Michael Phillips

Conspiracy theorists often pay a high personal price for beliefs that marginalize them from family, friends and mainstream society.

With the return of Donald Trump to the White House on January 20th, conspiracy theories will move from the fringe to the seat of power. JFK Jr. won't emerge and grab the reins, but a different Kennedy will, Bobby Kennedy Jr. Bobby Kennedy Jr. has insisted that Wi-Fi causes cancer and that AIDS might not be caused by HIV. Vaccines, he claims, against overwhelming evidence cause autism.

With the return of Donald Trump to the White House on January 20th, conspiracy theories will move from the fringe to the seat of power. JFK Jr. won't emerge and grab the reins, but a different Kennedy will, Bobby Kennedy Jr. Bobby Kennedy Jr. has insisted that Wi-Fi causes cancer and that AIDS might not be caused by HIV. Vaccines, he claims, against overwhelming evidence cause autism.

With the return of Donald Trump to the White House on January 20th, conspiracy theories will move from the fringe to the seat of power. JFK Jr. won't emerge and grab the reins, but a different Kennedy will, Bobby Kennedy Jr. Bobby Kennedy Jr. has insisted that Wi-Fi causes cancer and that AIDS might not be caused by HIV. Vaccines, he claims, against overwhelming evidence cause autism.

Antidepressants cause school shootings, and chemicals in water lead to gender dysphoria. One of these chemicals, RFK Jr. insists, might be an old obsession of the conspiratorial right.

Antidepressants cause school shootings, and chemicals in water lead to gender dysphoria. One of these chemicals, RFK Jr. insists, might be an old obsession of the conspiratorial right.

Antidepressants cause school shootings, and chemicals in water lead to gender dysphoria. One of these chemicals, RFK Jr. insists, might be an old obsession of the conspiratorial right.

These enemies of freedom somehow pull all the strings, incite unseen, manipulate every aspect of the world's politics, culture, and finance, manipulate elections, engineer depressions, urban riots, and even hurricanes. Yet for all their cleverness, they leave just enough clues so that amateur sleuths, if they are just smart enough, can crack the code.

These enemies of freedom somehow pull all the strings, incite unseen, manipulate every aspect of the world's politics, culture, and finance, manipulate elections, engineer depressions, urban riots, and even hurricanes. Yet for all their cleverness, they leave just enough clues so that amateur sleuths, if they are just smart enough, can crack the code.

These enemies of freedom somehow pull all the strings, incite unseen, manipulate every aspect of the world's politics, culture, and finance, manipulate elections, engineer depressions, urban riots, and even hurricanes. Yet for all their cleverness, they leave just enough clues so that amateur sleuths, if they are just smart enough, can crack the code.

Conspiracy theories make history an understandable contest between ruthless bad guys and intrepid heroes who then feel superior because they've unveiled the master plan. As they discover kindred spirits, they find community otherwise lacking in their lives. Perhaps if just enough people know about the conspiracy, they hope, the bad guys will fall and the millennium will follow.

Conspiracy theories make history an understandable contest between ruthless bad guys and intrepid heroes who then feel superior because they've unveiled the master plan. As they discover kindred spirits, they find community otherwise lacking in their lives. Perhaps if just enough people know about the conspiracy, they hope, the bad guys will fall and the millennium will follow.

Conspiracy theories make history an understandable contest between ruthless bad guys and intrepid heroes who then feel superior because they've unveiled the master plan. As they discover kindred spirits, they find community otherwise lacking in their lives. Perhaps if just enough people know about the conspiracy, they hope, the bad guys will fall and the millennium will follow.

That fantasy offers a simpler, more emotionally satisfying vision of the future than planning on how to dismantle capitalism or figuring out how to persuade white people, for instance, to surrender their privileges that come with skin color. Conspiracy theories are mostly a distraction, but unfortunately they are often, from Oklahoma City to the U.S. Capitol, a call for deadly action.

That fantasy offers a simpler, more emotionally satisfying vision of the future than planning on how to dismantle capitalism or figuring out how to persuade white people, for instance, to surrender their privileges that come with skin color. Conspiracy theories are mostly a distraction, but unfortunately they are often, from Oklahoma City to the U.S. Capitol, a call for deadly action.

That fantasy offers a simpler, more emotionally satisfying vision of the future than planning on how to dismantle capitalism or figuring out how to persuade white people, for instance, to surrender their privileges that come with skin color. Conspiracy theories are mostly a distraction, but unfortunately they are often, from Oklahoma City to the U.S. Capitol, a call for deadly action.

This is Michael Phillips, an historian in Texas. I'm the author of a history of racism in Dallas called White Metropolis, and an upcoming book on the history of eugenics in Texas called The Purifying Knife.

This is Michael Phillips, an historian in Texas. I'm the author of a history of racism in Dallas called White Metropolis, and an upcoming book on the history of eugenics in Texas called The Purifying Knife.

This is Michael Phillips, an historian in Texas. I'm the author of a history of racism in Dallas called White Metropolis, and an upcoming book on the history of eugenics in Texas called The Purifying Knife.

In 2022, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito authored the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision.