Flat Earthers

[Lammasu]

So I've been reading up on the Flat Earth movement recently. I find it fascinating that in an age where almost everyone has accesses to all human knowledge in the palm of their hand a seeming growing number of people insist the Earth is flat. I've watched a few Flat Earther vids like this gem. I find the entire phenomenon fascinating.

[Starter Set]

I tend to think that most people are just in for the joke. You maybe have a core of nutjobs who think it's true but it has to be a small minority.

Little note, ancient Greeks already knew that the Earth wasn't flat. And while he was at it, Eratosthenes even managed to calculate the circumference of the planet. (famous story of the wells)

2200 years ago.

Please, try to be reasonable flat earthers lol.

[Tendrin]

earthflat.JPG

...I mean...

[Malvolio]

earthflat.JPG

...I mean...

This really made me laugh.

It's sort of like an atheist who's caught in traffic yelling, "God damn it!"

[Star_Jammer]

This really made me laugh.

It's sort of like an atheist who's caught in traffic yelling, "God damn it!"

I mean, I do that. But it's more of a learned behavior ("catchphrase") than any serious belief that "God" is going to damn someone/something.

That and, I think, if I were to type out the phrase without really thinking about it beforehand, it would be "goddamn".

[Charmed]

I once had a flat earther as an Uber driver who tried to convince me that the Earth was flat (naturally) and that everyone employed at NASA were freemasons. And still I gave him five stars.

[CaptCleghorn]

earthflat.JPG

...I mean...

LMFAO. (10 char)

[ZombieHavoc]

I heard somewhere once, I think it was on Skeptoid, about how a conspiracy theorist's brain functions on a more primal kind of instinct. Most people evolved to not be nervous about the world around them, because we are not longer generally the victims of predators and what not. So the modern extension of the primal instinct is to be concerned that everyone, the government, authority, etc., is out to get you or whatever. And that kind of specific aggressive lack of trust takes you down the path of not believing any established normal explanation of things.

I bet that post WWII and in the 50s, if people were polled, there were less conspiracy theorists than in the post-Vietnam era, since that seems like when the general public's trust in government, leaders, etc., really began to evaporate. Maybe not, but seems like there would be. In the 50s and leading up to Vietnam, I think people were more concerned about other countries/communism/etc as the threat, and less so their own leaders.

[GOLGO 13]

Most of these are low level, dung-eating members of the Evangelical Christian Death Cult. The same types hoping for the apocalypse from the Fat Nixon.

I laugh at them.

[Edward1122]

I think that its entrancing that during a time where nearly everybody has gets to all human learning in the palm of their hand an appearing to be developing number of individuals demand the Earth is level...









http://southeasthobbies.com.au/

[Carabas]

I think that its entrancing that during a time where nearly everybody has gets to all human learning in the palm of their hand an appearing to be developing number of individuals demand the Earth is level...

If there's one thing the internet is good at it is helping people with non-mainstream ideas find like-minded souls and increase their... radicalisation by putting them in a ideological bubble.

[Powerboy]

I tend to think that most people are just in for the joke. You maybe have a core of nutjobs who think it's true but it has to be a small minority.

Little note, ancient Greeks already knew that the Earth wasn't flat. And while he was at it, Eratosthenes even managed to calculate the circumference of the planet. (famous story of the wells)

2200 years ago.

Please, try to be reasonable flat earthers lol.

I didn't watch the videos but I've also always thought most people in the Flat Earth Society are just in it as a joke although there is a core that are serious. I think the comparison to evolution is strong since people who believe there is a flat earth often get compared to people who believe there's no such thing as evolution, the only difference being the sheer numbers of people involved.

[Enigma]

Some people think it's fun, some people like the attention and some people are just that dumb.

[mathew101281]

Most of these fringe theories rely on the belief in large complex conspiracies, that in no way could go on for as long as they do.

[Starter Set]

Well, pretty fantastic that in this day and age no one never managed to take a photo of the edge of the world then lol.