Regarding Conspiracies

Regarding Conspiracies
(c) RB Lonetree; Medicine Road Music
Conspiracy theories go one of three ways; Either they are; (1) ultimately proven to be factual, in whole or in part; or (2) They are ultimately proven to be non-factual, either in whole or in part, or (3) No conclusive evidence is discovered to either prove or disprove the theory.
One thing is however certain and factual beyond a shadow of a doubt; The remarkable proliferation of conspiracy theories within the contemporary public discourse proves emphatically and conclusively that the days of the public believing and trusting in politicians are, for the most part, well and truly over. In multiple surveys, people distrust politicians more than members of any other profession, and many folks now regard politicians as a criminal class of kleptocrats who routinely lie, cheat and steal in the service of anti-democratic forces and vested interests.
I am continually bemused by the endless assaults on so called conspiracy theorists. What are the critics implying? That there are no such things as conspiracies? That people never conspire for nefarious purposes? That to form a theory about the nature of a conspiracy is never a worthwhile exercise?
Conspiracies occur all the time. To form theories about actual and possible conspiracies may, depending on the circumstances, be evidence of intellectual rigour and a strong social conscience and commitment to public interest advocacy. Some conspiracy theories are wholly absurd and ludicrous (eg, that the earth is flat and that this information is being kept from the public by a clique of evil masterminds). Other conspiracy theories are ultimately proven to be entirely factual, (eg, that elements of the US government and military conspired to falsely claim that US forces were fired upon by North Vietnamese forces on 4 August 1964 in the Gulf of Tonkin in order to justify a more direct engagement in the Vietnam War).
From a legal perspective, the crime of conspiracy requires an agreement between two or more persons to commit an unlawful act with the intention of carrying it out. It is the intention to carry out the crime which constitutes the necessary mens rea for the offence: Yip Chiu-Cheung v R (1994) 99 Cr App R 406 at 410, per Lord Griffiths; R v Wilson (unrep, 12/08/94, NSWCCA).
Conspiracies exist. Some theories about them come to be proven as fact, some do not.
Another thing is certain about conspiracy theories. The less physically proximate a person is to a given event, and/or the less time they have researched the known facts and circumstances of the event (film footage, eye-witness testimony, etc.) the less credible their theory about what actually happened and who was involved is likely to be.

[@aarondavidson6409]

Great video mate, love the format. Looking forward to more "Bush Office" vids. - Azza

[@adrianahuls4983]

Eloquent Roberto.