Conspiracy theories that keep me up at night
Imagine you’re sitting in your bed at 3 am, restless, anxious, all because you fell down the hole of watching videos on Youtube about conspiracy theories. You see one conspiracy theory that sticks out to you; the flat Earth theory. Youtube keeps recommending these videos to you until you no longer can tell what is fact or fiction, fighting with yourself about everything you’ve ever known to be true.
This is the challenge of believing in conspiracy theories. Skewed facts are thrown all over the place, some videos a lot more believable than others. Even though you thought that you were smart enough to recognize when something was fake, the idea of something being a conspiracy makes you more interested in it, wanting to latch on to theory and learn as much as you can about it.
While it is easy to fall into the rabbit-hole of conspiracy theories, whether it being the Larry conspiracy or conspiracies about Lizard People, knowing the facts about these conspiracies can help you recognize what is real. Doing the proper research about conspiracies is extremely vital when it comes to believing in one of them.
I have fallen down this rabbit hole of conspiracy theories time and time again. With my younger years being filled with videos from Shane Dawson to TikTok’s from b.t.s.hearmeout, conspiracy theories surrounded me. Three hours would go by and I would still be locked into the virtual world that was telling me what to believe in. Let me tell you a secret: I do believe that some of these conspiracies are extremely factual and true, like the Illuminati.
Whether it be the moon landing or the flat Earth theory, people beef it out over whether these things are true. Some people believe in most conspiracy theories, while others don’t believe in any of the “nonsense” that is being spewed at them. Almost anything can be a conspiracy theory, and today we will be covering some of the biggest ones such as the Illuminati, the Moon Landing, and the Flat Earth Theory.
The Illuminati
One of the biggest conspiracy theories that has been a conspiracy for decades is the Illuminati. The Illuminati is supposedly a secretive group full of the most important people in the world, as well as the richest people. The modern day Illuminati allegedly rules the entire world and is the most powerful society to exist today.
The Illuminati used to be a real group in the 1500s called the Bavarian Illuminati. The Bavarian Illuminati was a group started in Germany based on Enlightenment ideas who were competing with the Freemasons. The group was extremely small and was started by Adam Weishaupt, who wanted to educate the members on topics such as reason and philanthropy.
The Illuminati originally used the symbol of the owl to conceal their identity and people over 30 weren’t allowed into the society. They were said to be untrustworthy. The Illuminati believed that they were the ones that should rule the world and that they should be at the top of the governmental hierarchy. They wanted to infiltrate other world leaders and their countries and take over completely.
In 1785, the real Illuminati disappeared after an act was put in place that banned secret societies. Many people believe that they never really disappeared though. The Illuminati eventually caused a mass scare in America in the 1700s, and Thomas Jefferson was accused of being a member of the society. This was proven to be false, but people still felt scared about the Illuminati coming and ruining their lives.
In the modern age, the Illuminati is still a huge conspiracy theory that can be seen everywhere in the world. When talking to Lilian Trinh, she stated “It is[the Illuminati] shown on the dollar bill, famous people show their devil signs all the time, and it is a big thing in the entertainment industry” which is such a true statement.
From Doja Cat to Ice Spice, the so-called “devil signs” can be seen in pictures and videos of celebrities when they are out in public. While these signs aren’t proven to be a part of the Illuminati, it falls into the conspiracy, which has also not been fully proven.
That is the thing about conspiracies; they don’t have to be proven for people to believe in them. According to Business Insider, 15% of registered voters believe in the Illuminati. This doesn’t include people who did not partake in the study, or the younger generation who hasn’t been able to vote yet.
I did an interview with Glen Carpenter, a history teacher at Riley. We talked a bit about the Illuminati, and he said “Yeah it might as well be real. Kanye is secretly running the world. Just kidding, but even if it’s not the Illuminati, there is some type of group that connects all powerful people that runs society and the world.”
There are so many different groups that are believed to run the world, such as the Freemasons, the Knights Templar, Skull and Bones, and Bilderberg. Many of these are similar in a sense to the Illuminati, yet they aren’t talked about nearly enough.
Even if you don’t believe in the Illuminati, the proof is right there. You just have to look closely to see it.
The Flat Earth Theory
The flat Earth theory is one of the most controversial conspiracy theories to ever exist. It stems back to when the Earth was first discovered to be round; all the way back in 3 B.C. When the Earth was first credited to be round, it was from the discovery of the moon being round, which then was reasoned out to make the Earth round.
People still believe that the Earth is actually flat. They don’t believe that the Earth is round because of reasons like the top and the bottom of the Earth and how you can tell if you’re upside down. When speaking to Karis Bean, she stated “There are some things that I question, like if the Earth was round, what happens when we go to the bottom?” which can cause questions to arise on the authenticity of the Earth being round.
The Earth being round is widely recognized as the truth, but Flat-Earthers don’t believe that this is a possibility at all. There is a lot of backlash on these people because they can never truly prove their thoughts on it. If you go onto Youtube and search the flat Earth theory, an abundance of videos will show up about it. It is so easy to fall down the rabbit hole of the flat Earth theory.
One of the biggest points that Flat-Earthers make is that there is no way that all the planets can align in a straight line. This theory would make sense since we see the planets at different points in the night sky, but it can be disapproved when we have solar or lunar eclipses.
One of the most interesting things about the flat-Earth theory is that there is even a national conference specifically for Flat-Earthers. Over 600 people attended the most recent one. This conference is just for people who believe that the Earth is flat, and come together to share all of their thoughts about it.
In an article published by Physics World, many Flat Earthers were exposed to the theory via Youtube or from someone who heard about it from Youtube. These same people do not trust the government or the media which is why they have such a strong belief in the flat Earth.
Even though the flat Earth theory is far-fetched with today’s technology, a lot of people believe that it is real. Conspiracy theories aren’t always factual or have proof behind them. If enough people believe in them, it can become a conspiracy.
The Moon Landing
This has to be one of my all time favorite conspiracy theories and one that I wouldn’t be surprised if it was true. The moon landing conspiracy theory has been around since 1969 when American astronaut Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first two men to walk on the moon. This is a more recent conspiracy theory compared to some of the other ones that have been talked about today.
When Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin reached the moon, it was a televised event that all of America could see. That was the first issue with the moon landing. It was argued that the moon landing shouldn’t have been able to be televised with the technology of that era. Only about 10 years before, color TV had come out.
The problem with the event being televised was that people were struggling with the idea that it was possible to broadcast from the moon to the Earth without any type of cords. While TV was prominent, those had to be plugged into the wall and there were good explanations for how they worked. There wasn’t WiFi or anything of that sort yet, and people were still using landlines and home phones. People were astounded as to how they were able to showcase something from so far away.
The next bit of evidence that I will talk about is the flag moving. It has been proven that the moon has 0 gravity, yet the flag in the picture that was taken and the video was taken showed the flag moving which shouldn’t have been possible. So many people were calling this out and it still has not been proven as to why it was moving.
The flag is still up on the moon, yet there have been no pictures of it since the moon landing. Isn’t it strange that we landed on the moon in 1969, yet there have been no pictures since then?
During the time that the United States went to the moon, the Space Race with Russia was super big. Both the United States and Russia were trying to put the first man on the moon. There are many theories that the United States wanted to be on the moon so badly that we faked being the first ones there.
I mean, all of that would make sense right? There’s more proof that it isn’t real than it is real. The only proof we have is the Apollo 11 spaceship leaving the atmosphere, but who’s to say that anyone was even on it.
Conspiracy theories surround us and are created by almost nothing. You don’t need a massive amount of proof or evidence to create them. Whether it be the moon landing or the flat Earth theory, someone will always believe them.
I believe in so many conspiracy theories. The world is full of them and they honestly make things a bit more fun.
That is all the information I have for you today. If you enjoyed this article, go check out Youtube if you want to fall into the same rabbit hole that I did.