Conspiracy Theories as a Form of Religious Belief: The 9/11 Case

Last night, I watched a National Geographic television show titled 9/11: Science and Conspiracy. As I listened to the conspiracists, I was struck by the similarities between their belief systems and associated cognitive processes (or lack thereof) and those inherent to religious narratives. Let me explain.

(1) Both religion and grand conspiracies are immune from reason and both are impervious to evidentiary standards. Irrespective of all of the evidence in support of what actually happened on 9/11, and despite any evidence in support of the endless conspiracy storylines (many of which are contradictory with one another), the conspiracists hold on to their firm beliefs. Even when a given conspiratorial statement (e.g., "jet fuel cannot weaken iron") is refuted via a controlled scientific experiment, the evidence is dismissed as suspect, irrelevant, or better yet, the experimenters are apparently in on the conspiracy!

(2) Both religion and grand conspiracies ascribe great power to "invisible" forces. In the case of the 9/11 conspiracies, these shadowy puppet masters are one of several possible groups including the New World Order, the American government/military complex, the Illuminati, the Jews, the Zionists, George Bush (who is apparently controlled by an evil group of neo-cons), oil companies, and real estate moguls (many of whom are Jewish).

(3) These "invisible" forces appear to be as omnipotent as are Gods in the various religious traditions. For example, it has been estimated that the most basic version of the various strands of 9/11 conspiracies would require a level of unimaginable coordination between at the very least several thousand people. Incredibly, not a single individual within the conspiracy has ever broken silence. Such is the power of the conspirators.

Extreme stupidity is legal however I dare say that in this case it is immoral. As I write these words, close to 3,000 people were about to lose their lives exactly eight years ago. By espousing such virulent nonsense, the conspiracists attack the historical truths behind this horrifying event, and in so doing dishonor the memories of all those who perished on that fateful morning.

Source for Image:
http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/wtc-intro.jpg