The Mental Prevalence of Conspiracy Theories

Humanity has perpetually been captivated by the undiscovered mysteries of the world and even reached into the obscure notorious to find a fitting truth. For hundreds of years, a few people known as conspiracy theorists have challenged what is stated only to speculate by taking a distinctive perspective from an acquired material.

According to the Merriam Webster dictionary, the term conspiracy theory is defined as a theory that explains an event or set of circumstances as the result of a secret plot by usually powerful conspirators. In the 16th century, Greek Mythology portrayed the humankind as a curious species in varies myths like Pandora’s Box. As technology developed throughout the years, our minds altered with a dynamic and influential device at the tip of our fingers.

Today, conspiracy theories spark an intriguing debate about our beliefs; however, searching for hidden answers may be a psychological way to find comfort. September 11, 2001, the nation watched as people jumped to their deaths to escape the hellish fires of the collapsing World Trade Center Towers. America was powerless, distraught, and enraged. The land of the free and the home of the brave had been targeted; attacked. Within a month of George W. Bush’s address to the United States of America, an Air Force aircraft was ordered to drop a load of bombs in Afghanistan; troops were rushed into the site. This commenced a war that still hasn’t ended to this date, with three different presidents promising to end the ongoing war and bring soldiers home. As time passed, the nation grew impatient. Faith in America’s government turned into undeniable disappointment. People searched for detailed information about how the towers fell, the plane sizes, phone calls received by a victim’s family and even redacted government files; theories began to unwind.

In varies movies, including 2009’s "Race to Witch Mountain", conspiracy theorists were characterized as lunatics with a credulous mind; usually portrayed as a person wearing a hat and clothing completely made of aluminum whilst rambling about the government’s furtive behavior. In contrast to today’s youth, conspiracy theories have become such a common conversational topic that it is rarely considered controversial anymore. However, theorists are currently being associated as interrogators that obsessively dissect certain aspects of history by attempting to grasp enough comfort from unresolved situations. According to an interviewee, the reason why few people are known to fall into paranoia is due to the fact that there is a compulsive need to try to find every piece to an unsolvable puzzle even if the pieces don't stick. This is an example that shows how a person can begin making insane accusations and why some do undergo the mental psychological problem of paranoia. The advancement of technology has also been recognized as a big reason behind why much of the population believes in at least one theory. From being a prisoner chained to the dependency of land-lines it has transformed into carrying a light small rectangle in your back pocket that has the same power as a home computer. This revolutionary device has become a necessity by storing all our important information, popularizing fast research which The infamous moon landing of 1969 has become such a recurring search topic that in the commonly known search engine Google, it’s the fifth result from just typing "moon landing".

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