> "Conspiracy theorist" is a label. It's been built to be used to shut down open > debate. It may work temporarily from time to time, but it will not change the
> underlying facts--true or false--that are not being addressed.
To be perfectly frank, "conspiracy theorist" is a term of endearment. Theories are, in science, backed by substantial evidence. What conspiracy theorists do more appropriately warrants the label "conspiracy conjecturer" or "conspiracy speculator". No evidence for the conspiracy is ever given. Its existence is just asserted. The only "evidence" ever given is that some symbol kind of look like objective X, or if you draw a few lines in it it kind of looks like evil symbol Y, or it kind of looks like Z happened.
The symbolism bullshit is used in end-of-the-world prophecies, too. 666 = world ends on 666 A.D.! 666 = 06/06/06 = world ends on June 6, 2006! Mayan calander cycle ends = world ends on December 2012! Though what conspiracy theorists do is more like what some crappy movie whose name I don't remember did: 666 upside down is 999 = the antichrist comes in 1999. Whether conspiracy theorist of end-of-the-world prophecies, it's all just finding some coincidental connection to something else to make a bullshit assertion.
