Conspiracy theorWHAT?!

I have been hearing a lot of conspiracy theories about recent mass shootings, and I want to address them and why I think it is unlikely that the government orchestrated such tragedies or knowingly allowed them to occur. I'm not going to fact check every claim that a conspiracy theorist has made, because there are other things I want to do this week and I really, quite frankly, don't think it's necessary. I'm not writing this like I'm reporting news; I'm not going to report a fair, fact-based story. And while you're free to believe as you choose, I'm going to share my personal doubts and thoughts on the matter.

The first reason I doubt the government is behind mass shootings is because gun violence in the US is not new: the earliest recorded school shooting took place on July 26, 1764, when a teacher and 10 students were shot by American Indians. People have been killing each other since the dawn of humanity and, while guns have certainly helped make attacks more deadly, if someone wants to kill a lot of other people they will probably figure out a way to do it. If there had never been a shooting in a school or public place and suddenly there were half a dozen in one year, I might think there was something to the idea that the government was behind shootings. But that is not the case, and I am not supporting such theories. 

Secondly, conspiracy theories are another phenomenon as old as humanity, or at least as old as the ability to be paranoid. I spoke with Dr. Keith Durkin, Professor of Sociology at Ohio Northern University, and he pointed out that groups usually create conspiracy theories about the government when their political party is out of power. He stated "Conservatives thinking the government orchestrated the Colorado and Connecticut shootings is just the other side of the coin of some liberals claiming 9/11 was orchestrated by Bush to start a police state or invade the middle east for oil."

People distrust their ideological opposites and look for evidence to support their suspicions. Individuals who are paranoid that leaders will pass strict gun control measures will observe events in a way that is tinted by the fact that they are already convinced that the government's goal is to take away the people's guns. In this state of mind they will dismiss the "official story" when they detect an anomaly or shortcoming, even if they have to invent some huge and intricate explanation to fit the "evidence" into their conspiracy theory.

My third reason for doubting conspiracy theories, specifically regarding the Sandy Hook shooting, is that I don't find the evidence they provide to be solid. Emilie Parker, a 6-year-old Sandy Hook student, was reported to have been killed in the shooting, but later conspiracy theorists claimed she was in the photo her family took with President Obama. While the little girl in the President's photo did resemble Emilie and was wearing a dress Emilie wore in an older family photo, I don't think it's proof that Emilie's death was a ruse. There are dozens of pictures of me as a child where I look like my older sister and am wearing her hand-me-down clothes, but that doesn't mean it's a picture of my sister instead of me.

Conspiracy theorists also point to date stamps and schedules on Web sites as evidence the shooting was preplanned government officials. First, there's no way I can verify that screenshots are actually screenshots. I have seen some amazing replicas of Web pages that people have made, and there's no way for me to tell the difference on my computer screen. Also, I know that date and time stamps aren't always accurate. I've posted things on Facebook that have time stamps that are hours off. I don't know why this happens, but I do know that the settings on computers and servers can effect the date and time stamps on e-mails and Web updates. So, don't show me a screenshot with a time stamp and say it's evidence that people knew that the shooting was going to happen and that the government is behind it and expect me to believe you.

Other evidence that's being presented is supposed holes in witness and official reports and inconclusive media coverage. I took only basic psychology in high school and college, and even I know that eye-witness testimony is notoriously unreliable. Studies have proved that our memories are subject to change with time, things we've learned since the event took place, and plain forgetfulness. In the upheaval during and immediately after something as shocking as an elementary school shooting, witnesses and officials are going to be frazzled and probably won't put enough thought into their statements. The media are trying to provide up to the minute coverage with second- or third-hand information and witnesses who are half out of their minds, so the live reporting and possibly follow-up coverage are not going to be smooth and concise.

Also, if the government were orchestrating these events, I think the story would be perfect. There wouldn't be holes to point to or oversights to explore, and a little girl who is supposed to be dead certainly wouldn't be photographed with the President. There would be no chaos in the coverage and we'd be handed a neat little package of a mass murder with no evidence that anyone but a single madman was behind the tragedy. This event was too imperfect to be faked.

Furthermore, if the government were diabolical enough to orchestrate shootings, right down to hiring actors to play witnesses and family members, they wouldn't need to. Why go through all that trouble and public scrutiny when they could just place straw men in strategic positions in Congress and the White House while they pushed their agenda through to approval? Even if the government orchestrated recent mass shootings, their efforts have failed because the majority of Americans are content with current firearm regulations and would support changes only to the background check and mental health requirements, and probably would have supported them without so much carnage.

If I sound angry, it's because I am. I am disgusted that people are so willing to blame the government for actions of madmen. By denying that these events are true tragedies, you encourage contempt for the government and disdain for the victims and survivors of mass murder. In my opinion, someone who does this to their fellow countrymen and government is no patriot. But that's beside the point.

The point is that these mass shootings are real and they are a blight on our society. It doesn't matter that they've been going on for hundreds of years, we are a modern nation and we need to address them. Background checks and licensing regulations for firearms purchases are one way, and mental health reform is another. But we, as a society, are letting this happen to ourselves and I don't think the answer is more guns or violence. We need to start at home by teaching our children that life is sacred, that owning and using a weapon of any kind is a powerful responsibility, that there's a difference between fantasy and reality, and that sometimes empathy and caring for someone who needs help is the best way to prevent violence in the first place. These lessons need to start at home, and need to be taught through school and church and any social group children are in. Children sometimes aren't capable of understanding these things, but as parents and teachers and mentors it is up to us to keep trying to teach and, most importantly, to lead by example.