The world is full of massive, dark, and sinister plots: JFK, 9/11, the Apollo moon landings.

Now. What first hand observation or experience do you have to justify believing in conspiracies? I’m not interested in what you read, or what you were told, or “it all makes sense.” Tell me something that you, personally, saw or experienced.

I can see if you were wrongfully imprisoned, or the victim of discrimination, or had a bad tour in ‘Nam and saw a lot of faked battle reporting, that you might be a little paranoid. But the vast majority of conspiracy believers seem to be affluent, white people who have never experienced a moment of danger or privation in their whole lives.

If you base it all on things you’ve read or heard second hand, something in your life must have convinced you that the world is full of conspiracies. What was it?

I’ve asked this question dozens of times in numerous sites, and not once have I gotten a coherent answer. As far as I can tell, not a single conspiracy believer has any first-hand, personal knowledge.