"Now for the evidence," said the King, "and then the sentence."
"No!" said the Queen, "first the sentence, and then the evidence!"
"Nonsense!" cried Alice, so loudly that everybody jumped, "the idea of having the sentence first!"
"Hold your tongue!" said the Queen.
"I won't!" said Alice, "you're nothing but a pack of cards! Who cares for you?"
Are democratic processes in the United States a facade? Yes. Is real political control exercised by a small, wealthy, ruthless elite? Yes...but, this elite is only the pinnacle of an institutionalized, hierarchical SYSTEM of power. To define its history and present existence as the result of a single conspiracy obscures the subtilties and systemic nature of oppression and, however unwittingly, plays into the hands of fascist and neo-fascist propagandists who exploit the migration of rightist attitudes found embedded in leftist rhetoric.
Although a thorough discussion of the right-left migration of conspiratorial thought patterns is outside the scope of this essay, detailed and compelling illustrations can be found in Theories of Conspiracy, (University Central Press, 1990). In "The Seductive Lure of Fascism", the first of eleven essays in the anthology, Jonathan Quarles explores the way in which conspiracy theories circulating amomg the intelligentsia of the Weimar Republic eventually weakened critical reasoning allowing right-wing ideas to take root in otherwise progressive discourses. He offers a convincing, well- documented case-study. Also, in "Paranoia, Conspiracies, and the New Right", from the same volume, Christopher Parrish describes the use of conspiracy theories by several far right groups including the John Birch Society, the Liberty Lobby, and the LaRouchians; however, in addition to the usual attacks on traditional right-wing scapegoats there is also a vituperative assault on the Rockefellers and the Trilateral Commission--centers of capitalist power more likely to be targeted for criticism by the left. These lashings, if taken out of context, could easily be mistaken as excerpts from neo-marxist harangues. Neither of these two essays, nor others in the anthology, suggest that leftists and liberals who employ conspiracy theories are closet right- wingers, but they do present evidence that political attitudes are often incorporated into arguments on which the far right then eagerly capitalize. Collectively, they emphasize that conspiracy thinking is an ideological trap. One in which theory presents itself seductively as radical analysis only to reverse itself by relying on untenable conjecture and unverifiable hearsay.
Also, single conspiracy theories fail to take into consideration the competition that inevitably arises among various splinter groups within the elite, as well as intra-group posturing and rivalry for prestige on the part of group leaders and would-be leaders, especially when enormous rewards of money and/or influence are at stake. Unprincipled, often unscrupulous, daily deal- making does go on between economic, political, and military bosses--but not without a fair amount of back-stabbing, skulduggery, and unanticipated and unpredictable reversals of fortune. As Richard Hofstadter pointed out, "There is a great difference between locating conspiracies in history and saying that history is, in effect, a conspiracy...."
In other words, because manipulation is an everyday part of political life this in itself does not necessarily point to a single controlling agent or agency. On the contrary, the hidden agendas and covert operations involving double and triple agents for hire to the highest bidder makes the consistent, predictable control of complex events hard to imagine. The idea that a "Secret Team" with absolute power is behind all instances of evil in the world is just another phantasy (with obvious ontotheological roots) borrowed by the radical left from right-wing propaganda.
The "Secret Team" theory, a persistent and popular correlative of the "history is conspiracy" theory, presupposes that the US political system has an essence which is basically democratic, but which has been perverted by an evil gang. If only we could arouse the American people from their apathy and get rid of these few bad men, the theory goes, we could restore that democratic essence. But the US political system has never been truly democratic; it was founded on slavery and genocide. This cannot be overlooked, although it continues to be over-rationalized. It is important that current contradictions be examined and acknowledged to exist within a historical context of systematic exploitation and oppression.
In brief, although conspiracy theory appealingly simplifies complicated scenarios, its approach is dangerous and often careless in the way it reduces history to an overdetermined, wireframe sketch of what are in reality complex, dynamic events. Any meaningful analysis of the existing capitalist system must allow for intra-class struggle as well as inter-class conflict, and take note of managerial incompetence and internal fragmentation within subsystems while attempting to steer clear of simplistic, monocausal explanations and mythic bogey-men.
Of course, one is at a loss when faced with some of the more imaginative conspiracy theories, especially the increasingly common allegations by some theorists that extra-terrestrials have been involved in shaping human history. This is mentioned not in order to draw a red herring across our path, but as an example of the explanations that persist in the margins of cultural experience because anomalous phenomena are not often included for serious analysis in the theories of established social critics who continue to think and write "as if" many phenomena did not exist. Given the propensity for repression in the service of paradigmatic integrity and the blatant misuse of the media by the government for purposes of propagnadizing and disseminating disinformation, as well as the frequent abuse of power in the management of covert operations, it is little wonder that an atmosphere of mistrust exists in which speculations and rumors gain the appearance of viability and compete openly with more carefully considered theories.
Short of a view of history as a total lie, in which case history and conspiracy are synonymous, one finds little justification for assigning a single conspiracy the role of being the determining factor in human conflicts. Self-preservation, self-aggrandisement, self-destructiveness, revenge, sex, money, love, hatred and meanness, to name only a few of the many human psycho- instrumentalities to which reason may be bent (not only by aggressors in power but those throughout the hierarchy who identify with their rationalized aggression) are far more plausible reasons for our present condition than the Machiavellian antics of a Secret Team. We must all recognize our responsibility for our present condition, though some, unquestionably, are more responsible than others by virtue of their access to knowledge and its techno-manifestations. It is true that these proclivities of instrumental reason are not necessarily incompatible with the idea of THE CONSPIRACY, but it is too difficult to imagine any group, however small, mustering the necessary force to bend all that is to their will. More importantly, a theory of a single conspiracy does not adequately account for the seemingly fractal dispersion of psychic traits throughout the system which results in the willingness of the masses to be exploited. That a will to power exists--yes. That it is TOTALLY organized and determined--no. Humans are not that capable of managing their affairs. And extra-terrestrials? All bets are off.