Anatomy of a conspiracy

[MG1962]

I just finished watching a documentary about conspiracies in the US Area 51, Kennedy etc etc

One that was explored was the old chestnut about the design and layout of Washington DC

We then flash to an expert who says - Oh well one excellent piece of evidence is the Washington monument. We all know that 20% of such structures are sunk into the ground to avoide earthquakes etc etc (Okay fair enough)

So he goes on - The structure is 555 feet high. Add the 20% below ground which is 111 feet. Total height becomes 666 feet, which (Shock horror) is the number of the beast.

I thinks - thats an interesting coincidence. But lets just see if such structures are built like that. Three hits into google, I discover that the height is 555 feet

BUT - the foundations are only sunk 36 feet and 10 inches. That gives us a total height of 591 or so.

Now I am the kinda guy who likes to be sure of things. But the doco was well presented, polished, and seemed authoritive. So how does the average Joe handle this. I am lucky enough to know how to research, but many people dont. Some people dont even have the resources to do this research. So at what point do they have to start believing what they are told.

--- Rant switch off --

Please feel free to resume normal transmissions lol

[Oliver]

BTW: Where does this stupid 666 come from? Is it mentioned in the bible? Or did Bush senior mentioned it by accident in a tv-speech?

[Lisa Simpson]

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=REV%2013&version=31;

8This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man's number. His number is 666.

[MG1962]

Quote:
8This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man's number. His number is 666.



Yes apparently those who support the antichrist at the time of Revelations will be marked by the beast. Funny, now that I think. The doco before the conspiracy one, was an excellent exploration of the Book Of Revelations. Me thinks someone at the cable channel has a sense of humour

[Alareth]

666 is actually a holdover from babylonian mythology that was adapted into the Bible.

It was originally used in refence to the Babylonian elder dark gods and Cthulhu in particular.

I can't look it up here at work but I'll grab some reference when I get the chance.

[firecoins]

Oh yeah! And the Pentagon is the sign of the devil! :eye-poppi

[Oliver]

In the Greek manuscripts, the Number is rendered in Greek numerical form as “χξς”,[6] or sometimes literally as “six hundred and sixty-six”, “ἑξακόσιοι ἑξήκοντα ἕξ”.[7][8] The oldest known record of the verse, a fragment of an early manuscript of Revelation from the Oxyrhynchus site, gives a different number, 616, as “χιϛ”.[1] The early Church father Irenaeus knew several occurrences of the 616-variant but regarded them as a scribal error, although he didn't know the meaning of the number.[9] The Zurich Bible which is based on the oldest Bible manuscripts also mentions the number 616.

What a mess - another conspiracy... :boggled:

[Lisa Simpson]

666 is in all barcodes (http://www.snopes.com/business/alliance/barcode.asp) too. :eye-poppi

[Oliver]

666 is in all barcodes (http://www.snopes.com/business/alliance/barcode.asp) too. :eye-poppi

Uhm - i still have bad memories about criticizing admins of another place in the internet, but your link says the complete opposite:

Contrary to popular myth, no bar code includes the number 666 http://forums.randi.org/imagehosting/11107451ef9fc0fca9.gif

[Lisa Simpson]

'Twas a joke, Oliver.

ETA: And criticism of the mod team is a time-honored tradition here.

[Oliver]

criticism of the mod team is a time-honored tradition here.

Muhawawawaw ... shall i? ... shall i? ... :D

[Psiload]

Back when I was in the Navy, our social security numbers were shown on our military ID cards. One day I'm standing in line to get my paycheck and a Marine, acting as payroll guard, is checking ID's. My social security number is 066-60-XXXX. The Marine looks at my ID and then he says to me, dead serious, "You've got 666 in your SS number. That's not good. You should get that changed."

:nope:

[Lisa Simpson]

My first job was cashier in a "mom-and-pop" type drugstore. A customer once refused to pay for her items because the total was $6.66. I had to re-ring up her order, this time with a nickel's worth of candy so the total would be $6.71.

[jhunter1163]

From something I saw out on the Net once:

666 = Number of the Beast
668 = Neighbor of the Beast
333 = Mini-Beast
999 = Beast and a Half
Phillips 666 = Gasoline of the Beast
Formula 666 = Cleaning product of the Beast
Route 666 = The REAL Highway to Hell
6:06:06 = Wake-up call of the Beast
666 F = Cooking temperature for roast Beast
.666 = Batting average of the Beast
6.66 = Earned run average of the Beast
66.6 FM = Radio station of the Beast

[Arkan_Wolfshade]

From something I saw out on the Net once:

666 = Number of the Beast
668 = Neighbor of the Beast
333 = Mini-Beast
999 = Beast and a Half
Phillips 666 = Gasoline of the Beast
Formula 666 = Cleaning product of the Beast
Route 666 = The REAL Highway to Hell
6:06:06 = Wake-up call of the Beast
666 F = Cooking temperature for roast Beast
.666 = Batting average of the Beast
6.66 = Earned run average of the Beast
66.6 FM = Radio station of the Beast

1010011010 = Binary representation of the beast
29A = Beast in hex

[Class]

Should I be alarmed that Iron Maiden's "Number of the Beast" started playing on my playlist a few seconds before I entered this thread?

[G-K-4]

My social security number is 066-60-XXXX. The Marine looks at my ID and then he says to me, dead serious, "You've got 666 in your SS number. That's not good. You should get that changed."

:nope:
So were you born in New York state or did you just live there for a while?
http://www.ssa.gov/employer/stateweb.htm

[Bell]

Should I be alarmed that Iron Maiden's "Number of the Beast" started playing on my playlist a few seconds before I entered this thread?

I think Belz... would be amused by it.

[kc440_]

Ronald and Nancy Reagan once lived at an address number 666.

kc440

[steve s]

We then flash to an expert who says - Oh well one excellent piece of evidence is the Washington monument. We all know that 20% of such structures are sunk into the ground to avoide earthquakes etc etc (Okay fair enough)


Whenever anyone says "We all know that...," you can be sure he's about to feed you a pile of [Rule8]. It's a common rhetorical device used to squelch dissent.

Steve S.

[David Wong]

I don't know if it qualifies as a conspiracy, but it's the same mindset:

The Bermuda Triangle

I read a fascinating article where somebody went and actually tracked down the records of the "mysterious" disappearances of craft in the triangle, found that in books on the subject they'd always have entries like:

"MAY 13, 1971 - THE FISHING TROLLER BLACK BETTY HEADS OUT ON A CRYSTAL CLEAR DAY. NO SIGN OF THE CRAFT IS EVER SEEN AGAIN."

But then you actually look up that day and it turns out there were massive storms and high winds and several boats had to be rescued, the Black Betty being one that actually sank.

The way the people writing on the subject would change the information to make it look more mysterious is fascinating to me.

[Arkan_Wolfshade]

Ronald and Nancy Reagan once lived at an address number 666.

kc440

And Ohio has an entire township that is xxx-666-xxxx and Jeffery Dalhmer grew up there. So what?

[qarnos]

I don't know if it qualifies as a conspiracy, but it's the same mindset:

The Bermuda Triangle


You can thank Charles Berlitz for that one. He is to the Bermuda Triangle what Dylan Avery is to 9/11.

He wrote a rather popular book about The Bermuda Triangle called, funnily enough, The Bermuda Triangle.

I read a fascinating article where somebody went and actually tracked down the records of the "mysterious" disappearances of craft in the triangle, found that in books on the subject they'd always have entries like:

"MAY 13, 1971 - THE FISHING TROLLER BLACK BETTY HEADS OUT ON A CRYSTAL CLEAR DAY. NO SIGN OF THE CRAFT IS EVER SEEN AGAIN."

But then you actually look up that day and it turns out there were massive storms and high winds and several boats had to be rescued, the Black Betty being one that actually sank.

The way the people writing on the subject would change the information to make it look more mysterious is fascinating to me.

I fell for it to, when I was younger. It was a fascinating read.

I was quite dissapointed when I found out it was a load of twaddle, but I got over it.

[Ersby]

My ex-girlfriend's employee number is 666.

(We split up amicably and are still friends, in case you're wondering.)

(and, please, no jokes about being a beast in bed)