Conspiracy theories fail to maintain the same level of skepticism towards those who advance conspiracy theories…conspiracy theorists may also be lying to advance some political agenda
The creation of Bangladesh was solely the result of an Indian conspiracy. 9/11 was a Jewish conspiracy. The death of Osama Bin Laden was faked by the CIA. The current unrest in Baluchistan is again an Indian conspiracy.
These are common clichés in our society and one finds highly qualified people talking about conspiracies being hatched, particularly against Islam and the Muslims of the world. It appears that the entire world in the West and in the East is doing nothing but engaged in some kind of conspiracy against the ones who are a threat to them i.e. the Muslims.
All defeats suffered by the Muslims in wars were also an outcome of conspiracies and the spread of pornography in the Islamic countries is again a conspiracy against the Muslim youth. The introduction of microphone and the gramophone in our markets was a conspiracy and our downfall in the international power game was a conspiracy too. We would have been the rulers of this world, had we not been subjected to so many conspiracies; are some of the other common clichés.
This phenomenon, however, shows no signs of abating, although we are constantly evolving into a more intelligent, sophisticated, developed and advanced culture. In fact, conspiracy theories seem to abound even more.
However, the phenomenon is a complex one and has biological as well as psychological origins. It has been documented in scientific literature that people who believe in one conspiracy theory tend to believe in other such theories. Other factors which have been observed among the believers in conspiracy theories are being poor and downtrodden (as per Western standards) and holding the belief that life is being controlled by external factors and circumstances.
Looking at the biological correlates, we find that the human brain is designed to be on the alert for conspiracy. We can compare the human mind to a smoke detector, set to go on the red alert as and when a threat is detected in the environment, rather than waiting for the overwhelming evidence by the time the fire engulfs everything and it is too late. The greater the level of daily threats and dangers, the greater is the likelihood of one watching for signs of danger lurking out there. Hence in a state and society like ours where there is greater threat and insecurity to an individual or a group, the greater would be the tendency to believe in a conspiracy theory.
At the psychological level, it has been found in scientific research that conspiracy thinking is fueled by underlying feelings of alienation and helplessness. Scientific evidence supports the view that people who endorse conspiracy theories are especially likely to feel angry, mistrustful, alienated from society, and helpless over larger forces controlling their lives.
They are also prone to connect disparate dots when they feel disempowered. Studies have also demonstrated that people primed to feel out of control are particularly likely to see patterns in random stimuli.
The conspiracists believe that “all the rest of us have been brainwashed”. The "facts" plainly reveal the existence of the conspiracy, they believe. And while all of us tend to bend information to fit our pre-existing cognitive schema, conspiracists are more extreme. They are "immune to evidence," discounting contradictory information or seeing it as "proof” of how clever the enemy is at covering things up. Conspiracists exist on a spectrum from mild suspicion to full-paranoia.
Belief in conspiracy theories is very much akin to religious belief. As those falling for such theories tend to feel powerless and being persecuted, the belief gives them power. It makes them feel they have special knowledge unknown or unseen by the masses. It also gives them a sense of power because they know what is really going on and you don't. And as with any true believer they tend to seek out others who will affirm those beliefs and inherently distrust those that don't.
Those believing in conspiracy theories also have a grandiose view of themselves as heroes "manning the barricades of civilization" at an urgent "turning point" in history, while grandiosity is often a defense against underlying feelings of powerlessness. Since the “golden period” of Islam is history, the Muslims are left with nothing but “grandiose views” and stories from the bygone era.
However, such theories fail to maintain the same level of skepticism towards those who advance conspiracy theories as they do to the "official" or generally accepted accounts. It is ironic that these people who are so concerned about those with opposing views, lying to them, never stop to even consider that the conspiracy theorists may also be lying to them to advance some political agenda. But getting them to see the irony can be next to impossible. We are talking about a belief system that often forms the core of the person’s entire worldview. As it is much the same as religion, asking someone to change one’s religion is an impossible task under normal circumstances.
Now if we examine the circumstances currently prevailing in Pakistan, we find that under a system of extreme socio-economic disparity, hyper-inflation, deteriorating law and order situation, energy crises, socio-economic uncertainty, and total lack of governance, majority of the people find refuge in some form of a conspiracy theory. The Americans, Jews and those belonging to minority communities are the favorite target of conspiracy theorists. It is the most convenient and satisfying tool to explain everything, while completely absolving one of sharing any responsibility, as one can put all the blame on one’s enemies, real or perceived.
However, it also has its negative fallout. It deprives one of the option to rationally and objectively analyze an issue and find viable solutions to a problem.
Today, apart from biological and psychological factors, we should also turn our attention as to how specific ideologies, worldviews and cultural traditions produced particular patterns of thinking and behavior.
So we have to focus on the structure, logic and evolution of conspiracy theories in the Muslim world, with a view to explaining how and why this tradition of explanation persists in our society, and how it sustains distinct forms of individual and collective thought and action.
If Jews and Christians cannot be our friends, as declared, why should they not always keep on conspiring against us? And why can’t other non-Muslims who have not embraced the ‘true’ religion be doing the same?
And finally, what about Muslims who are Munafiqeen (read political opponents) and conspiring against the “true” Muslims?
Well if we are conditioned to adhere to an ideology where negative intentions can be attributed to individuals regardless of their deeds in real life, conspiracy theories thrive.
The Zarrar mosque was built by Abu Amir, the munafiq who converted to Islam but had a bad intention of attacking Muslims. Allah instructed His Prophet to demolish the mosque after he came back from the Tabuk war.
The mosque was burned down---as being a source of some conspiracy.
Though the mosque was reduced to ashes, the munafiqeen, continued to live alongwith their “conspiracies” against the purest of the pure.
