Conspiracism offers greater coherence than reality by excluding chance and ambiguity

Evidence

Taken together, intentionality and proportionality are mental assumptions that make conspiracism “far more coherent than the real world, since it leaves no room for mistakes, failures, or ambiguities.” The result is coherence at the expense of truth. — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 117

Categorization

• XREF: Echoes the epistemic-aesthetic appeal of totalizing explanations found in chapter 1; connects to the general point about narrative coherence licensing error (cf. White Noise, Goon Squad themes of ordered storytelling). — connects to: The men-in-black legend’s ambiguity lets believers read them as agents, conspirators, or aliens — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy: Apocalyptic…, 413; Conspiracism’s purpose is delegitimizing opponents, not correcting error — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying: The New…, 16; Conspiracism attacks shared modes of explanation, not just specific targets — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying: The New…, 24 (+5 more)
• DEEPTHINKING: Compact, paradox-laden observation worth sitting with: the very properties that make conspiracism feel like superior understanding (total coherence, no residue) are what sever it from truth.