Another Take on Conspiracy Theories

There are a lot of conspiracy theories in the news; more than usual, and it reminds me of an old joke: A conspiracy theorist dies and goes to heaven and when he gets to the Pearly Gates God says, “Welcome. You can ask me one question and I’ll tell you anything.” The man says, “I have to know, who killed JFK?” God says, “It was Lee Harvey Oswald and he acted alone.” The man looks up and says, “Wow, this goes even higher than I thought.” 

So many people are only able to see what they want and fit whatever information they glean into an already constructed world view. Like the conspiracy theorist, even God cannot convince you; you have your world view and that is that.  Even things that are plainly visible (January 6th leaps to mind) is not a violent insurrection but a day of peace and love. 

It’s easy to blame others for not sharing our perspective, after all, we’re always right. And we’re too often stuck in our own echo chambers and unwilling to listen to anyone who is not on our “team.” But a better way is to step back and try to understand another’s point of view. Perspective taking is a necessary skill in the Age of the Heart and one we all (often me) need to practice.