The Truth is Out There…

…or is it?

Following on from a very interesting and thought provoking discussion with a work colleague, I decided to peruse Loose Change 911: a Web site exploring / promoting a conspiracy theory for the atrocity of 9/11.

My position on this has been that while I don’t believe that the Official Story presented by the 9-11 Commission report is the whole truth, I also don’t fully buy into any of the conspiracy theories.

Sure there are omissions and inconsistencies in the Official Story.

But equally, I have issues with the numerous conspiracy theories that exist.

The problem that I have with (any) conspiracy theory in general, is that there is usually some element of the theory that states something along the lines of “If you don’t believe what we say in its entirety then you are part of the conspiracy, or too dumb to see the truth.”

Now I have a number of very big issues with that kind of attitude.

Firstly, it smacks of religion: most major religions state that you have to accept the whole body of their religious texts / scriptures, or you are not a believer, and indeed are influenced by or in league with Satan (or whatever name / icon / symbol is given to the primary apostate of that religion).

Now don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against religions per se, and that kind of attitude is totally appropriate in a religion, where Faith rather than proof is the primary requisite for belief / acceptance.

But I don’t believe it is appropriate in a conspiracy theory, where proof rather than faith should be the primary requisite for acceptance. Once faith becomes the primary requisite for acceptance of a conspiracy theory, then it comes down to what you wanted to believe in the first place, and you loose the objectivity and impartiality that is key to a conspiracy theory having any kind of real credibility.

Secondly, it places the promoters of the conspiracy theory in to a kind of exalted position of being Guardians of the Truth on the matter. Except that it is a self-appointed position, and therefore meaningless.

After all, in the case of 9/11 the American Government has appointed itself to the same position. So in many ways, there is little to distinguish between the Official Story and the Conspiracy Theories, except the intent and (hidden) agendas of the people promoting them.

Now of course one could argue that the Government has more to hide and loose, but that is a symptom of being in a closed and secretive Government rather than an open one.

One could also argue that if the conspiracy theorists were any less closed and secretive why do they need to have rules / premises that cannot be questioned? What do they have to loose if those rules and premises are questioned?

Oh sorry, that is one of the questions that cannot be asked…

Thirdly, the very fact that there are things that one cannot openly question in a conspiracy theory without being labelled a conspirator means that the conspiracy theorists are less interested in finding out the truth, and more interested in protecting their theory.

The road to the truth is one of open-mindedness. When a piece of evidence or alternative explanation or opinion is offered that challenges currently held beliefs, it needs to be honestly and earnest considered. And if it is found to be worthy, the old beliefs need to be willingly let go in favour of new ones. Change is embraced.

Real truth seekers welcome these challenging ideas, rather than reject them, as they are the means by which the Truth is ultimately reached.

By rejecting, ridiculing or banning challenging ideas or sceptics of the theory, conspiracy theorists are behaving exactly like the authority or government they are accusing of a conspiracy. Like I said earlier, the only difference between them ends up being their intent, (hidden) agenda, and what they wanted to believe in the first place.

Finally, and perhaps the most disturbing aspect is the affect on the ordinary members of the public who read and accept at face value the conspiracy theory, especially the restrictions imposed upon what is acceptable to question and what is not if you don’t want to be labelled a conspirator.

If you do accept that, then you are opening yourself up to manipulation by the people promoting the conspiracy theory. And the same goes for people who accept the Official Story with out question: they are opening themselves up to be manipulated by the government or authority promoting the Official Story.

And once you do that, you stand no chance of finding the truth.

All of this applies equally to any conspiracy theory, not just 9/11 Conspiracy Theories.

Having said all that, I do not believe that all conspiracy theories are entirely without merit.

In the case of 9/11 in particular, clearly the Truth is not to be found in the Official Story. There are too many inconsistencies, omissions, and illogical explanations for it to be accepted as is.

But equally, I don’t think the Whole Truth can be found in any one of the conspiracy theories out there, for the reasons stated above.

So where is the Truth? And what is it?

Bottom line is that I don’t think we will ever know for certain.
So it comes down to what you want to believe in.

Essentially, the Truth lies within you.

Which really means, keep an open mind and an open heart. Don't dismiss or accept anything just because it challenges or supports what you currently believe in.
Eventually you will find the Truth, or at least a Truth that is meaningful to you.

For my part, I believe that the thing that is really important is to remember that thousands of people were needlessly killed on that horrific day, and thousands more were deeply and tragically affected by it.

Who did it, and bringing them to so-called justice is ultimately an act of revenge.
That won’t help bring the victims back, repair the damaged lives, or stop it from happening again.

If we really want to end this kind of species-wide self-destructive behaviour, we need to stop ourselves from being distracted both by the Official Story, and by the conspiracy theories.
Both of which only serve only to perpetuate hatred and distrust.

To me what is most important is to focus on what we have in common with each other, and on developing a truly compassionate, understanding and considerate society.
Not just within individual nation-states.
Not even just towards our own species.
But globally, and towards all species with which we co-habit this planet.

And I guess that is what I was really trying to say in Weird Timing.