ever been invented. And that conspiracy theories about vaccines, particularly, though not solely, since Covid-19. Some Covid theories run like this:
- Covid vaccines will change our DNA
- Covid vaccines will implant microchips into people
- A volunteer died during vaccine trials at Cambridge University
- Bill Gates says loads of people will die from using vaccines
- Spanish flu vaccines killed 50 million people
Each one debunked, each one nonsense. But there is an industry out there that is successful convincing people that they they are all true. And if you dare to challenge the people who believe this evidence-free tosh, they say that you are the ones who are brainwashed.
You might think these conspiracy theorists are harmless nutcases, but you would be wrong. They can be harmful nutcases. When the discredited GP Andrew Wakefield lied that the MMR vaccine was unsafe, people decided not to vaccinate their children against mumps, measles and rubella. I know people who did not vaccinate their children or have the jabs separately at huge expense because they were worried about what Wakefield had said. He was, after all, a doctor. But he was wrong, very wrong. The MMR vaccine is safe, always has been. When Covid came along, people went even more mad.
A friend of mine who recently died was told by a conspiracy theorist friend that his cancer had been caused by taking the Covid-19 vaccine. Essentially, if he had not taken the vaccine, he’d still be with us today. The theorist, who also believes in the standard conspiracy theories like the school shooting victims were actors and, yes, chemtrails are a thing, never spoke to my friend again, essentially because getting cancer was his own fault. Hard for anyone of sound mind to take in but I assure you it’s true.
I am no expert on vaccines or on medicines of any kind. I am not a doctor, I am not a scientist. But I tell you what: I do believe in experts. If one of these people tells me that vaccines work and are safe, then I believe them, rather than believe someone who has fallen for the nonsense spouted by the likes of David Icke. The conspiracy theorist goes by the idea that everyone in the world, every scientist, journalist, politician and doctor has been taken in, except the conspiracy theorist themself. This is not just wrong: it’s mental illness.
The truth for some people can never be enough. If an explanation for something is simple, then there must be more to it than that. And when it comes to science, one disproves a theory with evidence, not by coming up with a wacky, evidence-free idea.
Conspiracy theories come from a place that is mad, bad and downright dangerous. And their consequences can be very damaging, both physically and mentally. Surely, we should only believe in things that are true and real unless they are proven to be incorrect. That’s now science works. Conspiracy theories are by their very nature devoid of evidence and logic and they, as well as the people who project them, should be treated with the contempt they deserve.
