What is the best argument to refute Illuminati Conspiracy Theories?

All conspiracy theories are illogical and rely on faulty reasoning to believe them. “Believe” is the operative word. There is no evidence that soundly upholds the ideas, so they must be believed.

It is impossible to reason with a believer, thus the conspiracy theories are irrefutable.

“The Illuminati” is, in most cases where I encounter it, a joke.

There are some people who seem to be taking seriously various weird theories of secret people in charge, including various types of “reptile aliens”, etc.

The Scientologists seem to believe in some sort of (reptile) aliens in charge… meanwhile the Scientologists also themselves seem to have been out to silence some of their own former members.

Are there many people actually calling them “the illuminati” who are serious and not obviously wacko?

At a certain point on my wacko scale, I stop trying to argue with people, because it seems hopeless to argue with wackos of any flavor.

What I tend to do with conspiracy people, is point them in the direction of the behind-the-headlines stuff that actually seems to be factual and relevant. If they want to call it Illuminati, I don’t mind too much, although it seems odd that super-clever masterminds would choose to use a historical name, especially one that’s been used in various comedic ways… unless that’s part of their clever scheme of deception.

But it seems to me that Ronald Reagan made it clear that the President Of The United States is not generally really the one controlling the powers of that office, at least in any case where the president doesn’t even understand the speeches he’s reading.

And what Bernie Sanders says about how Congress does what wealthy corporations want and not what the people want is just accurate. Most others in politics know and agree, even if they express it in much less straight and more cynical ways.

@Hawaii_Jake “All conspiracy theories are illogical and rely on faulty reasoning…” Because no one ever conspires?

They have an awful lot in common with cults and religions. All of them are at heart beliefs in things which blatantly defy logic and common sense, are notoriously lacking in evidence or objective proof, yet persist nevertheless in spite of it all.

@Zaku “Conspiracy” and “conspire” share the same root, but they are different words. I am not interested in debate.

Why waste the time refuting them?

If someone is nutty enough to believe that stuff, they aren’t going to listen to any sort of rational refutation. It’s more likely that you’re going to get drawn in more deeply to their nuttiness.

Bottom line, arguing with a kook is a waste of your time

@elbanditoroso – you are so aware! Especially when your character has been attacked instead of the subject of the question being asked. It gets unpleasant when nastiness is called such. Huhn?
@NerdyKeith- It is a strong fear by association with anything is brought up about the Illuminati. Strong fears. What adds into it is when some religious groups tend to tie in the older Knights Templar, and keep it rolling clear forward to bring in those who belong to the Masonic Temples of today. ( Funny, Shriners and the Lion’s Club aren’t suspect also!) Many fear this group to speak of the secret meetings and symbols with the great fear of satanism is common. Not sure how that jump was made but ok. ** A More common belief of these group’s tie-in with Satanic practices has spread with the advent of the establishment of the political Tea Party. Related? Coincidence? Devilish?
A person at work was a Mason. He had joined while stationed in Northern Africa during WWII. ( A great deal of the standard agenda was done mostly in the area’s language. They still sent him the yearly newsletter of that group, in their native language, fifty-five years after!)
When a Stupidvisor saw my friend’s Masonic ring, he believed this man was of this ‘satanic cult’. He went as far as to carry a bible in his stack of paperwork when in my friend’s work area, and would not talk to him without another management person present. It finally came to the point where the Stupidvisor had a bible on his desk and wanted my friend to swear upon it, that he had no ill intent with the evaluation he was about to cover with my friend. It was finally Bedtime For Bongo. The gentleman in management was put on immediate leave. Did I mention my friend was the minister of three different country churches? Boy, it’s always the one least expected! Everyone teased him for years after.
Whatever the Illuminati represents to some, I don’t believe dismissing it’s believers so rudely or abruptly as it shows some of those who do so to nullify other’s opinions or disparage their character. Any of their touted ‘open mindness’ towards others kinda gets deflated or such. Some still don’t believe that there are political party ‘think-tanks’ open for business 24/7/365. “Aren’t they just campaign headquarters?” Uh, no.
Or that the Koch Brothers are avid financial supporters of the Arts, and Science Research! They can’t be controversial! -But, again, that is someone’s opinion.
Belief in the Illuminati or being a Masonic ‘Bro’, until it violates the law, why is everyone so quick with their opinions, starting off with quick disclaimers and then put downs of others?
I don’t know if I could believe in the Illuminati and such- but reducing those who do into silence for fear of ridicule? Seriously?

If you are asking how to refute arguments presented by someone else, the answer is you can’t. Illuminati symbology is practically everywhere that’s “important” in western society. If you want to see a lot of it in one place, browse vigilantcitizen.com (although to me that site is less potent now than it used to be). Whether the symbology presented at this level is backed by any measure of control over the world is another question, but you really can’t refute that there are plenty of symbols.

Separately (or together) there are hidden or not so well hidden efforts to control various aspects of the planet at whatever macro level, and you can find those by looking for them. Confession of an Economic Hitman author John Perkins defuses the term “conspiracies” by calling them “a fraternity of ideas” (for which third world leaders can find themselves assassinated or their countries invaded, by the way) and states “Some would blame our current problems on an organized conspiracy. I wish it were so simple. Members of a conspiracy can be rooted out and brought to justice. This system, however, is fueled by something far more dangerous than conspiracy. It is driven not by a small band of men but by a concept that has become accepted as gospel: the idea that all economic growth benefits humankind and that the greater the growth, the more widespread the benefits. This belief also had a corollary: that those people who excel at stoking the fires of economic growth should be exalted and rewarded, while those born at the fringes are available for exploitation.”

Whether (1) the symbology and (2) the attempts to control anything are married to each other is debatable, but it’s not a stretch to say they both exist separately.

A third consideration might be “so what?” because a question often given short shrift by a conspiracy theorist is how much does this affect your life really? One might say “all of it” because it seems so pervasive in the world and even in the products we consume. This is actually a pretty reasonable response because the rabbit hole, in my experience, is bottomless, and when you start down the path of looking at this stuff, it’s like everything you thought you knew, all of history especially, has to be relearned.

It may create in that person some kind of “prepper” impulse (I’m using “prepper” as a catch-all for any kind of resistance to perceived threats from perceived conspiracies), but ultimately that kind of effort is pretty difficult. So it may be worthwhile for you as a “sane” person to just point this out from time to time—that life is still pretty good.

For me, someone who went as far down the rabbit hole as I could manage, it actually helped lead to a blessing, which has been a spiritual enlightenment of sorts. By engaging with all of that so thoroughly, my sense of reality got really malleable, and that opened my mind to some other possibilities related to our spiritual nature, and I feel a greater sense of peace and “all-right-ness” than I ever have.

I think one key in this was having the luxury of time that I did to be so thorough in my seeking. In other words, I got all the way to the end of it instead of dabbling enough to just satisfy my taste for fear.

Actually, that might be another tack—getting your conspiracy theorist to self-inquire about whether he or she is dosing on fear. I certainly was.

What @kevbo says is on target. Hand them a copy of Confession of an Economic Hitman.