9/11 Conspiracy Theorists

Having lived in New York for most of my life (I only moved out of the state in 2005), 9/11 has special meaning for me. Some might say I have "survivor's guilt", in the sense that I had family not far from Ground Zero, but I didn't lose anyone, thankfully. But many did, and hence, why I feel a bit guilty.

Anyways, it always bugs me when conspiracy theorists try to peddle their viewpoints that 9/11 was perpetrated by the U.S. Government. Popular Mechanics does a great job of disassembling their viewpoints, and pointing out the logical fallacies that are inherent in their arguments. I do have a few points I would like to add, though, after the jump.


From a psychological perspective, there are two motives at work with their views. The first is that they believe in these conspiracy theories because it allows them to feel superior to everyone else, in the sense that only they "are right". It's a giant ego boost for the "Truthers", and it's the same thing for those who believe that the Apollo Moon Landings were faked, or President FDR knew about Pearl Harbor beforehand. These are all hallmark examples of an inferiority complex, and the need to be seen as something more "special" than everyone else. They don't care that it makes them look like fools to you and I; they take that as a confirmation in their views that they are right, and we are wrong. The only thing left to do, for us, is to get a baseball bat when they start talking.

The second part is more troubling. They so desperately want to believe that the US government (or Mossad) did 9/11 because Al Qaeda and Radical Islamists could never do that- they just are too stupid, and are just Arabs. They're just not smart enough to do that. Only Jews, or the white man (President Bush) could do that. Or, if they believe it was entirely the Saudi government's fault, then they are thinking "only the evil Arabs could do this, because they're just evil Arabs." There's a passive form of racism involved in this, that objectifies the reasons for the attacks as a racial component to "prove" their racism. Typically, the "Truthers" don't pay attention to anything Al Qaeda has said or done in conjunction with 9/11, which only serves to underscore just how racist their viewpoints actually are. Radical Islam is not a factor in their studies; it's a prop to be ignored.

In the end, the Truthers are out to project themselves onto the 9/11 issue, and ultimately don't care that nearly 3,000 people died (and many more wounded) in the terror attacks. They're just collateral damage, and don't deserve any dignity, respect, or care in their viewpoints. And for that, especially, the Truthers can burn in hell.