I hate the word "truther"

[Takket]

This has been bugging me for a long time since the "truther" nonsense about Obama's birth certificate. Now there is a thread on here about "truthers" attacking a Sandy Hook mother.

I don't like this word "truther" being used to describe conspiracy theorists. It implies that they have the truth and everyone else either doesn't understand or is suppressing the truth. Every time now a small group of people come up with a crazy idea that is shown to be false by all concrete evidence, the media labels then "truthers". there is no "truth" to anything these crackpots put forth.

We need a word that means "unfounded baseless circumstantial conspiracy theory", and then we need to label these people with that word.

[Oneironaut]

1. Didn't they coin the word?

The connotation was that they had all of the facts, and everybody else was an idiotic bleating sheep who loved Fascism?

Truther groups have a creepy cult vibe to them.

[uppityperson]

2. I call them troofers. They know the troof, for real!!!111

[pinboy3niner]

3. They have truthiness

It's almost just like truth, but the opposite.

[olddots]

4. maybe we need a word for authoritarian unimaginative blowhards too.

[-none]

5. Not all conspiracy theories are created equal.

Sometime those saying conspiracy are correct. Calling everyone saying whatever was a conspiracy 'truthers" muddies the waters, which I think is the intent. It casts doubts in actual conspiracies. Real conspiracies do exist, otherwise we would not have a common everyday word for it.

[Recursion]

9. And the very term "conspiracy theory" comes from the motherlode, the JFK assassination

There are plenty of theories involving conspiracies that are not "Conspiracy Theories" (tm); AFAIK the phrase in that sense comes from the JFK assassination. And for that matter not all Conspiracy Theories involve literal conspiracies.

[Bucky]

16. you mean the JFK so-called "assassination"

You can't be so naive as to believe there was an actual John Kennedy -- that's just what they want you to believe!

[MiniMe]

6. They think they want the truth...

But they can't handle the truth

[kentauros]

7. I just call them "Projectors"

That is, they project the "truth" they want people to believe. They have no intention of revealing the truth that simply is.

[Recursion]

8. It comes from the so-called "9/11 Truth Movement"

Which went from some pretty thoughtful and important questions to talk of holograms and controlled nuclear detonations at an incredible speed. But I'm pretty sure that's where the name comes from.

[yuiyoshida]

11. isn't that, that crazy loon

Alex Jones stuff? How the hell did he become so main stream? .. I guess Republicans elevated him like they did with Michael Savage...Hard to believe they have any bearing at all on what goes on in this country.

[Recursion]

13. Alex Jones and Art Bell have plenty of fans on the left, too

There's no accounting for crazy...

[yuiyoshida]

14. There is a difference

Art Bell may have had many guests, but he never said he was a follower of any of them. Even his friend Richard C. Hogaland, he took with a grain of salt.

[JI7]

10. i think truther works better because of the way it sounds

it makes them out to be crazy

[lovemydog]

12. Regarding the Sandy Hook ones

I prefer calling them dumb-ass mofos.

[Iggo]

15. How do you feel about "teabagger"?

Same shit.

[panader0]

17. I don't like the degradation of the word.

Truth has always been one of my most respected values. Everyone would be better off if truths
were totally apparent and visible.