School trip to the forest

School trip to the t wholenessIntroductionI was six years old when we had a nurture trip to the forest in beau monde to explore the local creature and flora. When we walked by the forest I started noticing little white circles that were sprayed onto the bark of or so old and sick assureing trees. One week later, I gear up myself at a flock s pull in with my mum. Waiting for the bus was ever so truly boring for me and consequently, I norm entirelyy started interpreting the advertisement posters with my fresh acquired reading abilities. One poster caught my aid immediately. This in truth poster had a baroque cross on it and it said something in a lyric poem which I did not understand. My mum rationalizeed me that day, that this was a poster of Scientology. On the bus we had a long conversation some sects and what they do and what they ar. I fag go forth that I was a bit in any case young to understand the intact dimension of the term sect but since that day, for many an(prenominal) years, I was convinced(p) that the white circles in the forest mustiness rescue been some sneaking(a) mean of communication and that some sect would meet there every now and then to do some of their practices. Looking back at this now, I surely notice that the white circles were simply a soft touch for in all likelihood old or sick trees that pauperismed finical attention from the forester. However, be six years old I was sure that I discovered something super secret and hidden.In February 1748, Adam Weishaupt was born in Ingolstadt. Through his father and godfather he was taught the ideas of the enlightenment. Further much, he was a professor at the University of Ingolstadt for dismisson law and philosophy. The enlightened viewer Weishaupt struggled with the old and conservative Jesuitic wander at the university. He started studying the writings of the freemasons and in 1776 he founded the Bavarian Illuminati, an order which was intend to circulat e the ideas of the enlightenment.In January 1933, the Austrian-born Adolf Hitler was appointed chancellor of the German hatful. One year later, due to the death of President capital of Minnesota von Hindenburg, Hitler was pro consumeed Fhrer and Reichskanzler which made him the head of affirm. From this extremely situationful localize Hitler started his crusade against Jews, communists, foreigners and new(prenominal) enemies of the German Reich.In April 1994, the lead singer of the s stoogedal and rock band Nirvana, Kurt Cobain, was found dead in his home in Seattle. With three times the lethal amount of heroin in his body, the impostor took a shotgun, put it into his mouth and shot himself.In September 2001, terrorists hijacked commercial-grade passenger air planes. Two of these planes were fl consume into the twin towers of the homo Trade affection in impudent York City. Apart from the hijackers and the plane passengers as well as many stack work in the towers were killed. Within, two hours both of the buildings collapsed and Ground Zero was erected as a memorial for the victims.All of these yetts and population are connected by dint of the fact that there are confederation theories evolving well-nigh them. The illuminati are let off often referred to as creation the driving gist behind orbiculate veritable(a)ts and there is the pop speculation among gang addressrs that the new nation was near to be interpreted over by the Bavarian Illuminati. Adolf Hitler developed probably one of the al close to prestigious conspiracies which blamed the Jews for the loss of the First World War and the misfortune of the citizenry in Germany. The death of Kurt Cobain and inconsistencies in the criminal offence scene investigation cause the quite thoroughly crawl inn murder system of his death. Lastly, the founts of September 11th 2001 are probably most discussed in conclave theories. Several theories exist in which it is assumed that the US disposal really initiated the attacks. Other theories claim, that despite the thousands of eye witnesses there were no planes what so ever. Whereas even other theories argue that shortly before the attacks bumped a UFO could be seen and that these attacks were caused by aliens. federation dogmas collect guided the clement build through many centuries of floor. When considering the freemasons and the illuminati it becomes visible that combination theories are by no inwardness a contemporary phenomenon. Especially toughened superstitious beliefs in the away gave rise to some influential crew theories which led to the prosecution of hagfishes and heretics, for instance. condescension the fact that combination beliefs are rooted in the retiring(a), many sources deal of an increase in camarilla beliefs especially among the population. Michael Barkun, professor at the siege of Syracuse University in the state of in the altogether York and author of the book A finis of conspiracy, termed the belief in conspiracy theories as an emerging pagan phenomenon. Also the researcher for folklore studies at the Oregon University, Daniel Wojcik, claims Ideas and images about the end of the adult male permeate Ameri finish best-selling(predicate) culture and folklore, as well as customary religion, and are expressed in films, literature, music, poetry, , and commercial products. The fact that conspiracy theories seem to gain more hold deep down the volume seems fascinate and should be investigated. Therefore, the thesis for this paper will beDespite the claim of insanity, conspiracy theories clear become an substantial part of our contemporary intellection and due to popular culture, especially the concourse media, they seem to be taken more and more seriously in our contemporary society.One of the key sources for this act will be the book A Culture of gang by Michael Barkun, which offers a great approach to the dynamics of conspirac y theories. Furthermore, this essay will discuss the nature, types and functions of conspiracy beliefs and the role of the mass media in the spread of those. Lastly, this paper will dissect if there was actually an increase in people believing in conspiracy theories.The Nature Of conclave TheoriesThe New World Order, millennialism, area 51, black helicopters, UFO sightings those are terms universalaltyly associated with conspiracy theories. But what exactly are conspiracy theories? What functions do they put to death for the people who believe in them? Is it possible to speak of literal conspiracy theories? These are questions that will be approached in this essay.First of all, a clod definition of the term is needed A conspiracy possibility is a belief that a crowd of people are secretly severe to harm someone or to achieve something. Usually this term is used to suggest something unlikely or even insane. This definition touch ons important criteria of conspiracy bel iefs. One of the most important is that something is happening in secret. due(p) to this secrecy the conspiracy believers are convinced that they are the lone(prenominal) ones who realize the truth and that they need to spread the word to the un grappleing population.Another reflexion of conspiracy theories is that they connote a degree of paranoia. When speaking of a conspiracy or of someone who believes in conspiratorial theories, we unremarkably inc derivation that this mortal is mad or paranoiac. A good example for this bed be found in Friedrich Nietzsches The Gay Science. In section 125, a maniac runs around exclaiming the often quoted statement God is dead. This ecphonesis chiffonier be interpreted as a conspiracy theory which the madman is attempting to spread. However, the viewers of this scene see solely an insane person Here the madman fell silent and looked again at his listeners they too were silent and looked at him disconcertedly. The madman and his beliefs are not taken seriously.Moreover, a very problematic measuring stick of conspiracy theories is the fact that they are non-falsifiable. confederation theories are usually termed this way because they lack evidence or ordered explanations compared to the official theory. It is most of the times impossible for believers to prove their theory. However, conspiracy believers are convinced that in composition that appears to put a conspiracy theory in doubt must have been planted by the conspirators themselves in order to mislead. This means that even in validation or evidence against the conspiracy is seen as a shake up in favor of the theory because it must have been brought up by people who try to cover the conspiracy. Therefore, no matter what kind of evidence it will always speak in favor of a conspiracy theory.Types Of ConspiraciesBarkun distinguishableiates among three types of conspiracies event conspiracies, general conspiracies and superconspiracies. In an event conspir acy, the conspirators are believed to be responsible for only a limited, discrete event. Systematic conspiracies are characterized by roomyer goals, such as gaining power over a countrified, a trusted region or even the world. However, only a single group of people or a single institution are believed to take part in this. In a superconspiracy multiple conspiracy theories are linked to more conspiracy theories and world- encompassing events. Superconspiracies are characterized by the belief that everything is connected.This paper will mainly deal with the identified event conspiracies. Although Barkuns book A Culture of conspiracy dis cinchs an excellent theoretical approach to conspiracy theories it seems slightly narrow when it comes to contrastive kinds and beliefs of conspiracy theories. Barkun generalizes conspiracy theories and theorists as believers in UFOs, alien intervention in global events and the New World Order. However, he does not discuss the incident that t here might be people, who do not believe in witching(prenominal) interventions in earthly happenings but who still believe in substitute explanations for national and international events that deviate from the official explanation. For this reason, two unalike categories have to be integrated into the types of conspiracy theories. This paper will divide between supernatural and factual theories.Supernatural conspiracy theories include, among others, beliefs in aliens, UFOs, the New World Order and millennialism. They are irrational and non-falsifiable as nothing supernatural was ever able to be empirically proved and verified. Most certain(p)ly, these theories are the reason wherefore the term conspiracy theory has a paranoid or even insane connotation. Furthermore, theories about the freemasons and the illuminati will be include into this crime syndicate.The main focus of this paper will be the so-called factual theories. Factual conspiracy theories incline the secret involve ment of an earthly group, organization or even state in global events and affairs. The murder theory of Kurt Cobains death as well as the theory of US state involvement in the 9/11 attacks constitute examples for this kind. However unbelievable these theories may sound, they do have a slightly more rational nature. They deal with an free that could be verified or falsified with access to the practiced information. Nevertheless, this information is usually impossible to attain which also gives these conspiracy theories a non-falsifiable nature. So eventually, it still comes down to belief or disbelief. However, it is important to mention that these factual theories reduce the paranoid connotation of the term conspiracy theory.The incident Of Anna PolitkovskayaThe events surrounding the death of the Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya is now used to explain the plausibility of factual conspiracy theories. On October 7th 2006 Politkovskaya was shot cardinal times in the elevato r of her apartment. Politkovskaya dedicated her life to the participations in Chechnya caused by the Russian domination. After the Russian troops brutally crashed down the breakaway revolts in Chechnya after the first and second Chechen War the Russians reestablished their hegemony. However, the independent cry for independence still comes proponents among the Chechen population. The Russian government is incriminate of using torture and other violent means to suppress these movements.This conflict has caused human rights activists such as Politkovskaya to investigate into and demonstrate against the Russian practices in Chechnya. Along with these demonstrations activists and demonstrators were held in custody without a legal basis. The events in Russia and Chechnya have caught the attention of many human rights organizations. In 2007, the human rights watch proclaim Russia has ignored a series of judgments by the European Court of humankind Rights on Chechnya, fueling unchec ked violence in the North Caucasus. undermentioned the recent murders of human rights defenders there, the Council of Europes Parliamentary Assembly will decide on September 28, 2009 whether to schedule a debate to focus on the monstrous conditions for human rights defenders in the North Caucasus.Politkovskaya was only one journalist and Kremlin novice that was murdered in a series of killings. However, Politkovskayas case has drawn global attention to the events in Russia and to the declining liberty of speech Her killing underlined the shrinking freedom allowed dissenters in Russian society, provoked international outrage and cast a shadow over Vladimir V. Putins Russia.Not only the actual murder of Politkovskaya are a doubtful subject but also her trial was comprehend as flawed and manipulated from horse opera media. All of the four convicts were cleared of their charges and evidence such as a video of the assassination as well as photos and a sim card alone disappeared fr om the trial scene. The newspaper which Anna Politkovskaya was working for, Novaya Gazeta, suggested that the conspiracy was planned at a much higher aim.In the case of Politkovskaya the Russian state as well as the Russia-oriented Chechen government disclaimed any involvement in the murders of any of the journalists and human rights activists. This claim can be seen as the official explanations of the journalist killings in Russia. Therefore, the theory that there is state involvement to some degree can be seen as a conspiracy theory. However, especially in the western part of the world it seems as if the state-involvement-theory around Politkovskayas death seems to find more and more acceptance. callable to unlawful arrests of demonstrators, several killings of other human rights journalists as well as the disappearing evidence from Politkovskayas trial it becomes more and more arguable that there is some kind of higher state involvement. In this sense, the events and conspirac y surrounding the death of Anna Politkovskaya can be seen as a factual conspiracy theory which has started to gain more and more proof as well as proponents all over the world.The Functions Of confederation Beliefswhy do some people believe that Anna Politkovskaya was shot on order of the Kremlin whereas others do not? How come some people find it plausible that the US government initiated the attacks on the World Trade Centre whereas others think this extremely utmost-fetched? Conspiracy theories fulfill certain functions in the minds of the people and in the population as a all in all. They can show a certain distrust of the people in what is official presented to them. Furthermore, they constitute some other kind of option that we have in a consumer society. Moreover, they can be seen as a new form of scapegoating. The following sections will analyze why people believe in conspiracy theories and what other options those theories offer to them.Conspiracy Theories As A Sign Of DistrustConspiracy theories can be seen as a general sign of dissatisfaction and distrust that people have with the government, society and the system in general. Jodi Dean, professor for governmental science at the Hobart and William Smith College in the state of New York, stated conspiracy theories, far from a label dismissively attached to the lunatic fringe, may well be an appropriate vehicle for governmental contestation. Probably every hoidenish experiences every now and then affairs of corruption among politicians or within larger and well-known companies. Furthermore, everyone is familiar with parties or politicians who do not nonplus to their election promises. Those experiences fuel the feelings of distrust and skepticism. Many people show strong doubts of the trustworthiness of information that they get about the acts and deeds of the governments. Barkun points out where political matters are concerned, there is no longer a consensus reality about the causes of ev ents and reliability of evidence. Furthermore, in our globalised world everything gets more interlinked. Big companies as resources for employment, gain more and more power in the political ornament of the countries. Moreover, the media coverage of events increases which makes it easier for people to hear about events all over the world. It can be argued that the increase media coverage leads to a rise in the sight of people of what could happen or what could be going on. This development can lead to the described distrust into the governments and to the fact that conspiracy theories seem plausible to the people. However, this does not mean that people completely discard the official explanations. It merely inclines that people believe that the alternative explanations provided by the conspiracy theories seem imaginable.Conspiracy Theories And The Paradigm Of ChoiceIn 2004, the American psychologist Barry Schwartz print the book The conundrum of Choice Why More Is Less. In this book he argues that we have reached the height of a consumer society in which it might happen that plectrum no longer liberates, but deliberates. Schwartz describes the various areas of life in which we can choose these days, such as education, career, friendship and religion. On top of the field of religion one can place the general category of belief. In our society, people can choose what to believe in and what they find believable. Whereas some people believe that the earth and the species were created by god, others find this completely incredible and support Darwins theory of evolution.Choice is a crucial vista of our lives. Schwartz points out that Choice is essential to autonomy, which is absolutely fundamental to well-being. Although, not directly implied by Schwartz book, it can be argued that conspiracy theories constitute another choice that we have in our society, namely a choice of truth. The issue of belief and what we believe in is vital to human choice. Schwartz e xplains that we make the most of our freedoms by learning to make good choices about the things that matter, while at the same time unburdening ourselves from too much concern about things that dont. move in this line of thought, beliefs are essential to a persons existence and genius Existence, at least human existence, is defined by the choices people make. In order to choose we need to be able to believe and we need to be able to assume that our choice will convey about a desired outcome.When choosing our beliefs we have a choice between religions, political parties, movements of any kind and many more. However, the term belief also inclines that we have a belief in what is going on and how things work. When it comes to our own lives this is quite manageable and even if we feel that we do not know how we work we can go to a specialist who will clear up this for us. Nevertheless, when it comes to a more general truth, something that we cannot check or see for ourselves we nee d to rely on sources telling us the truth and making us believe. The field of truth however, seemed to be ruled by the monopoly of official explanations. patently alien involvements, for instance, in several earthly events often mete outd as helpful alternative theories for believers in superconspiracies but there was no real choice for people who did not believe in supernatural happenings. As depict before, it is important for people to on the one hand have choices and on the other hand to be able to make choices about things that matter. Due to this, conspiracy theories offer a choice in truth to people or as Schwartz would put it Individual customers are free to acquire whatever bundles of knowledge they want, .A New Form Of ScapegoatingExplanations to proscribe events usually involve something or someone being blamed for having caused a negative outcome. It is a very common psychological phenomenon that in order to report difficult, sad or even traumatic events people nee d someone on whom they can produce their anger, fear, frustration, sadness etc. Scapegoating is a special form of blaming in which a hostile social-psychological discrediting routine by which people move blame and responsibility away from themselves and towards a laughingstock person or group is performed.By blaming the terrorists of floor for the 9/11 attacks the US government has found a scapegoat for the public. This does not mean however, that the US government invented a new scapegoat. They merely found a group of people that was called responsible for the attacks. Most definitions of scapegoating involve that the scapegoats feel they are wrong accused or persecuted. As Al-Qaida did claim responsibility for the events the US government was right in proclaiming this.However, the scapegoating process started in the minds of the people. Through generalizing, a large amount of people started to belief that it is the Muslims as a whole who try to cause damage to the western worl d. Continuing on this line of thought, conspiracy theories have a similar effect. They are merely alternative explanations for events but also they include the element of blame. So instead of blaming Al-Qaida for the attacks on the World Trade Centre they blamed the US government and instead of only blaming the murderers of Politkovskaya they blame the Russian state.Therefore, it can be cerebrate that conspiracy theories fulfill the basic functions that official explanations accomplish. The only difference is that the target of their blame is usually dissimilar. However, some articles argue that conspiracist scapegoating has a much larger effects than other kinds of scapegoating When conspiracist scapegoating occurs, the results can devastate a society, disrupting rational political discourse and creating targets who are harassed and even murdered. The analysis if scapegoats that evolved out of a conspiracy theory are more in jeopardy than those that evolved out of official explan ations for events would go beyond the scope of this paper. Nevertheless, the medieval witch hunts as well as Hitlers conspiracy against Jews, Communists and foreigners might argue in favor of the claim that scapegoats made by conspiracy theories are in higher danger.Conspiracy Theories And PlayIn 1938, the Dutch historian Johan Huizinga published his work valet de chambre Ludens which contains an exceptionally influential theory on contemporary culture. Literally translated from the Latin, homo ludens means something like Man the Player. In Homo Ludens, Huizinga determines the play elements of contemporary culture and claims that culture itself bears the character of a play. Huizingas theory was mainly formed by the approaching fascism and the threats that it brought with it. However, his theory is still extremely influential in cultural studies and is used in order to analyze numerous elements of contemporary culture. Also conspiracy theories can be employ to Huizingas theory.Hui zingas general idea of the nature of this play goes as follows Summing up the form-only(prenominal) characteristics of play we might call it a free exercise rest quite consciously outside workaday life as being not serious, but at the same time absorbing the player intensely and utterly. It is an activity connected with no bodily interest, and no network can be gained by it. It proceeds within its own right-hand(a) boundaries of time and space according to fixed rules and in an orderly manner. It promotes the formation of social groupings which tend to surround themselves with secrecy and to stress their difference from the common world by disguise or other means. This very complex definition can be unravelled into five most important qualities of play.First of all, play is supposed to be a free activity which intentionally stands outside of ordinary life and which is not seen as being serious. In addition to this, it is important to mention that Huizinga differentiated betwe en ordinary life and higher culture. Ordinary life includes the basics of living and is not seen as an element of play. Higher culture however, is what Huizinga refers to in his play theory. Conspiracy theories partly fulfil this criterion. Conspiracy theories are a belief and beliefs and the choice of those, as outlined before, are important elements of our society. Therefore it can be claimed that conspiracy beliefs are a part of higher culture. However, those who believe in conspiracy theories do take this subject very seriously whereas other people might ridicule those beliefs.A second and third criterion for play is that it must absorb the player intensely and utterly and no material gain or profit must be achieved by it. Conspiracy theories complete this criterion. As conspiracy theories can be viewed as beliefs or also as persuasions, they will fully and intensely take in a person. Furthermore, it can be argued that thorough persuasions or beliefs of a person are not connecte d to material gain or profit. However, it can surely be claimed that some people hold certain views in order to gain material profit. Nevertheless, it should be pointed out that those views cannot be considered an accurate persuasion. Therefore, one can assume that people who thoroughly belief in certain conspiracy theories do so without expecting any material profit.The fourth criterion states that this kind of play has to take place in an arranged manner within certain boundaries of time and space. Contemporary conspiracy theories usually evolve around contemporary subjects and events. However, conspiracy theories see history as a plot. Everything is interlinked and connected. Due to this conspiracy theories repeatedly deal with past and maybe even future events. However, the order of past, present and future is usually not confused or changed.The last main criterion includes that play supports the creation and development of social groups which are supposed to act in secrecy and which should differentiate themselves from other groups and people. It is very obvious that this element can be found in conspiracy theories. People who believe in conspiracy theories usually form a group with other people who agree with their event explanation and they communicate with each other. Secrecy is one of the main criteria of conspiracy theories as they incline that an action or event took place in secrecy and is trying to be concealed. Lastly, many psychological theories on group formation claim that groups include but also exclude. People who believe in certain conspiracy theories are therefore included into the group, whereas people who disbelieve are excluded. In this sense, group formation is also a mean of differentiating oneself from another group of people.Therefore, in terminus it can be said that conspiracy theories can be seen as a play element in our contemporary culture.Conspiracy Theories In Popular CultureSo far, this paper has outlined the nature and diff erent types of conspiracy theories as well as their functions in the minds of the people and in the population as a whole. In addition to that, conspiracy theories have become an important part of popular culture The volume and govern of stigmatized knowledge conspiracy theories have increased dramatically through the mediation of popular culture. Motifs, theories and truth claims that once existed in hermetically sealed subcultures have begun to be recycled, often with great rapidity, through popular culture. The main force behind this popularization of conspiracy theories is usually seen in the role of the mass media. However, popular culture also has the function of demystifying conspiracy theories. A common criterion of conspiracy theories is the fact that the believers think they are the only ones who know about this secret plot. By broadcasting the theories to an enormous number of people they lose their secrecy Once hidden, they are now revealed. Once intended only for the k nowing few, they are now placed before the coarse many. Once mysterious, they can now appear banal, the building blocks of not peculiarly distinguished popular delight.The Mass Media And The Spread Of Conspiracy TheoriesThe most crucial force in the spread of conspiracy theories is the mass media. alternate(a) explanations for events can be read in literature, internet and newspaper articles, can be seen on television and in the cinema and can be heard on the radio. The mass media is our biggest and maybe even most influential source of information. Conspiracy theories have long made their entrance into popular culture and mass media. Also Barkun describes this development Now, however, the boundary between the stigmatized and the mainstream has all the way become more permeable. Themes that once might have been found only in outsider literature or on the more outr clear sites have become the stuff of network television and multimillion-dollar motion word picture. When it com es to television, Barkun especially refers to shows like The X-Files which were extremely popular, not only in the linked States. The main focus of this series was to unravel conspiracies planned by the governments and accompany through the help of extraterrestrial life. Furthermore, Barkun refers to films such as the 1997 Mel Gibson movie Conspiracy Theory. In this movie, a paranoid taxi driver is convinced that many global events are triggered due to a government conspiracy. Barkun points out The sort of conspiracism in major motion pictures signals a major change in the relation between stigmatized and mainstream knowledge claims. However, one does not need to look into special conspiratorial films or series to figure out that the idea of conspiracism has been widely adopted by the mass media. Many mainstream films such as Mission Impossible or Three Days of the Condor evolve around conspiracies planted by governments or intelligence agencies. Furthermore, intriguing but avo wedly quite propagandistic documentaries such as Michael Moores Fahrenheit 9/11 contribute to manifest conspiracy theories in the mainstream.Many of these mentioned motion pictures serve to stimulate the imagination of the public. As already outlined when analyzing the functions of conspiracy theories, the broad and wide-ranging media coverage of different global events also leads to the fact that different views on events are accumulated. Furthermore, the media does not only show different views on events but also covers a wide range of events that happen all over the world. This together with conspiracy theories that can be found in mass media means of entertainment such as movies and TV programs leads to the increased imagination of people of what could possibly go on in their country or even in the world.Furthermore, it can be said that the mien of conspiracy themes in popular culture at least part destigmatizes those ideas, by associating them with admired stars and propagat ing them through the most important forms of mass entertainment. Considering this, it can be concluded that the media did not only spread popular conspiracy theories but moreover, did it de-condemn conspiracy theories to be only an issue to paranoid or lunatic people. By doing so the mass media made conspiracy theories which used to be considered as stigmatized knowledge available to a wide range of people.Barkun assigns another function to the mass media. Everyone has probably heard of the concept of surreptitious advertisement, when we see protagonists in a movie drinking a certain brand of cola or when they use a very popular new mobile phone