Why the 9/11 Conspiracy Theories Resonate
I (TD managing editor Blair Golson) have studiously avoided blogging about "The U.S. government planned 9/11" conspiracy theories because, frankly, they're crap they strain credulity; no government it seems unlikely to the extreme that the government could keep a secret like that from leaking* (see editor's note on the jump). But Time magazine has a good explanation of why 36% of people polled lend credence to these claims: We need grand theories to make sense of grand events, or the world just seems too random.I have studiously avoided blogging about “The U.S. government planned 9/11” conspiracy theories because, frankly, they strain credulity*; it seems unlikely to the extreme that the government could keep a secret like that from leaking. But Time magazine has a good explanation of why 36% of people polled lend credence to these claims: We need grand theories to make sense of grand events, or the world just seems too random.
*Editor’s note: I originally had written “…frankly, they’re crap; no government could keep a secret like that from leaking.” But as anything is theoretically possible, I decided to soften my statement.
WAIT BEFORE YOU GO...Time:
… There are psychological explanations for why conspiracy theories are so seductive. Academics who study them argue that they meet a basic human need: to have the magnitude of any given effect be balanced by the magnitude of the cause behind it. A world in which tiny causes can have huge consequences feels scary and unreliable. Therefore a grand disaster like Sept. 11 needs a grand conspiracy behind it. “We tend to associate major events–a President or princess dying–with major causes,” says Patrick Leman, a lecturer in psychology at Royal Holloway University of London, who has conducted studies on conspiracy belief. “If we think big events like a President being assassinated can happen at the hands of a minor individual, that points to the unpredictability and randomness of life and unsettles us.” In that sense, the idea that there is a malevolent controlling force orchestrating global events is, in a perverse way, comforting.
This year, the ground feels uncertain — facts are buried and those in power are working to keep them hidden. Now more than ever, independent journalism must go beneath the surface.
At Truthdig, we don’t just report what's happening — we investigate how and why. We follow the threads others leave behind and uncover the forces shaping our future.
Your tax-deductible donation fuels journalism that asks harder questions and digs where others won’t.
Don’t settle for surface-level coverage.
Unearth what matters. Help dig deeper.
Donate now.
You need to be a supporter to comment.
There are currently no responses to this article.
Be the first to respond.