The delusional top ten

[Elok]

Okay, in the post about egyptians demanding reparations for the Jewish Exodus, I mentioned a few other strong beliefs that are firmly maintained by some despite a complete incompatibility with reality. Namely, the KKK's insistence that it was founded as an act of self-defense against the dangerous freed slaves who felt free to rape white women now that Master no longer had permission from the government to whip them, and Jack Chick's conspiracy theory that states that the Catholic Church is responsible for Communism, Fascism, and both World Wars. What have I missed? Any other real doozies out there?
Please don't post strictly religious beliefs here, for several reasons:
1. I want this thread to go more than one page without getting locked.
2. As Dave Barry observed, all religions naturally sound stupid to all other religions.
3. As religion is closely based on faith, the rationality of religious beliefs isn't as much of an issue.
4. This is my thread, and if you atheists wanna troll you can get your own, dammit.
Other than that, feel free. For a bonus point, post your opinion: this thread is either going to get two posts and then get locked, quickly get threadjacked and turn into a flamewar grounded in obscurity, get a few posts and fade into nothingness, or actually get a large number of meaningful responses. Place your bets!

[Richard Bruns]

I predict a flamewar.

The biggest major delusion I can think of off the top of my head is the belief that owning more things will make you happier. Practically every religion and philosopher in the history of mankind says the opposite, and they can support their side. But rigorous logic melts like a snowflake in a blowtorch when confronted by a barrage of advertising.

[Kuciwalker]

The delusion that this thread will NOT descend into a flamewar, despite all of your requests that it not

[Arrian]

You ask for a list of biggest delusions, and then tell me to leave religion out of it?!

Bah! No fun.

-Arrian

[Kuciwalker]

If he wants us to keep it from being a flamewar, he should have asked us to keep politics out of it too

[Ming]

I predict that anybody that turns this into a flame war will be restricted... And that's a prediction you can take to the bank.

So stay on topic... be nice... or be restricted.

[Q Classic]

well, there are the more recent oddball kooky ones, like flat earth or moon landing in a hollywood studio thing.

[FrustratedPoet]

Yeah, the Flat Earth Society are pretty delusional.

[Elok]

Oh, I forgot the one about the moon landing being faked. But are you telling me that the Flat Earth Society isn't a satirical device or a metaphor for their general philosophy? I always assumed that was the case...but you're telling me there are still proponents of the flat earth? What's the ostensible justification for the conspiracy keeping it quiet?
And I left *strictly* religious questions out of the mix to keep things fairly civil, as in, no sideways comments by those wacky folk who like to say, "how about the idea that some guy rose from the dead two thousand years ago?" and then look around like they expect somebody to congratulate them for their wittiness. You know who I'm talking about.

[SlowwHand]

The KKK is outdated and in need of purging.
Initially, it was a "good" idea.
Newly freed Blacks, being prodded by Yankee Carpetbaggers to cause trouble.

Pretty much how "Gone With The Wind" depicts it.
The group of men, that rode to avenge the attack on Scarlett O'Hara? KKK.

[Tuberski]

How about the theory of my neighbor that jews are behind everything that happens in the American government.

He was born in Germany in the late 30's.



ACK!

[SlowwHand]

Get a rope.

[Dr Strangelove]

How about ZOG? That's a bit more recent than the KKK.

There's also "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion". Even though written more thasn a century ago there are still those who believe that they are the real thing.

How about crop circles?

[monolith94]

"The biggest major delusion I can think of off the top of my head is the belief that owning more things will make you happier."

Owning more things would make me happier, so long as I got to choose. I refer, of course, to objects that liberate, rather than intrap.

[The Mad Monk]

Owning more things does make people happier, up to a point. Eventually,you run into diminishing returns.