In this episode, we explore the conspiracy theories surrounding the July 13 assassination attempt on President Donald Trump. Despite the evidence suggesting the shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, acted alone, numerous theories have emerged. These include claims that the Secret Service staged the event, foreign governments were involved, and the shooter was part of Antifa or backed by Never-Trumper Republicans. We delve into why such theories gain traction, examining cognitive and emotional factors like event magnitude, proportionality bias, anomaly hunting, personal incredulity, hindsight bias, patternicity, agenticity, uncertainty bias, and teleological thinking. While some legitimate questions remain unanswered, we emphasize the importance of applying the Conspiracism Principle: never attribute to malice what can be explained by randomness or incompetence. Tune in to understand why rational people often believe in irrational conspiracies.
How Media, Politics, and Identity Drive Our Appetite for Misinformation
JFK 60th Anniversary of the Assassination
The Scientific Search for Alien Life
Ayaan Hirsi Ali Converted to Christianity
UFO: The Inside Story of the U.S. Government's Search for Alien Life
Identity Politics and its Discontents
What Makes Rational People Believe Irrational Things? (Dan Ariely)
The Role of Iran in the Israel-Hamas Conflict
The Secret History of Women at the CIA
America and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Cancel Culture and What to Do About It (Greg Lukianoff & Rikki Schlott)
Robert Sapolsky on Free Will and Determinism
Armageddon in the Middle East? (David Wolpe)
Should Employers Pay For Emotional Labor?
Dan Dennett Looks Back on His Career
How the American Right Became Radicalized
BIG ANNOUNCEMENT
Ways of Thinking That Power Successful People
How to Fight for Truth and Protect Democracy
The Law vs. Separation of Church and State
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