Debunking Flat Earth Misconceptions
The chemtrail conspiracy theory presupposes the erroneous belief that long-lasting contrails left by aircraft are, in fact, “chemtrails” intentionally sprayed for nefarious purposes.
The so-called “chemtrails” are just normal condensation trails produced by aircraft engine exhaust. Contrails are composed of water in the form of ice crystals. Depending on the temperature and humidity, contrails may be visible for a few seconds, or they may persist for hours, resembling natural clouds.
Crank magnetism is the tendency of “cranks” to hold multiple irrational, unsupported, or ludicrous beliefs that are often unrelated. Crank magnetism also denotes the tendency of these people to accumulate more of such beliefs over time.
Those who believe flat Earth will tend to believe other “crank” ideas. Some of these ideas are necessary to support the belief in a flat Earth, like the hoax that moon landings did not happen. But most of these beliefs are not related to flat-Earth.
Conspiracy theories — like flat Earth — exists on a spectrum, from the fringe to the mainstream. Each of us has a different demarcation line where we divide the spectrum into the reasonable and the ridiculous.
Flat Earth lies on the extreme end of the spectrum. Anybody who believes in a flat Earth also has its demarcation line on the far extreme, too, and as a result, tends to believe all sorts of other conspiracy theories. However, less extreme conspiracy theorists might find flat Earth ridiculous. By learning how people can believe in a flat Earth, we can avoid believing other, baseless conspiracy theories.
Continue reading “Conspiracy Theory Spectrum and Demarcation Line”
