Forgive some of the jargon, but this is from a presentation I just gave to a group of fellow psychotherapists last week about the three core appeals of Conspiracism:
• Makes sense of an otherwise confusing and unpredictable world. Wars, poverty, disease, etc. are all due to a small group of evil humans/aliens/lizards – so they are within human control. [Projection]
• Offers an appealingly simple worldview of good people vs. evil forces with sharp moral certainty and paths of righteous action. [Splitting]
• Gives a sense of specialness – the masses are brainwashed and deluded “sheeple”, while they possess secret knowledge and can congratulate themselves on having seen through the deception. [Narcissism]
That specialness/narcissism factor is particularly problematic - and those smug grins are a bit of a tell for it.
When a conspiracy becomes more widespread and popular (and QAnon is definitely that), the more shame-prone conspiracists tend to adopt increasingly fringe and extreme conspiracies to keep their sense of personal specialness. That's what makes them vulnerable to further radicalisation into racism, misogyny, fascism, and other forms of hate which all have ugly conspiracies at their core.
Have you heard of a guy called Laurence Fox? In the UK he’s running for mayor of London and earlier today he tweeted a picture of a fake vaccine card he’d managed to download from somewhere and a fake exemption for travel because he doesn’t believe in covid and is claiming he’s afraid of needles to not be vaccinated - all while sporting multiple tattoos! Honestly the UK is full of these idiots at the moment, I actually dream of living somewhere like NZ where you have your normal lives and these people aren’t as common, we definitely would be in less of a bad situation over here if people didn’t act like this all of the time!
The way I see it is that I might be young and even if I was happy to take the risk of catching covid (I’m not but for arguments sake) how can anyone happily risk passing it on to someone who might die because of it? If the pandemic has revealed one thing it’s how selfish some people are and social media just perpetuates the selfishness and gives these guys a place to meet!
Do you think you’ll be vaccinated soon if you’re off to the US? I’m fully vaccinated now and it really is a weight off my shoulders
At first I engaged, I enjoyed the debate but now I’m exhausted and I just want normality back! I’ve come to the conclusion that whatever I say there is no getting around what the gammons think, they don’t want to listen!
For transparency I'm 49, but I don't think or feel like many people my age or above seem to. An older man tried to tell me that young people are being told what to think and don't speak out. I said they are speaking out, particularly on social media and seem to have plenty of ideas of their own. I think it is as you said, they don't want to listen, they can't contemplate other viewpoints. He went on about BLM and how younger people called Prince Phillip a racist, defunding the police, they are mad etc etc, when I dared to disagree with the great white penis owner, he walked off in a huff. Just literally could not hear a counter opinion. Feels pretty hopeless atm in the uk, the gammons are just so loud.
The great white penis owner 😂😂 I’ll be using that from now on!! I’ve found that it’s more political than anything else where people tend to stand with it all, I think there’s a blurred line between politics and morality and in the UK it’s arguably not as bad as it gets in other countries but still, the people who I hear passive racist comments from and vote or see things a certain political way are the ones who seem to think it’s all a big hoax or that they don’t need to stick to the rules! I’m from a town where we’re in a massive political divide (currently in a by election) and I really have found that people who are happy to rant about issues like the guy you mentioned did really cannot handle a conversation about it, they tell you and if you disagree that’s that!
Honestly I’m fed up of the uk at the mo, I’m really hoping things are looking better by June 21st like we’ve been told, I’ll believe it when I see it but a girl can dream 😂
On my way to work, so briefly, yes, I hope when people can return to their usual activities, they'll have less time to listen to kooks on the internet. 🤞 Got to hang on to some hope, although I'm very scared we are swinging to far to the right and that is never pretty.
I am so angry at these people but am also fascinated. I live in a world where most people are intelligent, compassionate and have an innate sense of what is right. Then there are these types. When I have come across them it feels like a punch in the gut, their willful ignorance, grandstanding arrogance, actual stupidity and lack of not only self-awareness but awareness of anything beyond themselves is staggering and shocking. I have no fucks to give any one of them and consider them to be responsible for the homicide of the millions past the first wave, as well as for the destruction of community space and businesses around the world. Plus the extra stress and strain on healthcare workers, teachers, parents, essential workers, the suicides, the entrapment and the unnecessary pain and suffering their choices have inflicted upon the rest of us.
I will not forget a single person who I saw joining this free-for-all of delusion. I will always remember how they chose to participate during these hard times and will continue to let them know just how I feel about them.
what upsets me the most about this is that if you ever truly need an exemption from wearing masks, you're gonna have to worry about looking like an asshole and justifying yourself to everyone. It's the same issue as when people abuse disabled parking spots so much that someone without a visible disability using them can end up being bullied or assaulted. Now there's a real risk of people with genuine reasons not to wear masks avoiding travel because they can't handle the confrontation.
Yes, I agree. The website states: "This card has been developed by the Ministry of Health specifically for those who cannot wear face coverings safely or comfortably due to a disability or health condition." I know legally they can't enforce mask-wearing but maybe the MOH needs to only provide the card on request for those who need it (similar to a mobility parking permit)? It may not always be an easy thing to apply for but I think it's better than these self-absorbed inconsiderate idiots taking advantage of the downloadable one and putting our at-risk family and friends at risk. No one LOVES wearing a mask (trust me, I know - I have to wear one at work whenever we go into Level 2) but there needs to be a line drawn between people who get genuine physical/psychological distress from them, and those who think they're losing their freedom or just don't want their lippie smeared :-(
I think unfortunately this system would have similar limitations to the current one. A card would probably mean you need to disclose/justify your exemption which is fine if it is kept confidential but some people don't have diagnoses of their conditions either because of lack of time/funds to visit a healt professional (especially mental health) so in order to accommodate them without undue burden you would need to rely on their good faith which puts us back to square one, but I might be wrong of course.
As an asthmatic who has dutifully worn masks in busses even when they were not mandatory, but who occasionally had to pull them down to take a breath because it can be difficult for a long commute, I can only hope the majority of people stay reasonably kind to one another and is able to distinguish between the two.
I just wanted to reply because I realize that I read the article a little fast and I thought the cards mentioned were one of the bullocks ones from the US (I think it's the fake "Freedom to Breathe Agency" that designs them). I realize now that we do have cards available in nz but they are completely optional and self-regulated, which I support because of the reasons I stated above.
There are truly very few conditions that should actually exempt you from mask wearing (I question the asthma one), but your point is well-taken! Recently, it was in j local news that a young child with Down Syndrome was barred from entering our aquarium because she couldn't wear a mask. She was literally like 4 years old. Common sense just is not prevailing in these times.
In the defense of asthmatics, and as an asthmatic mask-wearer myself, I can understand that there might be a need to at least remove a mask during asthma attacks. It's been my experience that although masks don't prevent oxygen from reaching your lungs, the anxiety that can arise during an episode could be enough to make a mask at least an inconvenience and at worst an obstacle to breathing (and of course you need to be able to take your inhaler). But I agree that asthma on its own probably doesn't warrant a complete mask exemption, although I prefer that people decide on their own because each person's experience of the disorder is different.
Oh and I wanted to add (sorry, I'm not sure how to edit comments) that by asthma attack I mean simply having trouble breathing, not full blown medical emergency, which goes without saying. My symptoms are pretty mild so I identify with situations where on a hot day in a crowded bus after a long work shift, I might have to remove my mask for a few minutes to regulate my breathing. It doesn't happen every day.
Oh I totally understand that! I actually have a weird condition where if I don't have air blowing directly in my face, I feel like I can't breathe, so for example on planes the first thing I do is always turn my vent on full blast and point it at my face. I've also known asthmatics to wear masks during allergy season, though, which was really the basis for my comment.
I'm trying to see these people as vulnerable to being duped. I notice there seem to be more Maori covid deniers and suspect the correlation is with mistrust of the government and authorities who traditionally have shafted them under all kinds of guises around controlling measures being for their own good. That they are being targeted by groups spreading misinformation is therefore another layer of irony. I'm glad they're here 8n New Zealand where they will do less damage.
What the world will look like once the vaccine is rolled out is beyond my understanding, but there will still be no shortage of selfishness and stupidity. The industries and billionaires making money from Covid while offering no protections to their workers are proof enough of that.
Thank you! I've just read the article by Tina Ngata, Ngāti Porou, in e-Tangata. This is such a great article explaining the reasons why Maori and Pacific Island people (amongst others) would be vulnerable to the far right conspiracy theories. Her critical analysis makes this all so clear and understandable.
It's frightening (and depressing) that some people go around and put other people at risk without a care in the world - many even thinking they're doing the "right thing". I think about if that older woman on the plane was my mom and I get anxious at the thought (thankfully my mom is getting her first dose of the vaccine tomorrow). Something that comes to mind right now are the super spreader worship events that a certain individual working with a certain mega-church in the US (i.e. Sean Feucht for Bethel Ministries) was putting on in the fall. They hosted an outreach event on Skid Row and then there was an outbreak a few weeks later...I wonder how that happened *cough*...
Perhaps I'm just a misanthrope or nihilist but sometimes I feel so discouraged by the state of the world and these kinds of oppressive, entitled attitudes that are sometimes masked as doing good or being righteous. I come from a fundamentalist, evangelical Baptist upbringing but now that I'm deconstructing my faith (and I now consider myself an "exvangical") I'm cluing in more to this kind of behavior and how oppressive it is.
Perhaps Webworm isn't the place to go into this topic so I'll wrap up here. Nonetheless, I am curious to know David if you would ever consider investigating this kind of thing. If so I would recommend you reach out to a few people: 1) Brenda Davies (a.k.a. God is Grey), 2) Tara Teng (fellow Canadian, whoop!) and 3) Nadia Bolz-Weber. All beautiful women who I've been following the past while and have, along with yourself, find sanity in these times.
Hey - I think Nadia Bolz-Weber has a newsletter too, am I right? I think Webworm is totally the place to get into this sort of thing - so go for it with ideas! For me, when I started deconstructing my faith - I held onto elements for so, so long (spurred on by people like John Selby Spong) - but eventually -- I just had to let go of the whole thing. It got to a point where I was like "why am I clinging onto this small thing for the sake of it, when so much has fallen away?"
I’ve also realized that my bubble was so small before and stifling but now that I’ve moved on and made friends from all walks of life and social groups, especially LGBTQ+, I definitely can’t go back. That past life is too small and exclusive - definitely not enriching as it is to just being yourself and engage with others without any preconditions.
Thanks David! Yeah, I think I’m getting to that point too, especially after this year and how I’ve seen certain Christian groups handle the pandemic (as I mentioned above). I still appreciate some of the values I grew up learning in the church (so I guess that’s why I’m still drawn to Nadia and the other women I mentioned) but the rest just doesn’t vibe with me. Not to mention, I’ve always been drawn the dark and macabre which was a no-no growing up. Now that I’m an adult I can do whatever I want, so I’m researching Spiritualism and female mediums in grad school ;)
Nadia is a fantastic woman. She is the best example of what a christian could be, including her absolute honesty about her faith and when it fails. I follow her and Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg on Twitter, who I really recommend. She has the most fantastic dissections of Torah that may prove helpful/inspiring to you. Mind blowing how christian interpretations (usually to damn some poor bugger) differ wildly from Jewish understanding.
Thank you for this insight! I haven't heard of Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg but I will do some research. I've been learning more and more how different these two interpretations are and yet both draw from the same/similar texts. It's so frustrating how some christian folks say the Bible is infallible and yet draw their own conclusions from it.
*All beautiful women who I've been following the past while and have, along with yourself, helped me find sanity in these times. (Typos are really getting me today!)
This whole thing is just nuts, because I’ve met this lady. Her kids are friends with my workmate’s daughter, so she’s come into my work place before. She first came in when she had just launched her campaign for Advance NZ and continued to come in a few times and go about about “the truth” (blah blah blah). My workmate says that this lady has completely gone off the deep end now - so many of her family and friends have pushed her away because of how she is so convinced off all this Qanon shit. My workmate also ends up looking after her kids when she disappears off to all corners of the country spouting her “beliefs”. The whole thing is honestly just really sad, especially when out vulnerable South Auckland communities are being targeted like this.
*sigh* I just can't right now. The last few days have been filled with racists, misogynists and covid deniers. If I start I'll get sweary and off topic. Send help!
I blame idiots like these for the death of my uncle. He contracted covid in a nursing home. It wasn't his reckless behavior that got him in contact with a deadly virus. I have zero tolerance for this behavior. It is selfish beyond belief.
Oooh buddy, if you're enraged already, just wait till you get over here. There are people who will drop a couple hundred bucks on a fake proof of vaccination card instead of just getting the *free* vaccine. I hate all of these people so much. I don't even have anything insightful to say about it, it just makes me white-hot mad.
I kind of think wearing masks on planes is a good permanent rule, honestly. Though admittedly they are already very stifling places to be for hours.
Btw if you're gonna be out and about a lot while you're here, you might wanna invest in a few fabric masks. The single-use disposable ones go fast when you're out running around.
This is exactly what a sheeperson would say! In all seriousness though, I love that you are doing a service by shining a light on these concerning issues around conspiracy belief and it's growing real impact. I even bought the t-shirt!
But is this Webworm community not just another echo chamber in itself? Is it solving anything? How can we reach people who do not want to be reached?
Forgive some of the jargon, but this is from a presentation I just gave to a group of fellow psychotherapists last week about the three core appeals of Conspiracism:
• Makes sense of an otherwise confusing and unpredictable world. Wars, poverty, disease, etc. are all due to a small group of evil humans/aliens/lizards – so they are within human control. [Projection]
• Offers an appealingly simple worldview of good people vs. evil forces with sharp moral certainty and paths of righteous action. [Splitting]
• Gives a sense of specialness – the masses are brainwashed and deluded “sheeple”, while they possess secret knowledge and can congratulate themselves on having seen through the deception. [Narcissism]
That specialness/narcissism factor is particularly problematic - and those smug grins are a bit of a tell for it.
When a conspiracy becomes more widespread and popular (and QAnon is definitely that), the more shame-prone conspiracists tend to adopt increasingly fringe and extreme conspiracies to keep their sense of personal specialness. That's what makes them vulnerable to further radicalisation into racism, misogyny, fascism, and other forms of hate which all have ugly conspiracies at their core.
Have you heard of a guy called Laurence Fox? In the UK he’s running for mayor of London and earlier today he tweeted a picture of a fake vaccine card he’d managed to download from somewhere and a fake exemption for travel because he doesn’t believe in covid and is claiming he’s afraid of needles to not be vaccinated - all while sporting multiple tattoos! Honestly the UK is full of these idiots at the moment, I actually dream of living somewhere like NZ where you have your normal lives and these people aren’t as common, we definitely would be in less of a bad situation over here if people didn’t act like this all of the time!
The way I see it is that I might be young and even if I was happy to take the risk of catching covid (I’m not but for arguments sake) how can anyone happily risk passing it on to someone who might die because of it? If the pandemic has revealed one thing it’s how selfish some people are and social media just perpetuates the selfishness and gives these guys a place to meet!
Do you think you’ll be vaccinated soon if you’re off to the US? I’m fully vaccinated now and it really is a weight off my shoulders
I am gonna get a vaccine in the US - that is the plan. Can't wait. No doubt I will write about the experience....
I have not heard of Fox, and now apprehensive to google him. How are these people and their ideas so universal? Bah!
Gammon, gammon everywhere! I'm feeling that suffocating presence at the moment too. Can't get away from it.
At first I engaged, I enjoyed the debate but now I’m exhausted and I just want normality back! I’ve come to the conclusion that whatever I say there is no getting around what the gammons think, they don’t want to listen!
For transparency I'm 49, but I don't think or feel like many people my age or above seem to. An older man tried to tell me that young people are being told what to think and don't speak out. I said they are speaking out, particularly on social media and seem to have plenty of ideas of their own. I think it is as you said, they don't want to listen, they can't contemplate other viewpoints. He went on about BLM and how younger people called Prince Phillip a racist, defunding the police, they are mad etc etc, when I dared to disagree with the great white penis owner, he walked off in a huff. Just literally could not hear a counter opinion. Feels pretty hopeless atm in the uk, the gammons are just so loud.
The great white penis owner 😂😂 I’ll be using that from now on!! I’ve found that it’s more political than anything else where people tend to stand with it all, I think there’s a blurred line between politics and morality and in the UK it’s arguably not as bad as it gets in other countries but still, the people who I hear passive racist comments from and vote or see things a certain political way are the ones who seem to think it’s all a big hoax or that they don’t need to stick to the rules! I’m from a town where we’re in a massive political divide (currently in a by election) and I really have found that people who are happy to rant about issues like the guy you mentioned did really cannot handle a conversation about it, they tell you and if you disagree that’s that!
Honestly I’m fed up of the uk at the mo, I’m really hoping things are looking better by June 21st like we’ve been told, I’ll believe it when I see it but a girl can dream 😂
On my way to work, so briefly, yes, I hope when people can return to their usual activities, they'll have less time to listen to kooks on the internet. 🤞 Got to hang on to some hope, although I'm very scared we are swinging to far to the right and that is never pretty.
I am so angry at these people but am also fascinated. I live in a world where most people are intelligent, compassionate and have an innate sense of what is right. Then there are these types. When I have come across them it feels like a punch in the gut, their willful ignorance, grandstanding arrogance, actual stupidity and lack of not only self-awareness but awareness of anything beyond themselves is staggering and shocking. I have no fucks to give any one of them and consider them to be responsible for the homicide of the millions past the first wave, as well as for the destruction of community space and businesses around the world. Plus the extra stress and strain on healthcare workers, teachers, parents, essential workers, the suicides, the entrapment and the unnecessary pain and suffering their choices have inflicted upon the rest of us.
I will not forget a single person who I saw joining this free-for-all of delusion. I will always remember how they chose to participate during these hard times and will continue to let them know just how I feel about them.
I feel your anger. Those who put people at risk by refusing to wear a mask and gathering against restrictions literally have blood on their hands.
That's how it looks to me from my viewing point for sure.
what upsets me the most about this is that if you ever truly need an exemption from wearing masks, you're gonna have to worry about looking like an asshole and justifying yourself to everyone. It's the same issue as when people abuse disabled parking spots so much that someone without a visible disability using them can end up being bullied or assaulted. Now there's a real risk of people with genuine reasons not to wear masks avoiding travel because they can't handle the confrontation.
Yes, I agree. The website states: "This card has been developed by the Ministry of Health specifically for those who cannot wear face coverings safely or comfortably due to a disability or health condition." I know legally they can't enforce mask-wearing but maybe the MOH needs to only provide the card on request for those who need it (similar to a mobility parking permit)? It may not always be an easy thing to apply for but I think it's better than these self-absorbed inconsiderate idiots taking advantage of the downloadable one and putting our at-risk family and friends at risk. No one LOVES wearing a mask (trust me, I know - I have to wear one at work whenever we go into Level 2) but there needs to be a line drawn between people who get genuine physical/psychological distress from them, and those who think they're losing their freedom or just don't want their lippie smeared :-(
I think unfortunately this system would have similar limitations to the current one. A card would probably mean you need to disclose/justify your exemption which is fine if it is kept confidential but some people don't have diagnoses of their conditions either because of lack of time/funds to visit a healt professional (especially mental health) so in order to accommodate them without undue burden you would need to rely on their good faith which puts us back to square one, but I might be wrong of course.
As an asthmatic who has dutifully worn masks in busses even when they were not mandatory, but who occasionally had to pull them down to take a breath because it can be difficult for a long commute, I can only hope the majority of people stay reasonably kind to one another and is able to distinguish between the two.
Yes, I think you're quite right sadly :-/
I just wanted to reply because I realize that I read the article a little fast and I thought the cards mentioned were one of the bullocks ones from the US (I think it's the fake "Freedom to Breathe Agency" that designs them). I realize now that we do have cards available in nz but they are completely optional and self-regulated, which I support because of the reasons I stated above.
There are truly very few conditions that should actually exempt you from mask wearing (I question the asthma one), but your point is well-taken! Recently, it was in j local news that a young child with Down Syndrome was barred from entering our aquarium because she couldn't wear a mask. She was literally like 4 years old. Common sense just is not prevailing in these times.
In the defense of asthmatics, and as an asthmatic mask-wearer myself, I can understand that there might be a need to at least remove a mask during asthma attacks. It's been my experience that although masks don't prevent oxygen from reaching your lungs, the anxiety that can arise during an episode could be enough to make a mask at least an inconvenience and at worst an obstacle to breathing (and of course you need to be able to take your inhaler). But I agree that asthma on its own probably doesn't warrant a complete mask exemption, although I prefer that people decide on their own because each person's experience of the disorder is different.
Oh and I wanted to add (sorry, I'm not sure how to edit comments) that by asthma attack I mean simply having trouble breathing, not full blown medical emergency, which goes without saying. My symptoms are pretty mild so I identify with situations where on a hot day in a crowded bus after a long work shift, I might have to remove my mask for a few minutes to regulate my breathing. It doesn't happen every day.
Oh I totally understand that! I actually have a weird condition where if I don't have air blowing directly in my face, I feel like I can't breathe, so for example on planes the first thing I do is always turn my vent on full blast and point it at my face. I've also known asthmatics to wear masks during allergy season, though, which was really the basis for my comment.
I actually loved wearing masks over the winter after lockdown, it made my face so cozy and the air I breathe a touch more humid.
I've loved wearing them to avoid general coughs and sniffles. Having lived in Japan I've always wished we adopted mask use for general hygiene!
Here in the US, the flu was nearly non-existent this season, so yeah, masks work!
I'm trying to see these people as vulnerable to being duped. I notice there seem to be more Maori covid deniers and suspect the correlation is with mistrust of the government and authorities who traditionally have shafted them under all kinds of guises around controlling measures being for their own good. That they are being targeted by groups spreading misinformation is therefore another layer of irony. I'm glad they're here 8n New Zealand where they will do less damage.
What the world will look like once the vaccine is rolled out is beyond my understanding, but there will still be no shortage of selfishness and stupidity. The industries and billionaires making money from Covid while offering no protections to their workers are proof enough of that.
You might find this interesting: https://e-tangata.co.nz/comment-and-analysis/the-rise-of-maori-maga/ (I likely found it in one of the comments here last year)
Thank you! I've just read the article by Tina Ngata, Ngāti Porou, in e-Tangata. This is such a great article explaining the reasons why Maori and Pacific Island people (amongst others) would be vulnerable to the far right conspiracy theories. Her critical analysis makes this all so clear and understandable.
Yep - Tina is great. I talked to her last year - this might be interesting to you: https://www.webworm.co/p/why-are-conspiracy-theories-dripping
I so appreciate the interviews you do and the information you provide. It helps me understand what is happening and why. Grateful thanks.
Hi David, thanks for this post.
It's frightening (and depressing) that some people go around and put other people at risk without a care in the world - many even thinking they're doing the "right thing". I think about if that older woman on the plane was my mom and I get anxious at the thought (thankfully my mom is getting her first dose of the vaccine tomorrow). Something that comes to mind right now are the super spreader worship events that a certain individual working with a certain mega-church in the US (i.e. Sean Feucht for Bethel Ministries) was putting on in the fall. They hosted an outreach event on Skid Row and then there was an outbreak a few weeks later...I wonder how that happened *cough*...
Perhaps I'm just a misanthrope or nihilist but sometimes I feel so discouraged by the state of the world and these kinds of oppressive, entitled attitudes that are sometimes masked as doing good or being righteous. I come from a fundamentalist, evangelical Baptist upbringing but now that I'm deconstructing my faith (and I now consider myself an "exvangical") I'm cluing in more to this kind of behavior and how oppressive it is.
Perhaps Webworm isn't the place to go into this topic so I'll wrap up here. Nonetheless, I am curious to know David if you would ever consider investigating this kind of thing. If so I would recommend you reach out to a few people: 1) Brenda Davies (a.k.a. God is Grey), 2) Tara Teng (fellow Canadian, whoop!) and 3) Nadia Bolz-Weber. All beautiful women who I've been following the past while and have, along with yourself, find sanity in these times.
Hey - I think Nadia Bolz-Weber has a newsletter too, am I right? I think Webworm is totally the place to get into this sort of thing - so go for it with ideas! For me, when I started deconstructing my faith - I held onto elements for so, so long (spurred on by people like John Selby Spong) - but eventually -- I just had to let go of the whole thing. It got to a point where I was like "why am I clinging onto this small thing for the sake of it, when so much has fallen away?"
I’ve also realized that my bubble was so small before and stifling but now that I’ve moved on and made friends from all walks of life and social groups, especially LGBTQ+, I definitely can’t go back. That past life is too small and exclusive - definitely not enriching as it is to just being yourself and engage with others without any preconditions.
Thanks David! Yeah, I think I’m getting to that point too, especially after this year and how I’ve seen certain Christian groups handle the pandemic (as I mentioned above). I still appreciate some of the values I grew up learning in the church (so I guess that’s why I’m still drawn to Nadia and the other women I mentioned) but the rest just doesn’t vibe with me. Not to mention, I’ve always been drawn the dark and macabre which was a no-no growing up. Now that I’m an adult I can do whatever I want, so I’m researching Spiritualism and female mediums in grad school ;)
Nadia is a fantastic woman. She is the best example of what a christian could be, including her absolute honesty about her faith and when it fails. I follow her and Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg on Twitter, who I really recommend. She has the most fantastic dissections of Torah that may prove helpful/inspiring to you. Mind blowing how christian interpretations (usually to damn some poor bugger) differ wildly from Jewish understanding.
Thank you for this insight! I haven't heard of Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg but I will do some research. I've been learning more and more how different these two interpretations are and yet both draw from the same/similar texts. It's so frustrating how some christian folks say the Bible is infallible and yet draw their own conclusions from it.
*All beautiful women who I've been following the past while and have, along with yourself, helped me find sanity in these times. (Typos are really getting me today!)
*exvangelical...sorry for the typo!
This whole thing is just nuts, because I’ve met this lady. Her kids are friends with my workmate’s daughter, so she’s come into my work place before. She first came in when she had just launched her campaign for Advance NZ and continued to come in a few times and go about about “the truth” (blah blah blah). My workmate says that this lady has completely gone off the deep end now - so many of her family and friends have pushed her away because of how she is so convinced off all this Qanon shit. My workmate also ends up looking after her kids when she disappears off to all corners of the country spouting her “beliefs”. The whole thing is honestly just really sad, especially when out vulnerable South Auckland communities are being targeted like this.
New Zealand is so small sometimes it's truly terrifying to me.
A lot of insightful commentary here. But my immediate reaction is "fuck these people". Ugh.
Yeah, I feel you. Above your comment is Paul Wilson, a psychotherapist, who has a slightly more nuanced view :P
Humans are such trash. I find consent seeking cannibals far more palatable than than covid deniers and I’ll die on that hill.
*sigh* I just can't right now. The last few days have been filled with racists, misogynists and covid deniers. If I start I'll get sweary and off topic. Send help!
I feel you. Fair. Entirely fair.
I blame idiots like these for the death of my uncle. He contracted covid in a nursing home. It wasn't his reckless behavior that got him in contact with a deadly virus. I have zero tolerance for this behavior. It is selfish beyond belief.
Interesting... she seems to have taken the post down now. Perhaps a few people who disagreed with her "heroic" stance popped her bubble....
I imagine she is getting plenty of negative feedback. Unfortunately - she will probably take this as martyrdom.
That's the grin that wants me to reach for the face slapping fish delivered by Monty python....
Utter farking eejits and arseholes, the lot of them.
Oooh buddy, if you're enraged already, just wait till you get over here. There are people who will drop a couple hundred bucks on a fake proof of vaccination card instead of just getting the *free* vaccine. I hate all of these people so much. I don't even have anything insightful to say about it, it just makes me white-hot mad.
I kind of think wearing masks on planes is a good permanent rule, honestly. Though admittedly they are already very stifling places to be for hours.
Btw if you're gonna be out and about a lot while you're here, you might wanna invest in a few fabric masks. The single-use disposable ones go fast when you're out running around.
GAHGHHHH
This is exactly what a sheeperson would say! In all seriousness though, I love that you are doing a service by shining a light on these concerning issues around conspiracy belief and it's growing real impact. I even bought the t-shirt!
But is this Webworm community not just another echo chamber in itself? Is it solving anything? How can we reach people who do not want to be reached?