Behind The Curve (flat-earthers documentary on Netflix)

It's somewhat startling to discover how many people buy into the flat earth doctrine.

They do have some cool T-shirts though.

Those guys are such loons.

The world has to be round, because it's hollow.

Yes, it's seemingly harmless, until you hear what other rabbit holes those people have climbed in and bought into.

Once they're in, it almost seems like belonging in a group takes precedence over knowing the facts, which is pretty sad.

quote:

---

It's somewhat startling to discover how many people buy into the flat earth doctrine.

---

One of the negatives of the Internet.

quote:

---

If the earth is flat shouldn't I be able to stand on a beach at Tybee and see Africa with a Telescope?

---

At the very least you should be able to see mountains from anywhere.

I wanted just to point and laugh at the flat earthers, but the doc had surprising empathy for its subjects, which I appreciated. It wasn't just interested in mockery, it was interested in the pathology. And while I think the radio show couple are essentially harmless and good-natured people, the conspiracy theory does point at something much darker and more sinister. If it's lie, then WHO is lying to us... and that's what takes you to some dark places.

Ultimately, it ends up being about how we almost live in post-fact world, in which we don't just debate ideas but facts themselves. We have no shared sense of knowledge, making good-faith debate near impossible, and its causing society itself to break down. Conspiracy theories are everywhere, in all political stripes, and it boils down to a mistrust in the very fabric of society (also in the person holding the theory's intellectual superiority to everyone else who has been duped). It gave what should have been a light-hearted doc a very sinister undertone. It also showed how there is no way to prove to a conspiracy theorist that their theory is wrong. They are immune to evidence, even from their own experiments.

quote:

---

Once they're in, it almost seems like belonging in a group takes precedence over knowing the facts

---

Kind of like politics to the left, and right wing people out there.

Kind of like sports fans believing their teams are getting, or not getting, calls.

Everyone is crazy about something.

I'm interested in watching this.

But what I've always wanted to know is what the government gets out of hiding the fact that the Earth is flat.
Like, what's the motivation?
Why would they care to lie?

quote:

---

But what I've always wanted to know is what the government gets out of hiding the fact that the Earth is flat.

---

Their claim is that by making people think the earth is not the center of the universe, you undermine people’s sense of importance which is used in conjunction with other mechanisms of control like chem trails, genetically modified crops, etc.

Pretty god damned crazy. They basically believe NASA is some kind of sinister organization secretly pulling the strings of global governments.

The redhead that does the YouTube series would get it though. That green top she wears emphasizes her bust.