The flat-Earth conspiracy is spreading around the globe | Hacker News Reader

The flat-Earth conspiracy is spreading around the globe

cnn.com

12 pointslisper16 comments

Wherever there's people believing in absurdities there is a big business opportunity, and I would dare to say that nobody among those who make money out of this conspiracy theory actually believe the Earth is flat. They're just milking the cow.

The problem is: what if they one day add some mystic nonsense to their theory, morph into a cult, then become more powerful until they can "purchase" a religion status? Sounds familiar? It may seem stretched, but assuming they're there for the money, the above steps would be natural moves to gain more power, immunity etc.

I mean at least these fools aren't spreading polio. So have at it.

>a flat-Earth conference is invariably also a gathering of anti-vaxxers, 9/11 truthers and Illuminati subscribers, to name a few.

oh. Scratch that I guess.

Because anyone who thinks 9/11 was a bunch of lies is completely crazy. Governments don't lie. Amen.

They generally reject evolution too. Quite ironic when you consider that anti-vaxxers and proving Darwin correct. You have to admire the ingenuity of idiots to still find new ways to remove themselves from the gene pool.

My brother loves flat earth as a purely social phenomenon. He tells people he’s a flat earther mostly to get a rise, which is what I think most people who claim to support this also do.

It’s trolling as performance art and it riles up self-important sciencey types which is what continues to propel it forwards. Global warming denial only goes so far - but swearing up and down the world is flat? Now you’re talking!

Awesome, perhaps in the future we'll stop wasting our reverence on the great minds of everything from science to literature. Instead, we'll spend it on worshiping people like your brother, who lead the way in mocking anyone who respects intelligence.

Utopia here we come!

Your response is the exact type of response he tries to get from people. My dad, him, and me all enjoy poking people, it’s a genetic thing I think.

Nah, it's an increasingly common nihilistic attitude we see in society - people reveling in eroding of all moral principles, because it's far easier than actually getting recognition for doing something enriching with their lives. Angry Incels being the ultimate epitome of this.

Not saying your brother is an incel, but "trolling for lolz" is definitely on the spectrum.

How upset you are by the thought of my brother teasing people by pretending to genuinely believe the earth is flat is making me smile!

Good for you champ. Glad it was so easy to please you.

I'm of the opinion that the Earth is actually a Hypertorus with the sun suspended in the center of the Torus. The surface of the Earth coninually wraps inside and out. The portions of the planet surface that are facing inward experience day time, and those facing outward night.

One issue with this "for the lols" stuff is that some percentage of people won't be doing it for the lols. Even if only 1% of the people doing it aren't joking, that number continues to grow and those people, thanks to the other 99%, think they're onto something and have found a movement. That could one day lead to actual problems caused by these people regarding funding or research, or just a general nuisance as with the anti-vax people.

did you ever consider that people may want attention more than truth?

Flat-earthers are ridiculous. I mean, if the world really was flat, cats would have pushed everything off by now.

Great headline.

What globe?

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