conspiracy, Conspiracy, CONSPIRACY

The Conspiracy Theory of History by Murray Rothbard. After my last link of the 1969 film, The Capitalist Conspiracy, I would say it seems to be a fair argument to label me another conspiracy nut.

But, I am not wearing a tin foil hat. Rothbard's article is a prudent reminder of the legitimatises of the alternative theory. While I was stirring in self-doubt, I forgot the most notable case of conspiracy, the JFK assassination. Many different independent groups did their own investigations, one in Louisiana that eventually led to the only criminal case on the matter (as a Louisianan a great source of pride for me), that converged to the same conclusions and they didn't agree with the Warren Commission one iota.

Rothbard points out the differences among conspiracy theorists themselves, the bad ones employ logical fallacies and assumptions based on hypothetical beneficial connections but no further research. (Sort of reminds me of yellow journalism for some reason.)

Quite recently I had an argument with a good friend who I consider to be a highly intelligent individual (physics major, 4.0, chancellor's scholarship), who "does not buy into conspiracy theories." (In his exact words.) I asked, "Wait, even with the Warren Commission?" He had no idea what I was talking about. "The congressional group that investigated the Kennedy assassination?" I get an, "Oh, okay." Sadly, the lecture began at that point and I never got to ask if he thought Oswald acted alone. Granted at the end of our brief discussion, and further chats since, I'd bet he's never heard of the Texas School Book Depository.

Maybe I take some of that knowledge for granted, like the fact that the Warren Commission was the congressional body given the task to investigate the Kennedy assassination. Is that unreasonable? If so, maybe reasons like this are why people point and shriek, "Oh noes, they're wearing a tin foil hat!" (Granted, usually in less dramatic rhetoric.)

I have to ask: "When did it become so taboo to challenge the accepted wisdom?"