LETTER: Is there no end to the lunacy?

With the advent of the internet decades ago and the flourishing of social media, conspiracy theories on a multitude of topics have captivated the eyes and ears of many people. Diligent efforts of comprehensive examination have routinely debunked most of the theories as baseless, cracked-pot nonsense. Still, enough people willingly embrace them as trustworthy and fit to be shared with others.
While reading about the horrific destruction caused by Hurricane Ian, I started to speculate as to how soon conspiracy theories would be launched with some bizarre notions about the origins of this violent storm. I certainly didn’t have to wait long to find one surfacing on the internet. As expected, an ultra-right-wing type (DeAnna Lorraine) cooked up a theory that their sworn enemy, “the Deep State,” had manipulated global weather to target red-state governments to punish them. This is what she stated on an extreme right-wing YouTube video: “These huge hurricanes seem to target Red states, Red districts and always at a convenient time, typically, right before elections or, you know, in this case, possibly Ron DeSantis has been stepping out of line a lot and challenging, fighting the Deep State.”
She offered zero proof of this wild and crazy statement. Lorraine said nothing about Hurricane Fiona’s destructive wrath upon Puerto Rico, or Hurricane Katrina’s devastation on New Orleans. The scheme is to spew out just about anything, no matter how absurd, to further fuel the radical divisions which have been created in order to destabilize society.
The theorists are completely certain there is an audience gleefully willing to embrace cockeyed notions without the slightest effort to certify the validity of what is being foisted upon them. I’d say this one is on par with the election fraud theories that have been totally debunked. Maybe even more absurd was the theory that Jewish space lasers started California’s wildfires!
What is most distressing is that this lunacy is so easily absorbed by far too many people who fail to realize they’re being hoodwinked and bamboozled far beyond all reason and common sense.
Ronald J. Yamka
Canonsburg