Alternate conspiracy theories

All right, let's talk about conspiracy theories.
Hey, where are you all going? Come back!

I mean Alternate conspiracy theories.

And maybe some real ones. Hey, stop throwing things at me!

History has shown that some conspiracy theories turned out to be true; the Dreyfuss affair, MKULTRA, the Tuskeegee Syphilis Experiment, the Iran-Contra affair, to name a few. These were mostly small-scale, and they still got found out.

I was inspired to make this thread by a comment that a newsgroup once tried to figure out how the moon landing could reasonably be faked, and after really trying they couldn't do it.
A large-scale conspiracy like faking a moon landing would require virtually every member directly working on it to remain silent, and killing them would be all too suspicious unless their deaths could be covered up, which in turn would require all their family members to keep quiet as well. Doing all that would require complete and total state control over just about everything, similar to how North Korea operates. Doubtless the DPRK government could probably be considered a conspiracy by Kim Il-Sung and others to establish his own private monarchy, but I digress.

Moving further, supposed centuries-long worldwide conspiracies like the Illuminati or the Masons would have so many problems operating in a single fashion that it would be comical to see them try. In order to stop one high-up member from using the organization's power against the others to the detriment of their grand master lizard alien plan, they would have to put up a baffling amount of red tape; they would be too bloated to move efficiently when it came time to enact "The Plan." What's more, every time some new technology or large event alters the playing field, they would have to come up with a new master plan almost from scratch. And then there's the fact that the members themselves aren't immortal, and their successors wouldn't necessarily be able to take over The Plan competently; there would be endless arguing over ends and means, and the whole thing would fall to pieces within a generation, and that's assuming everyone was completely loyal to everyone else.

And then there's this, which is just funny.


So, I'm going to stop beating around the bush and ask my question. Or two questions.
First, what kinds of conspiracy theories (true or imagined) might arise in alternate worlds? Doesn't matter which one; just post a link if it's not a well-known TL.
Second, without it being ASB, try and think of the biggest actual conspiracy (by your definition) you can that has a reasonable shot of succeeding. After 1900 would be ideal, but feel free to go further if you need to.

Lastly, and most importantly, let's try and keep actual conspiracy theories out of the thread, okay? I don't want to hear anything about the moon landing or the Kennedy assassination or the illuminati or lizard space aliens being secretly every president since 1800. Specifically I don't want anyone insisting that any of these things are true. Board rules apply. Capisce?

Now, I'm going to hide in this bunker to avoid the ensuing shitstorm. Feel free to discuss!
 
There's always the Freemasons.

Yes, I know they're a real conspiracy theory. But they're also the kind of organization that could have secret plans (because of their secrecy) and which is wide spread enough among those who are movers and shakers to hide it (in plain sight, perhaps)

Something like that would be a good bet for a basis for Secret Society one wants to think up.

Besides, Two Crowns for America was a good read.
 
There's always the Freemasons.

Yes, I know they're a real conspiracy theory. But they're also the kind of organization that could have secret plans (because of their secrecy) and which is wide spread enough among those who are movers and shakers to hide it (in plain sight, perhaps)

Something like that would be a good bet for a basis for Secret Society one wants to think up.

Besides, Two Crowns for America was a good read.

The Lodge claims to of been around a lot longer then a lot of nations .
 
Part of my interest in conspiracy theories comes from the fact that I have distant links to the Masons. My great-grandfather was a mason; apparently he was a 32nd degree member, whereas the highest is 33.
He was also a socialist and a jew, so that's, like, a trifecta of conspiracy-bait.
 
How about this, in a failed American Revolution timeline:

"Grandpa, so Dad said I had to ask you... What really happened to the American Rebellion?"

"Well, you see, it wasn't actually meant to happen in the first place. The leaders of the rebellion, they didn't realize that the King of England is actually the rightful heir to the Empire of the great Celtic Race of Antiquity, who once ruled all of England and the Americas -- the land the Irish know as Tir naNog, the Welsh as Annwn, and among the Bretons as Armorica. Yes, that's right, the name Armorica used to refer to the same thing as America -- where do you think they really got that name, from some Spanish guy who never even saw it? Later, the name was associated with the place where ships would gather to head to the Western Continent... but I digress.

"You see, the King, who is no more descended from Anglo-Saxons than Julius Caesar was from Romans -- but that's another story -- is not only the Emperor of the World, but he is in charge of the Stone of Scone, which is actually a magical device which keeps the world from falling apart into... well, anyway, it's very important to the continued survival of Humanity, and in order to keep it the King needs to assert his reign over all of the lands that are his birthright, which includes America.

"The problem was that although most of the Lords of the Kingdom know this, the leaders of the American Colonists were *not* Lords, and therefore weren't privy to this very important information. However, the fate of the world was at stake, for if the colonists left the Crown and went off on their own, all of humanity would surely die! Die, I tell you! Die like mice in a... Um, I'm digressing again.

"So, what happened is this: the King himself went, incognito to America, carrying the Stone of Scone with him -- the true one, not that fake old block they've got stored in Westminster -- which isn't the original one that Edward brought over, either, you see -- uh, let's get back to the subject. So, the King carries the Stone with him, and secretly meets with the leaders of the Rebellion, and reveals the truth, and why it is so important to keep it secret. While he's at it, of course, he has to secretly appoint them as Lords of the Realm, so that they are capable of learning the secret.

"After that, they realized their error, and helped the British Troops stage a loss that would satisfy the history books. You see, they had to stage it, because if they had continued to fight they were bound to win, because the American Army had access to this super-powerful weapon known as... uh, again, I'm getting off-track.

"Anyway, so, of course, after losing the war, the American 'Lords' willingly sacrificed themselves on the gallows to make sure the ruse continues. The secret titles were then transferred to British citizens who had helped the King on his secret mission... they're known today as the Sons of the American Loyalists, all Freemasons too, believe me. And it's their job to keep the secret in lieu of the lack of titles in the American colonies... you see, those people who claim to have titles really aren't... but that's another story.

"Anyway, that's why the Rebels had to lose."

"But... why do the King and all the Lords have to keep it a secret?"

"Why did the...? why...? You ask too many questions. Go away!"
 
I can see DoD having an anti-black, anti-Catholic version of the 'Protocols of Zion', for one.
Or what 'Protect & Survive'? Say some nutter who survived in Germany or Denmark, or even England, makes his way to the U.S. or Canada and starts ranting about the Illuminati and how 2/21 was really the beginning of the 'End Times' or something like that.

And don't get me started on all the possibilities where 'For Want of a Nail' is concerned.......particularly coming from Mexico.
 
The Death of Winston S. Churchill.

The official report of the New York police concluded that the death of British politician Winston Churchill was an accident. The politician was struck by a motor vehicle on Fifth Avenue on 13 December 1931 and died from his injuries the following day.

In 1933 a conspiracy theory arose in Great Britain that far from being an accident it was an assassination planned jointly by the IRA and the NSDAP, aided by American sympathisers. No firm evidence has been found to support this theory, although fragments of the diaries of Hermann Goering, found in the heavily bombed Berlin bunker of Fuehrer Himmler in 1944, did briefly rekindle interest in the story.

The driver of the car, Seamus Schicklgruber, strenuously denied the allegations right up until his death in 1956.

(PoD = 9 November 1923, Munich)
 

Thande

Donor
Hmm...Napoleon's father Carlo Buonaparte was a member of the Corsican republican government that was crushed by the French...how about the conspiracy theory that Napoleon decided to avenge the Corsicans by taking over France and then doing his best to run it into the ground by turning all of Europe against it?
 

HJ Tulp

Donor
JFK was murdered by the Dutch intelligence service BVD as revenge for his betrayal during the West Papua Crisis.
 
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