Xenofact

Why Conspiracy Theories?

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“Why are you so interested in Conspiracy Theories?” is honestly kind of a good question. I write on spirituality and philosophy, meditation and culture. Why am I also interested in people convinced Reptoids are putting 5G in our vaccines beyond, you know, curiosity?

Well, curiosity is part of it. I’ve been interested in Conspiracy Theories since the 80s. I had an interest in paranormal phenomena (especially UFOs and cryptids) early on in life, and became more aware of Conspiracy Theories in the 80s through mix of politics, interest in weird phenomena, and a Psychology degree. Honestly, that’s a trio of interests right there that explains a lot – I just find them fascinating.

But there is more to it than curiosity, but trust me, don’t discount my ability to go “that’s f-ed up, tell me more.”

First, I am interested in Conspiracy Theories as they impact our lives. Even if I had no other interest in them, the fact is they have and do affect our world. As I write this in 2026 we’ve got an entire American Administration of Too-Online Conspiracy Theorists. People have killed others over extreme beliefs. You have to be aware of them for your own safety and to avoid falling into them.

Conspiracy Theories have affected my life and the lives of others very directly. Very directly.

However, I am also fascinated my the history of Conspiracy Theories. How they work, how they’re believed, why, and how long they’ve lasted are intriguing. An enormous amount of Conspiracy Theories are just repurposed older conspiracy theories, and when you scrape the bottom, it’s usually down to some ethnic, racial, or religious bias. Or as I heard it put in Western Conspiracy Theories, if you go deep enough on almost any theory you end up at racism (and usually antisemitism).

You learn a lot about people and culture by studying Conspiracy Theories. Most of it depressing, some of it a warning, all of it fascinating.

But finally out of all of this I am fascinated by the nature of belief.

Studying Conspiracy Theories tells you a lot about how and why people believe things. What speaks to people (and to different kinds of people). How social ties (or lack of same) affects belief. The borders between Conspiracy Theories and cults, or lack of same. How someone comes to hold terrible, inaccurate, and at times vicious beliefs is fascinating, but also important.

It’s important as we will deal with people who have such beliefs. We might have to talk them down. But also we might fall for them, and forewarned is forearmed. To understand such beliefs is to hopefully develop an immune system against them.

That mental immune system is important especially in areas of spirituality, the paranormal, and other spheres I move in. These areas are rife with Conspiracy Theories or are hijacked by bad actors. A little knowledge is an excellent preventative – and it may prevent you from being overcautious in some cases.

So in the end, I’m fascinated by Conspiracy Theories, but they also tell me a lot about people. They tell me about myself.

I might not always like what I see, but at least I’ll dislike it early enough.

–Xenofact

On Intent

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“Intent” is a word that comes up a lot in meditation, mysticism, magic, and psychology. In my recent meditative work, I’ve come to understand the importance of intent in our works and in psychological health. Thus it’s my intent to discuss it.

In my breath meditation, the goal is to refine a slow and even breath, mind ever on breath. If you’ve ever tried to meditate, or maintain other spiritual or magical practices, you know how the mind can wander. When your mind wanders it doesn’t respond to force very well because it’s trying to force itself, putting you in the psycho-spiritual version of “stop hitting yourself.”

An important breakthrough for me in meditation was the idea of “firm” intent and “gentle” intent, thanks to Taoist Immortal Sun Bu-Er and translator Chen Yingning. These two intents worked together as one, providing tuned breath (firm intent) and attention (gentle intent). The mind set the goal of tuning breath, and as it tuned, it simply stayed with it – it set the goal and stayed there loyalty with the breath.

This helped me appreciate the value of intent, as well as its value in our various metaphysical practices.

To set the intent for something is not forcing it so much as setting a goal and sticking with the actions that surround that goal. It’s not force, it’s almost a kind of loyalty to the very action aroused by setting the goal. It’s partnership.

This made meditation easier for me. I want to tune breath so I just stay with breath as I tune it, the loyal partnership is gentle intent, the activity firm intent. I do not turn my intent against myself or force it, but more navigate a path forward towards my goal. Intent is not “forcing it until it happens” but more “eyes on the road as you go forward.”

I found this also made forms of walking meditation easier and have tried short bursts of “being present” – set a goal to walk to an area during a hike or to just work on preparing a meal, etc. Each small bit of wholehearted attention, setting intent and doing with the intent as beacon was a small meditation.

There were of course the usual benefits of meditation, but I was also glad to just understand how my mind worked a bit better and of course a better understanding of intent.

When I see intent mentioned in psychological and spiritual practices I “get it” much better now. Intent in prayer, in ritual, etc. is all about setting that goal and just doing whatever gets to the goal. It’s also unifying as your intent and action are in partnership, which doubtlessly has psychological and perhaps even metaphysical benefits.

I look forward to hearing from my readers on their own experiences.

–Xenofact

The Lonely Hyperpolitics of Conspiracy Culture

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Anton Jäger’s book Hyperpolitics is another one of those I’ve read, recommended, and will be insufferable about for quite some time. But at least that insufferability helps me gain useful insights to navigate the world.

To re-iterate Jäger’s theories, you can measure politics on scale of Politicization (how political are things) and Institutionalization (people are engaged with clubs, churches, unions, etc.). We had both Politicization and Institutionalization that built our world, an age of Mass Politics from clubs to unions. Our current age is one of Hyperpolitics, everything is political but we’re disconnected and our political movements aren’t that social.

One of the things that Jäger’s work keep has me thinking about is his model that our age of Hyperpolitics seems so lonely. Hyperpolitics, in Jäger’s theory, is an age of outbursts and politics but things don’t get better as there’s no building of institutions that bring such progress. We’re in an age of tantrum and outburst but not connecting – and I think that explains Conspiracy Culture.

Back in the heady days where Qanon began, it seemed to be all-encompassing. People would decode drops from the mysterious Q figure (who clearly was several figures, and hijacked by the owners of the website he was on). Conspiracy theories spun out and were drawn in, creating ever-expanding narratives. People made videos and guides and websites, and so on. Qanon was a project, it was a lifestyle, it was a club.

It may seem like a unique pathology but anyone familiar with cults, conspiracy grifts, and various extreme movements would recognize what was going on. Qanon (and its like) provided community and a sense of belonging. Whatever was going on, here were people that were on your side, and you could yes-and your way into any group or conversation. You could also feel effective as it did change politics, albeit in ways that had no payoff as people discovered.

Looking at that through the lens of Hyperpolitics makes it seem sadly obvious and understandable.

How many people attach themselves to conspiracy theories, join high-control groups, or create their own conspiracy fandom out of a sense of loneliness and frustration? In an age where everything is political and there’s no institutionalization, such groups can soothe not just a sense of powerlessness or need for understanding, but a need for connection. In the past someone might join a club or a union, or already belong to one and have a sense of belonging – but in the 21st century it’s easier to go online and go down a rabbit hole.

I wonder how much of Conspiracy Culture, especially in the US, is people who feel not just powerless or isolated and lonely. They get an illusion of the Mass Politics of Jager, a sense of community and of institution. They are still isolated and manipulated, caught up in Hyperpolitics, but the feel is there.

This is something that sits uncomfortably with me. I know that there’s so many grifters in Conspiracy Culture, that in the influencer age, inauthentic engagement is far too common. But that doesn’t mean people still aren’t lonely – and still aren’t take advantage of by people who are grifters AND lonely.

Of course in an age of Hyperpolitics, this might lead to a self-amplifying loop. People in a politicized age with no sense of institution and belonging create an institution – that just reinforces the extremes of the age. People seek camaraderie and change and just end up joining groups who are focused on further amplifying the political situation with their theories. Conspiracy Community may be community, but it’s still about the conspiracy, and that means the community keeps amplifying it, keeping up the Hyperpolitics.

Of course nothing much changes, because we know there are people ready to tap the conspiracy community for money and influence, but not to help the people within. It’s up to us to rebuild a modern form of mass politics, of politics and social institutions, because the future is otherwise a bleak string of tantrums.

–Xenofact