[kerakaali]

Are these mutually exclusive ideas? I feel there's overlap between them. Acting based on emotional pull can also reduce cognitive overhead compared to the expensive process of making decisions predicated on logic.

On the other hand, lies don't necessary simplify worldviews either. We shouldn't forget that a significant part of the population is willing to engage in conspiracy theories that all too often draw lines between loosely correlated events.

[randcraw]

I think belief in conspiracies serves the same end as wishful thinking -- we can blame others for creating the evils of the world. Us-vs-them thinking also serve our need for being surrounded by 'friends', something you can do only if you have enemies. So inventing conspiracies and enemies are great ways to give yourself comfort amid a messy largely random world you can't control. If only we could get rid of our enemies, our world would be a much better place.

[guenthert]

I think there's a conspiracy attempting to discredit alternative explanations. In the end they want you to belief there's no such agency.