It is scary how easily people are swayed to believe the most insane conspiracy theories with no evidence whatsoever. This whole Illuminati belief is like a modern witch hunt. Almost every celebritity that is popular right now is accused of "siding with evil" for their fame. Jennifer Hudson allegedly "sacrificed" her mother, brother and nephew (who were brutally murdered) in order to get famous. It got so bad that she felt the need to defend herself against this publicly. How incredibly sad.
I am sure that there are people or groups out there with a certain agenda. There is a constant power struggle between politics and business, it is part of human nature to be self-aggrandizing. However, the whole concept of a secret society in the form of the Illuminati is utterly ridiculous and I can't believe there are so many people falling for it. I have "researched" it for the sake of being open-minded and came to the conclusion that is a laughable theory derived from fear and a basic ignorance of symbolism. The Illuminati is supposed to be a secret society, yet every teenager with access to the internet knows about it. They are said to be all-powerful but can't stop kids from revealing their secrets. When you ask Illuminati-believers for evidence, they will refer to self-made videos and websites. If you dare to question their beliefs, you are accused of being either brainwashed or sent by the Illuminati to confuse people.
Much of their 'beliefs' are based on a misinterpretation of symbols and concepts. For example, the "all-seeing eye" is considered by Illuminati-believers to be a sign of evil and a trademark of the Illuminati. The truth is, this symbol is called the Eye of Horus and comes from Ancient Egypt. It was later used in Christianity to represent God watching over humanity (from left to right: Egyptian Eye of Horus, Christian God's all-seeing eye in the sky, Christian God's eye within triangle reflecting the Holy Trinity):
This is a well-known symbol and has been used artistically for centuries. As a matter of fact, a friend of mine has the Eye of Horus tattoed on her shoulder and she has never even heard of the Illuminati. Therefore, to suggest that anything that involves one eye is automatically part of the Illuminati conspiracy is ridiculous. If this were an Illuminati forum,
someone like Hess (poster above me) would automatically raise suspicion due to her signature. See, it's very easy to find "evidence" if you look hard enough
Another symbol that is very suspicious according to Illuminati-believers is the triangle. Apparently, it has something to do with the pyramids (they kinda lost me there). Anyway, it is of course very easy to find triangles in mainstream music videos, brand logos and art. Just like it will be easy to find circles or squares if you focus on it. It is one of those basic shapes. I am sure we all have something triangular in our near environment. Whether it's the roof of your house or a vase on your kitchen table, triangles are everywhere. To use triangles as an indicator of Illuminati involvement is therefore nonsense.
A third often recurring theme is the "New World Order", the strive to totalitarian world governance. This is based on something that is written on the 1 dollar bill, namely
Novus Ordo Seclorum. However, this translation is wrong. The phrase Novus Ordo Seclorum comes from Latin and means "new order of the times". The correct translation of New World Order would have to be "Novus Ordo Mundi". It is true that the term "New World Order" has sometimes been used by politicians, such as Woodrow Wilson and Winston Churchill. However, this was to indicate a new era in history that caused dramatic change in political thinking and international relations (like WW1&2 and the Cold War). I have taken an IR course recently and the concept of a new world order was frequently discussed, in this case in light of globalization and the global financial crisis. Thus, it is not a conspirational term. It just describes a change in international relations. Whether this change is positive or negative depends on your personal perception, but it is by no means secret or criminal. We all actively participate in the increasing interconnectedness of the world. This very forum is a product of globalization. We must not forget that all nations are socially constructed and therefore depend on human agreement for their existence. Our languages and customs (and arguably religions, but this is a sensitive topic for some) are created by mankind. In most cases, such as France and Germany, the state preceded the nation and created the nation to facilitate governance. This was primarily done through education. A few centuries ago when Europe was divided into great multinational empires, Europeans did not identify themselves through their location. They primarily thought of themselves as "Christians". There were big cultural differences between "Germans" living in the south and "Germans" living in the north (these differences are still visible today, though not as strong). However, through education people started to speak the standardized version of German that we know today, instead of their local dialects. Now, because "their" German is different from that in e.g. Switzerland or Austria, people identify themselves as being German and this is exactly how nation-building works. What I'm trying to say is, these divisions between people are created by man and are more recent than most people think. Therefore, there is no reason why this modern division of humans through nations cannot be changed. It is inevitable. The process of globalization has connected people from all over the world and made them realize that their cultural differences are merely superficial. Many people have learnt a second, third or even fourth language to facilitate communication with people of other nations. New means of transportation allow us to travel great distances in relatively little time. The national boundaries between people are losing their significance. New developments and knowledge have led to the recognition of global problems (such as climate change and terrorism) that require international cooperation. This cooperation will only intensify in the future as globalization is ever increasing and reaching new areas. Thus, there
is a "New World Order" as we speak. However, it is a logical product of the process of globalization rather than a conspirational plot to take over the world.
