14 votes

Why do people believe the moon landing hoax or other conspiracy theories?

13 comments

  1. [5]
    lol
    Link
    I've met a few Flat-Earthers, always fun to argue with. Seems like most of the time they don't really have much to support their theory, just a general mistrust of the government, and someone was...

    I've met a few Flat-Earthers, always fun to argue with. Seems like most of the time they don't really have much to support their theory, just a general mistrust of the government, and someone was like, 'hey, they lied about this too,' and it fits their own perception so they agree. When someone actually knows the flat earth theory, my go-to argument is the outer 'ice wall.' They claim it to be a 'staggering' few hundred meters tall, and for some reason nobody has thought to take a helicopter or plane over to snap a picture? Somehow NASA can flood the internet with fake pictures and videos, and they can't get a single picture of the other side of the wall out there. And also you can still fly over the south pole to the other side of the world, which would be impossible if their version was true

    15 votes
    1. [3]
      Akir
      Link Parent
      I honestly believe that flat-earthers are just trolls. You can observe the shape of the earth just by looking at the shape of the shadow we cast on the moon when it is in different points in the...

      I honestly believe that flat-earthers are just trolls. You can observe the shape of the earth just by looking at the shape of the shadow we cast on the moon when it is in different points in the sky.

      IIRC scientists proved the earth was round for more than two millennia. Now that we have actual pictures, it's proven beyond any even remotely reasonable doubt.

      12 votes
      1. GyroTech
        Link Parent
        I remember a time way back when the flat earth idea was seen as a devils advocate debating stance. It was a way of declaring that while you may not hold the viewpoint personally, you thoroughly...

        I remember a time way back when the flat earth idea was seen as a devils advocate debating stance. It was a way of declaring that while you may not hold the viewpoint personally, you thoroughly enjoyed the debating itself. Now, it's the non-religious version fo the 6000-year-old Earth.

        6 votes
      2. cfabbro
        (edited )
        Link Parent
        Unfortunately that's not the case. Eddie Bravo, a world class BJJ coach and close friend of Joe Rogan's, who is on Joe's podcast a fair amount is a full on 100% genuine Flat-earther. He's not a...

        Unfortunately that's not the case. Eddie Bravo, a world class BJJ coach and close friend of Joe Rogan's, who is on Joe's podcast a fair amount is a full on 100% genuine Flat-earther. He's not a troll, he's just really, really, dumb and very prone to believing insane conspiracy theories as a result. :/

        A large amount of the people making the detailed "proof" videos and whatnot might be trolls, but there definitely are a large amount of genuine believers as well, as insane as that is.

        1 vote
    2. Neverland
      (edited )
      Link Parent
      I think that a big part of why people are so willing to believe in this type of thing is that it is a modern form of deism. People really want to believe that there is someone or something in...

      Somehow NASA can flood the internet with fake pictures and videos

      I think that a big part of why people are so willing to believe in this type of thing is that it is a modern form of deism. People really want to believe that there is someone or something in control of everything. It is just really hard to believe that there isn't. You often hear "they," it used be "the man," wants you to think xyz. "They" is like that higher power, or the man in sky in control of everything.

      6 votes
  2. [7]
    Pierce
    Link
    I’m not someone who believes in conspiracy theories that much, and I’m not even someone who believes in this conspiracy theory necessarily. But of all the conspiracy theories this seems to be the...

    I’m not someone who believes in conspiracy theories that much, and I’m not even someone who believes in this conspiracy theory necessarily. But of all the conspiracy theories this seems to be the most possible of any. When I look at conspiracy I think who does this benefit. Bush causing 9/11 is just such an out of character move for the former president and has way too many moving parts. But if you look at the moon landing and the global political situation the US was in at that time, it seems more likely. The US had developed entire cities in secret for the Manhattan Project a decade earlier, to think that they didn’t have the resources or secrecy to take on a project such as a fake moon landing is absurd. And after losing to the Soviet’s in previous feats of space exploration, it makes sense why they would be desperate enough to put a person on the moon whether it was real or not. So while I do not believe that the moon landing didn’t happen, I am not confident to say that it wasn’t faked.

    4 votes
    1. [3]
      CALICO
      Link Parent
      I think the biggest piece of evidence in favor of the Moon Landing is that the Soviets didn't call bullshit. They had tracking stations just like the US did. If they had data proving that a...

      I think the biggest piece of evidence in favor of the Moon Landing is that the Soviets didn't call bullshit.
      They had tracking stations just like the US did. If they had data proving that a man-made object didn't go to the Moon, and wasn't transmitting comms from that location, they'd have every reason to expose it.

      13 votes
      1. GyroTech
        Link Parent
        This is always my go-to argument as well. Though lately with the OTP Putin/Trump less people are convinced by it. As if somehow current international relations retroactively change the past.

        This is always my go-to argument as well. Though lately with the OTP Putin/Trump less people are convinced by it. As if somehow current international relations retroactively change the past.

        3 votes
    2. [3]
      spit-evil-olive-tips
      Link Parent
      As you say, the US was desperate to "win" the space race after losing early rounds to the USSR. So the Apollo 11 landing was a major blow to them. Here's an article from Nikita Khrushchev's son...

      And after losing to the Soviet’s in previous feats of space exploration, it makes sense why they would be desperate enough to put a person on the moon whether it was real or not.

      As you say, the US was desperate to "win" the space race after losing early rounds to the USSR. So the Apollo 11 landing was a major blow to them. Here's an article from Nikita Khrushchev's son about what it felt like at the time.

      If there was the slightest shred of proof that the moon landing was indeed faked, wouldn't the scientists and cosmonauts in the USSR have found it? Wouldn't they have shouted it from the rooftops, as proof that the Americans lied about the moon landing? Wouldn't it have been the focus of Soviet propaganda for 20+ years, all the way until the end of the Cold War?

      The fact that the Soviets accepted the moon landing as real is the strongest piece of evidence that it did actually happen.

      10 votes
      1. acr
        Link Parent
        This is why I believe it for the most part. Russia and America's relationship was very strained at that time. There's no way Russia would have just not published that information.

        This is why I believe it for the most part. Russia and America's relationship was very strained at that time. There's no way Russia would have just not published that information.

        1 vote
      2. luke-jr
        Link Parent
        If that was the strongest evidence, it would cast a lot of doubt on the claim! Maybe the claim was plausible enough that the Russians didn't think to question it? Maybe they didn't have evidence,...

        If that was the strongest evidence, it would cast a lot of doubt on the claim!

        Maybe the claim was plausible enough that the Russians didn't think to question it? Maybe they didn't have evidence, and figured the population wouldn't take them seriously if they denied it?

        Regardless, GP's claim/point was that a conspiracy here would be plausible, not that it had supporting evidence.

        1 vote
  3. NPG
    Link
    I've never met a conspiracy theory I didn't like. Except flat earth. The only conspiracy there is the "powers that be" seem to be either pushing it or at least allowing it to flourish, because it...

    I've never met a conspiracy theory I didn't like. Except flat earth. The only conspiracy there is the "powers that be" seem to be either pushing it or at least allowing it to flourish, because it does a great job of tarring everyone in the truth community with the same dumb brush.