1:00PM
What if joining a conspiracy theory were similar to quitting a drug?
A few minutes ago, a friend of mine mentioned that he saw a pattern that people who join groups of conspiracy theories are often taught to leave the people and ideas of the past behind, just as people who join Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) may be taught to leave the people and alcohol behind.
Now, I’m writing now not with a lesson I’m trying to teach, but as an exploration through writing. I don’t know what the answer is and I hope by writing here, you and I will be have a more clear understanding of what I’m thinking and how I’m seeing all of this.
If I were to join a group that believes in a conspiracy theory, I imagine they would tell me that what I believed before was not true and more importantly, it was hurting me to believe that. Secondly, I think they would tell me that the people around me were helping to reinforce that harmful behavior. So one of the best ways to get rid of that behavior is to distance myself from the behavior and to distance myself from the people causing it.
I’m not sure how AA functions and so what I describe here may be far off—maybe more appropriate for other drug rehab strategies. I imagine they also say that what I did before was hurting me and the people around me were reinforcing that behavior. In other words, drinking a bottle of vodka every night would hurt my body and hurt my relationships with my family. And the people around me who also drank a lot would reinforce the drinking behavior when I went to the bar or to their house and offered me drink after drink.
I wonder if its about feeling attached to something and how we perceive that attachment. It seems as if in both cases above, the belief is that the behavior (action, idea, etc.) is bringing pain to one’s life and that people in one’s life are reinforcing those behaviors, and therefore that pain.
But I don’t think that’s the root of it. I personally don’t believe the alcohol is causing the main source of pain for that person, but rather amplifying pain below. A way for me to run away from my pain, and in the process, add more pain. I think the pain stems from broken relationships and feeling distant from people in my life. Believing they don’t care about me. Believing they don’t know I exist. I believe that same underlying pain may fuel conspiracy theories.
What if the answer is not less connection, but more connection to more people and things?
Hmm.
1:10PM
