philo quiz 1.docx

will be relying heavily on Cassam's book Conspiracy Theories, 2019. Cassam is Professor of Philosophy at Warwick University, UK. **What is a conspiracy?** When 2 or more people plot together in secret. Conspiracy theories: Anti vaxxine: Vaccines are being used by Bill Gates to sterilize women...

will be relying heavily on Cassam's book Conspiracy Theories, 2019. Cassam is Professor of Philosophy at Warwick University, UK. **What is a conspiracy?** When 2 or more people plot together in secret. Conspiracy theories: Anti vaxxine: Vaccines are being used by Bill Gates to sterilize women in Africa. Gates is also using them to implant microchips into us, which allow him to monitor and control people. The holocaust deniers: of WWII never happened. The Nazis did not murder millions of Jews in concentration camps. That idea was promoted by the Israelis to gain sympathy for Jewish migration to Israel. JFk: Official account: Lee Harvey Oswald shot JFK acting alone. LHO was later shot by an angry bar owner. Conspiracy Theory: the assassination was arranged by the "deep state." Lee Harvey Oswald was acting on their orders. LHO was shot so that he wouldn't tell the truth. Sandy hook: Official account: in 2012 Adam Lanza shot and killed 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary School (20 children and 6 adults). Conspiracy Theory: the Democrats faked the whole thing to win support for anti-gun laws. Nobody was shot. Actors pretended to be bereaved parents. People who reject the more controversial conspiracy theories and think it is irrational to believe them are often called ***conspiracy sceptics*.** People who believe some of the more controversial conspiracy theories or think it is rational to take them seriously are often **called *conspiracy theorists*.** - Gunpowder plot and 9/11 (official account) are **conspiracy theories**. - 9/11 Truther theory and holocaust denial are **Conspiracy Theories**. **Propaganda: What CTs do is promote a political viewpoint.** Cassam: there are **special features** which make something a Conspiracy Theory rather than a conspiracy theory. These special features make CTs especially unlikely to be true. 1\. speculative: CTs are based on guess-work---connecting the dots-- rather than solid evidence. 2\. Ccontrarian by nature: CTs are usually *contrary to the official view and CTs are usually contrary to appearances* *3. esoteric:* *CTs reject obvious explanations. They say appearances don't match reality. This gives them an esoteric feel.* *"Truth is stranger than fiction."* *4. amateur: Amateur sleuths and internet detectives tend to lack relevant expertise* *5. Pre-modern worldview:* *Pre-modern worldview: there must be a meaning behind major, complex events.* *Modern worldview: "shit happens".* - Conspiracy: when 2 or more people plot together secretly. - Conspiracy Theories and conspiracy theories - What's the purpose of Conspiracy Theories? Cassam says: propaganda Conspiracy theorists say: to expose lies - What's Special about Conspiracy Theories? Cassam says: Speculative, Contrarian, Esoteric, Amateur, Pre-modern Worldview Psychologists say : i\) people believe CTs partly because of our inbuilt cognitive shortcuts and biases, and ii\) it's partly a matter of personality. - The intentionality bias---thinking that things happen because they were intended rather than accidental - Confirmation bias---looking for evidence that supports what you already believe while ignoring contrary evidence - Proportionality bias---the assumption that the scale of an event's cause must match the scale of the event itself. **Ideology** is a set of fundamental ideas and beliefs that shape one's understanding of political reality. E.g., Marxism, racism. Also, Conspiricism. **Conspiricism:** people in authority/power are hiding things from us in a conspiracy to further their own sinister goals. If you believe this fundamental idea, you're likely to end up accepting many CTs. People who believe one CT are more likely to believe other CTs, even totally unrelated or contradictory CTs. Right wing extremists are vociferous Conspiracy Theorists, especially prone to anti-semitic CTs. Left wing extremists are prone to CTs about global elites which they often assume to be Jewish. being a white supremicist or a communist or extreme Islamist increases the likelihood of being a Conspiracy Theorist **Being a victom of actual conspiracies** **Marginalisation: poverty and negative life** **The Pull Factor** Some factors **push** people in the direction of conspiracism. We should also consider the **pull** factor  **David Coady's View** Conspiracy theorists are people unusually willing to investigate conspiracies. Conspiracy theorists perform an important social function: investigating evidence of conspiracy Cassam: Conspiracy Theorists cause many harms: \- personal, \- social, \- intellectual and \- political.