Conclusion

Abstract

The critical enquiry undertaken in the preceding chapters, and the exploration of the historical, political and psychological dimensions of conspiracy theories, yielded an unflattering portrait of this surprisingly persistent, global social phenomenon. Since the late eighteenth-century conspiracy theories played a notable role in shaping public perceptions of history and politics, and all too often as a feature of political ideologies and projects whose role in history has been far from positive. Conspiracism has been the staple ingredient of discriminatory, antidemocratic and populist politics, a trademark of the rhetoric of oppressive regimes, and, as we have seen in Chapter 5, a faithful companion to antisemitism. Conspiracy theories remain the refuge of every dictator and authoritarian leader in the world, from Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Iran and Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe, to Hugo Chavez in Venezuela and Alexander Lukashenko in Belarus. The tried and tested alliance between conspiracy theory and totalitarian politics is unsurprising, not just because the idea of conspiracy presents a potent tool for legitimising tyranny and oppression, but also because the two share the view of the people as a collection of dupes susceptible to manipulation and control, who need a strong leader to guide them and protect them from malign outside influences. This is why, as Karl Popper (1972) rightly pointed out, conspiracy theorists, when they take over the reins of power, invariably end up governing by conspiracy.