Plandemic is a textbook example of the 7 traits of conspiratorial thinking. So @stworg, @UlliEcker, @Sander_vdLinden & I made a video identifying conspiratorial thinking in Plandemic to build resilience so we’re not misled by other conspiracy theories 1/12
1st trait of conspiratorial thinking is contradictions. Plandemic believes COVID came from a Wuhan lab *and* we’re all infected with COVID from vaccinations. They’re trying to have their COVID cake and eat it too! 2/12
2nd trait of conspiratorial thinking is overriding suspicion. Conspiracy theorists are overwhelmingly suspicious towards the official account. That means any scientific evidence that doesn’t fit into the conspiracy theory must be faked. 3/12
3rd trait of conspiratorial thinking is nefarious intent. In the case of Plandemic, there’s no limit to the nefarious intent, which involves killing millions of people for billions of dollars of profit. 4/12
4th trait of conspiratorial thinking is the unshakeable belief that something must be wrong. To @propublica, Plandemic’s filmmaker said he has no idea whether COVID-19 was intentionally started for profit. All he knows is something must be wrong. propublica.org/article/im-an-… 5/12
5th trait of conspiratorial thinking is persecuted victimhood. Conspiracy theorists think of themselves as the victims of organized persecution. They also see themselves as brave heroes taking on the villainous conspirators. 6/12
6th trait of conspiratorial thinking is immunity to evidence. Even absence of evidence for a theory is evidence for the theory (there’s no proof of the conspiracy because the conspirators did such a good job covering it up). 7/12
7th trait of conspiratorial thinking is reinterpreting randomness. Conspiracy theorists see patterns everywhere: their whole thing is connecting the dots. Random events are re-interpreted as being caused by the conspiracy and woven into a broader, interconnected pattern. 8/12
The antidote to conspiratorial thinking is critical thinking. Exposing the techniques of conspiracy theorists is key to inoculating ourselves and others from being misled, especially when we are most vulnerable: in times of crises and uncertainty. 9/12
For a detailed (but still concise) introduction to the research into conspiracy theories & how to counter them, see the Conspiracy Theory Handbook sks.to/conspiracy @stworg 10/12
We also wrote a short guide How to Spot COVID-19 Conspiracy Theories with examples of the 7 traits of conspiratorial thinking (summarized with the acronym CONSPIR) sks.to/conspir @stworg @UlliEcker @Sander_vdLinden 11/12
Lastly, I’ve also published a blog post with images from the video (useful as PPT slides) at crankyuncle.com/plandemic-seve… 12/12
