A Skeptic Infiltrates a Cruise for Conspiracy Theorists

[_Maksutov]

http://www.wired.com/2016/02/conspira-s ... now-truth/

"Where on Earth can you go to get away from it all, and mingle with those who share your views? Well, Conspira-Sea, of course. It’s a seven-day cruise where fringe thinkers can discuss everything from crop circles to mind control on the open sea. Last month’s cruise featured a caravan of stars from a surprisingly vast galaxy of skeptics and conspiracy theorists, including Andrew Wakefield, known for his questionable research and advocacy against vaccines. Also aboard was Sean David Morton, who faced federal charges of lying to investors about using psychic powers to predict the stock market.

"But they had an outsider among them, and not one from another planet. Harvard-educated attorney Colin McRoberts is writing a book about people who believe in conspiracy theories, and used a crowdfunding campaign to book passage on the cruise. He blogged about his adventure and told us all about it—including the bit where the IRS arrested Morton when the ship returned to port."

[_Themis]

I would have expected the ship to have been sunk with all hands lost since these people are a great risk of exposing the people behind these conspiracies.

[_MeDotOrg]

From Wikipedia

The ship of fools is an allegory, originating from Plato, that has long been a fixture in Western literature and art. The allegory or parable depicts a vessel without a pilot, taken over by force or persuasion by those who are deranged, frivolous, or oblivious, and seemingly ignorant of their course. This mob is willing to kill anyone in the way, and to drug the captain if necessary. The true pilot, that knows the stars, the wind, and how to stay on course, is considered useless by the mob. The allegory is compared to how a philosopher is rejected by the state.

I recommend for your viewing pleasure Ship of Fools, a movie set on a 1933 second-rate cruise ship sailing from Vera Cruz, Mexico to Bremerhaven, Germany, an allegory of the divided passengers sailing with ignorance towards World War II.