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RE: Curating the Internet: Science and technology digest for February 1, 2020
I also am surprised to learn of the difference between ways people think. I note my surprise is consistent with the fact that people poorly understand each other, all too often.
Regarding conspiracy, it's just a fact of life that conspiracies happen. If they didn't the FBI wouldn't exist. Almost all the charges the FBI formally brings are conspiracy charges. A conspiracy is just two criminals agreeing to commit crimes, and criminals aren't just muggers. It's almost impossible for white collar crimes to be undertaken without involving two or more people.
Frankly, I consider government to be a criminal conspiracy. Call me a whacko. Remember that on April 15th.
Thanks!
This point, "my surprise is consistent with the fact that people poorly understand each other, all too often" reminds me of a quote that was attributed to Kurt Gödel. He reportedly said,
And Gödel ties into conspiracy theories, too. I seem to recall that he died by starving himself to death because he thought that people were trying to poison his food.
On this point, "Regarding conspiracy, it's just a fact of life that conspiracies happen", Michael Shermer made the same point in the constructive conspiracism post.
If I remember correctly from the November post, he made a truth table style of argument, saying that believing in a false conspiracy theory is usually harmless, but believing in a true one is helpful, so even though false theories may be more common than true ones, it's still evolutionarily beneficial for people to have a predisposition towards believing them.