Conspiracy Theorist groups similar to the Watchtower

enigma1863

I was watching a You tube video on Charlie Veitch and I could not help but see the parallels with his experience with truthers and the ex JW experience with the watchtower. What do you think?:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_UYZITc_90

Apognophos

Thanks, this is interesting. At 15:00 he is talking about how he really thought that he was supposed to be following wherever the evidence led him, but when he changed sides, everyone from the conspiracy side hated him and thought he'd been "compromised" by the powers that be. Then he says the 9/11 conspiracists calling themselves a "truth movement" is as much of a joke as a religion calling itself a truth movement.

I think that some of us genuinely felt that being "in the truth" meant that we would always follow the evidence to make sure it was the truth. And for a while, the best information we had seen indicated that JWs had the truth. But when we learned evidence that contradicted the "truth" and adjusted our views, we were surprised to find that other JWs did not understand what we were doing, or want to listen to us.

I specifically know one JW elder who has indicated that he thinks reading certain material would cause him to "fall out of the truth", so he deliberately doesn't read it. Now, I like him -- he's a kind man, and very smart -- but what can I say in the face of brazen intellectual dishonesty like that? These just aren't people I can associate myself with anymore.

Apognophos

At 6:00 in the second part of the interview, he talks about how members of the movement had to attack his credibility when he left the movement, because for them it's a kind of religion, so they couldn't just let him go and say, "Well, he disagrees with us".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2TjLuguKXs

cofty

Just think about the crazy conspiracy theories we used to believe!

Coded Logic

Conspiracy "theories" and religious beliefs share much in common. Anything they feel contradicts their views requires a ridiculous amount of evidence and support. Whereas, anything they feel supports their claims they accept unchecked. And all experts or "authorities" are either highly suspect or just plain evil.

Apognophos

Another point I thought was interesting, from the second half of the interview, was when Veitch says that conspiracists are "fetishizing" evil. They are obsessed with the supposed control that evil forces have over humankind and they make morbid videos about all the evil they are doing. It's an unhealthy fascination with the monsters supposedly lurking under mankind's collective bed.

It's been pointed out on the forum that Witnesses seem to talk about Satan more than Jesus at times, because they're fixated on the control that Satan has on this world. They like to remind people in their public talks and literature about the terrible things in the world and how badly we need to be saved from them.

This is not totally a coincidental alignment, as I think Veitch is saying that some conspiracists actually have religious views which are similar to the views of fundamentalists who believe that Satan is in control of our world. So really the conspiracists are sometimes related to the very sort of religion that we were a part of. Other times they only believe that men are behind these conspiracies (the Illuminati), or aliens (the greys).

enigma1863

Yes Apognophos I thought the same thing when he mentioned Fetishizing evil. I know a few people that would constantly use the word 'Satanic' and if you look at some of the publications they often depict Armageddon destroying 'wicked' people.

Vidiot

Many JWs are particularly susceptible to right-wing religious conspiracy theory.

Conspiracy Theorist groups similar to the Watchtower

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