Underground Knowledge — A discussion group discussion

The challenge we face, of course, is that the subjects explored in The Orphan Conspiracies: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy are often in direct contrast with the way most of us view the world, and they invariably contradict the official line – the line that politicians, corporate leaders and other persons of influence convincingly peddle – that most of us have been conditioned to accept without questioning since childhood.

It’s our experience that people are prepared to entertain unfamiliar hypotheses when they are incorporated into novels or movies, but are considerably less open-minded when there’s no cozy fictional plot to soften the digestion of such concepts.

To counter this, we have avoided speculation wherever possible and have, for the most part, written about subjects that can be backed with hard facts. These facts include evidence substantiated in court cases, declassified government files, mainstream media reports and well-documented quotes from respected leaders in their fields. Wherever we do briefly deviate into mere speculation, we point that out so the dividing line between fact and rumor is always clear.

The other challenge in presenting this book is that many of the controversial topics we tackle can loosely be described as conspiracy, conspiracies or conspiracy theories. As a result, we will no doubt be categorized by many as conspiracy theorists.

Unfortunately, these have become dirty words and phrases in our culture. Any time a concern is raised by an individual who has been labeled a conspiracy theorist it’s usually dismissed by most government spokespersons, mainstream media journalists and the public at large as paranoia, or worse, delusional.

And for the most part, those critics and skeptics are correct!

Probably 95% of conspiracy theories out there are pure crackpot stuff with not a shred of evidence to support them. We are talking the-moon-is-made-out-of-cheese type of theories. Such absurd concepts are espoused by conspiracy theory extremists who we refer to throughout this book as the Tinfoil Hat Network – those who wear tinfoil-lined hats to block mind control frequencies they believe are being beamed their way!

Although nutty notions certainly provide good entertainment value, they also undermine those serious conspiracy theories which warrant investigation.

A good example of theories deserving airtime is the contention that there were no Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq, which most Western governments have now acknowledged to be true. It was initially brought up by conspiracy theorists before the West’s invasion of Iraq. Their claims were ignored, of course.

If society was prepared to listen to such individuals without pre-judging them, perhaps future wars could be averted.

Once you understand and accept that there are two types of conspiracy theorists – the Tinfoil Hatters, or lunatic fringe, and the more logically-minded – it becomes easy to distinguish between them.

You can spot the Tinfoil Hatters a mile off. They either present silly ideas like Marilyn Monroe being born a man or more dangerous ones like the Holocaust-never-happened – a theory which almost always has its roots in anti-Semitism. The more logically-minded, or sane, conspiracy theorists present more believable and potentially true ideas like there being cover-ups surrounding the deaths of JFK and Princess Diana – theories most Americans and Brits now believe likely, according to mainstream polls.

As WikiLeaks’ founder Julian Assange succinctly put it: “There are conspiracies everywhere. There are also crazed conspiracy theories. It’s important not to confuse these two.”

Worth noting, also, is that when members of the Establishment mock conspiracy theories, they invariably quote the most bizarre premises that only the most paranoid and unstable in conspiracy circles – yes we refer to the Tinfoil Hatters – actually believe. This has proven to be very effective in undermining the more credible conspiracy theorist who may discover an awkward truth about an administration, a corporation or a well-known individual.

German novelist, pacifist and Nobel Peace Prize-recipient Hermann Hesse was labeled an eccentric and a traitor for resisting the ideologies of a popular candidate who was making waves in Germany’s political scene in the early 1930’s. As a result of Hesse’s rebellious stance against fascism, and especially against the new wave of anti-Semitism, the critically-acclaimed author was soon blacklisted by all major newspapers in the nation and had his books banned and systematically burned by that same leader’s political party.

As the politician swept into power and his party began beating the drums of war, Hesse continued to speak out in support of Jewish people and, living in exile outside of Germany, helped others flee from the brutal regime.

The political party was, of course, the Nazi Party and the individual who Hesse opposed was the charismatic Adolf Hitler.

If a new, charismatic politician with intentions as evil as Hitler’s entered the political scene today and someone discovered that politician’s plans and revealed them to the public, would their theories be listened to any more readily than Hermann Hesse’s were?

By consistently reminding the public of the majority of conspiracy theorists who are clearly one missed-medication away from being locked up in asylums, the global elite are also able to discredit the 5% who may have stumbled on to something legitimate.

So the key with conspiracy theories is not to throw out the baby with the bathwater like the Establishment is relying on you to keep doing. In other words, don’t discard good info or intel with the bad.

A large number of conspiracy theories initially scoffed at have since been proven to be true. Examples include: the Gulf of Tonkin Incident – the fabricated event that started the Vietnam War; Watergate – the proven allegation that US President Richard Nixon spied on Democrats; MK-Ultra – the Central Intelligence Agency’s extensive mind control program was a conspiracy theory for over two decades until partially declassified in 1975; and the Dreyfus Affair – the 19th Century Jewish-French artillery officer wrongly convicted of treason by the French Government who later admitted to framing Dreyfus.

More recently, after years of claims by conspiracy theorists that the fabled Area 51, in Nevada, existed, the US Government and the CIA released declassified documents that clearly show it does exist and has existed all along.

We do not profess to be authorities on any of the subjects in this book. Nor do we get into absolutism. On the contrary, we believe very few people alive today can know for sure the whole truth about any of the complex topics we cover.

Our attitude when researching or writing about such topics has always been: We know very little. We took that approach when putting this book together. In our opinion that’s the best way to tackle conspiracy theories or, indeed, any contentious incidents, policies or claims not publicly acknowledged or admitted to by officialdom.

Many people are programmed to instantly dismiss all conspiracy theories while others are just as ready to gullibly believe every theory fed to them. Both approaches are different sides of the same coin, and that coin is absolutism.

Believing in absolutes is a recipe for dogmatism and ignorance. The middle-path of open-mindedness combined with healthy skepticism seems to be the wisest route to take in our opinion.

Although “Conspiracy Theories” features in this book’s title, many of the subjects we cover are actually conspiracy fact. Meaning they’ve already been confirmed as true by the appropriate authority or validated by the release of declassified documents and the like, but strangely remain categorized as conspiracy theories because confirmation of their validity has been ignored or at the very least not widely reported by mainstream media.

The conspiracy facts in our thriller series were noted by Louisiana-based author, historian and renowned US war veterans’ advocate Remy Benoit. “A page turning, frightening high action journey into the world of corrupted power,” Ms. Benoit says of the trilogy in her review, “that goes beyond conspiracy theories to tortured reality.”

Even though the pages of this book contain rare and extraordinary information, it’s surprising how much of it is verifiable and freely available in the public domain – there to be discovered as long as you know what you’re looking for.

In recent years, various celebrities have been branded conspiracy theorists by mainstream media outlets and government departments. These public figures include Martin Sheen, Mark Ruffalo, Rosie O’Donnell, Sharon Stone, Spike Lee, Bruce Willis, Oliver Stone, Willie Nelson, Mos Def, Charlie Sheen, Juliette Binoche, Billy Corgan, Russell Brand, David Lynch, Randy Quaid, Ron Paul, Joe Rogan, Roseanne Barr, Phil Donahue, Jim Carrey, Geraldo Rivera, Robbie Williams, Sean Stone, Prince, Jesse Ventura, Dave Chappelle, Shirley MacLaine, Jim Corr, Henry Rollins, Woody Harrelson and Michael Moore.

This partial list of famous individuals with alternative viewpoints illustrates how being a conspiracy theorist isn’t as rare as it used to be, and may even be trending toward the norm depending on how the term is defined.

That’s not surprising given the balance of power between the state and the individual has swung to an unprecedented degree in favor of the state. Every day, it seems, more civil liberties are being eroded in the name of national security.

Events like the bailout of financial institutions ahead of regular citizens during the global financial crisis and the unwelcome post-9/11 foreign conflicts have left many citizens in the West second-guessing their governments.

Surveys have also shown that a big percentage of the public feel they’re being manipulated by corporations, banks, international interests and the media as well as by politicians who appear to have less respect for voters than ever before. It’s almost as if the public sense there must exist within government little-known powerbrokers who are not for the people, but against them.

We believe these trends in society explain why The Orphan Trilogy has proven to be so popular and why it has established a loyal fan base of readers worldwide.

In all likelihood, the number of people labeled conspiracy theorists is going to increase exponentially. Internationally, they probably already number hundreds of millions and so can no longer be dismissed as lunatics on the fringes of society.

Therefore, if questioning the motivations of political administrations and reminding you of the well-documented nefarious activities of the global elite make us conspiracy theorists, then hell, we’ll accept that label and wear it with pride.

-James Morcan & Lance Morcan