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#36A CYNICISM #36B CONSPIRACISM
Once I thought people could be trusted, had good intentions, were caring, decent, honorable--I now know better.  Humans beings, I believe, are self serving and can’t be trusted to do good. Those who profess to be altruistic are deluded, not seeing misguided self interest for what it is. Most are lazy, mean, corrupt, and immoral--hypocrites, too stupid to see themselves as such.  I was once more accepting and forgiving, now I am critical--sneering at, and finding fault with, much of what people do and say. My suspicions of other people’s motives often extends to imagining the existence of a conspiracy: a few individuals with their own hidden agenda are conspiring to infiltrate key institutions, manipulate events and shape outcomes to their liking. (Note: This imagining can 1) devolve into paranoia,  2) lead to a simplistic black and white portrayal of something that's actually much more complex, and 3) uncover an actual conspiracy --although more typically no such thing exists!  Some link their belief in a  particular conspiracy to seemingly unrelated societal problems.)

WV Theme #36A: Cynicism

WV Theme #36B: Conspiracism

--Alternate Concise Characterization with Wikipedia Entries

--Alternate Concise Characterization with Wikipedia Entries

disturbed by hypocrisy communicated by telling a story / uses narrative form
attitude of Cultural Pessimism rejects belief world becoming better enjoys retelling / embellishing modern folklore / legend 
disturbed by political corruption thinking influenced by paranoia
disgusted with humans, human nature ==> Misanthropy   employs simplistic black/white analysis / Manichaeism

summary Wikipedia article: Cynicism 

summary Wikipedia article: Conspiracy Theory 

Numerical Characterization with TFJD code: 3311 Numerical Characterization with TFJD code: 2311
Numerical Characterization with Emotional Volatility VI index: 9 Numerical Characterization with Emotional Volatility VI index: 36

Related Words, Beliefs, Background -- 48 entries             Songs          self-test       Discussion from The Worldview Literacy Book

Questions to Test Compatibility Between This Theme or These Themes and Your Worldview

playing  card related:  these are club worldview themes: individual <---> group             card #36 concise description   

More to Explore -- Worldview Theme #36A: Cynicism

Cynic  (from online encyclopedia)
Dumbing Down (from online encyclopedia)
Demagogy (from online encyclopedia)
Corporatocracy (from online encyclopedia) 
Corruption Perceptions Index by Transparency International ("the global coalition against corruption") 
Cultural Pessimism: Narratives of Decline in the Post-Modern World, by O. Bennett (2001 book / Google Books)
The Cynic's Sanctuary
A Monologue on Cynicism, Faith, Happiness, Honesty, Sadness, by Amit Singh
Children Develop Cynicism at Early Age (report on Yale University Dept. of Psychology study)
Humor, Sublimity, and Incongruity, by John Marmysz (insight into why laughter is an escape from cynicism)
Brief Paper on Cynicism
Cynicism in Business Organizations
On Youthful Cynicism, by Bertrand Russell (classic 1930 essay)
The Virtue of Engineering Cynicism, by David Weinberger
Humbug and Cynical Acid, by Duncan Baird (Unitarian Universalist sermon) 
Hypocrisy Today -- The Official Publication of the American Society of Sociopaths (ASS)
Are You A Hypocrite?  (includes formula hypocrisy = beliefs - actions)
Spying on Democracy by Heidi Boghosian (excerpt from 2013 book)
The land of the free—Really? by Frances Moore Lappe (a cynical look at USA freedom, on Common Dreams website  October 29 2015)
Reviews on Amazon: Five Star Fakes (report from The Economist October 24 2015)

Business and Corruption: Robber Barons Beware (fighting corruption in China, report from The Economist October 24 2015)

"Corruption and Natural Resources: a fight for light" (report from The Economist October 24 2015)

“Dirty Secrets: Volkswagen’s Falsification of Pollution Tests… “(cover story from The Economist September 26 2015)
"Four cancer charities' $187 million in donations mostly paid for fundraisers, government alleges" (report in LA Times May 19, 2015)
The Looting Machine: warlords, tycoons, smugglers and the systematic theft of Africa's wealth by Tom Burgis  (book review in The Guardian March 2 2015)
"Brian Williams-Gate: America Loses Its Innocence Once Again by Joe Randazzo (Feb 8 2015 commentary posted on The Daily Beast)

"Sleuths Hunt for Kazakh Bank’s Missing $6 Billion"

"Dollarocracy" by John Nichols and Robert McChesney (article from The Nation Sep 30 2013 based on similarly titled book)
"Nigerian Oil Stolen on Industrial Scale" (BBC News report Sep 20 2013)
"Corruption in Venezuela: The Billion Dollar Fraud" (article from The Economist Aug 10 2013)
"Crisis of confidence in government handling of corruption, survey shows" by Erik Kirschbaum (worldwide focus in July 9 2013 report, on Reuters website)
"Latin America: Region One of the Worst for Corruption" by Lauren Villagran (article in CSM Dec 5 2012)
"Corruption in Northern Italy: A Plague on all Their Houses" (article from The Economist Nov 10 2012)
Why America Failed: The Roots of Imperial Decline by Morris Berman (lengthy talk by author of this 2011 book)
"Brooklyn Blues: A reminder of how widespread corruption is in the Empire State" (Sep 2012 article The Economist)
"Shell Awards Christian Teacher $10K for 'Exemplary Science Teaching" by Sandy Leon Vest (from April 2012 blog)
"Doc Charged in $375 Million Medicare Scam" (Feb 2012 news item from The Fiscal Times
"HHS Protects Florida Consumers from $145 Million Health Insurance Heist"  (Dec 2011 article on Huffington Post
"Democracy in America is a Useful Fiction," by Chris Hedges (a cynical perspective from 2010 article)
quotes related to cynicism

More to Explore -- Worldview Theme #36B: Conspiracism

Conspiracy  (from online encyclopedia)
Pseudohistory (from online encyclopedia)
UFO Conspiracy Theory (from online encyclopedia)
Mooon Hoax (a classic example of a conspiracy theory, from online encyclopedia)

John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories  (from online encyclopedia)

Shakespeare Authorship Question (more about issue some connect with conspiracy theory, from online encyclopedia)
Conspiracy Encyclopedia: The Encyclopedia of Conspiracy Theories (official website of publisher)
Worldview Watch issue #36: Kennedy, Shakespeare, Conspiracism, Elitism, and Missing the Real Story
Worldview Watch issue #24: Unvaccinated Children, Public Health, and Worldviews
Worldview Watch issue #2: Conspiracism on Talk Radio
Conspiracy-net: The Most Definitive Conspiracy Theory Portal on the Web
No Such Thing as Paranoia: On the Culture of Conspiracism
American Conspiracy Theories by J. Uscinski and J. Parent (more on this 2014 book from Oxford University Press)
"US Postal Service Joins Federal Ammo Purchases" (Apr 2014 article about conspiracy theory re government plan to drive up price of ammo)
"The Astounding Conspiracy Theories of Wall Street Genius Mark Gorton" by Hamilton Nolan (April 11 2014 article posted on Gawker.com)
"NSA and Cryptography: Cracked Credibility" (of interest to conspiracy theorists, article in The Economist Sep 14 2013)
"From Global Warming to Fluoride--Why Do People Deny Science?" by A. Varki and D. Brower (May 25 2013 article on Salon.com)
The Believing Brain: From Ghosts and Gods to Politics and Conspiracies  by Michael Shermer (2011 book)
Cults, Conspiracies, and Secret Societies by Arthur Goldwag (review of this 2009 book) 
"Skeptic: Paranoia Strikes Deep" by Michael Shermer (essay in September 2009 issue Scientific American
"The Paranoid Style in American Politics" by Richard Hofstadter (classic 1964 essay relevant to conspiracy theory)
Global Advanced Trait: Paranoia
Conspiracy Planet -- Alternative News & History Network
Conspiracy Digest
Skeptical Report on UN Agenda 21 viewed as "Smart Growth Communism" Conspiracy by Tea Partiers (article in March 2011 issue of Mother Jones)
The Listener, by Timothy Lavin (Jan 2010 Atlantic article re: Coast to Coast AM's "conspiratorial worldview")
Coast to Coast AM Radio Show website  (popular talk show build around a "conspiratorial worldview") 
The American Denial of Global Warming (12/12/2007 UCTV program looks at reasons for this)
"Fantasy Island" by Jacob Weisberg ("conspiracy thinking is flourishing on the right" May 2011 Slate article)
Donald Trump's New Obama Conspiracy Theory by Michelle Goldberg (Apr 2011 post on The Daily Beast)
"UFO Encounter Revealed After Almost 40 Years By Ex-Military Pilot" (April 2012 story from The Huffington Post)
UFOs in the FBI's Vault by Mike Krumboltz (April 2011 report on conspiracy theory involving FBI) 
Mrs. Paine's Garage (and the Murder of JFK)  by T. Mallon (2003 book w/ good discussion of conspiracy theories)
Conspiracy Theories (1999 article,  from atheist perspective) 
Post 9/11 Conspiracism (from Political Research Associates Website)
"The Paranoid Style in American Politics" by Richard Hofstadter (summary of this 1964 essay by historian)
Criticism of Conspiracism, by Chip Berlet  (subtitled Conspiracism and Right Wing Populism)
Conspiracism as a Flawed Worldview
Conspiracy Theorists (organization challenging conspiracism)
Conspiracy: How the Paranoid Style Flourishes and Where It Comes From, by Daniel Pipes-Washington Post bookreview
The Roots of Conspiracy Denial (another review of Pipes' book) 
quotes involving conspiracy and related terms

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