I get so tired of people and their hoax theories. I don’t know the science behind what happens in their minds. But it appears to me, they simply don’t like some actual fact (for whatever reason) and they cry “hoax,” thinking it will go away.
There are all sorts of them out there. Probably, the most deadly conspiracy theory is the notion that vaccines cause autism. Of course, this isn’t true and it has been scientifically proven as such. But a lot of people really get behind this one. The other dangerous one is humans not being responsible for climate change. Of course, we are. All this big mess we’ve created is affecting the planet on a daily basis. But the god-awful word “hoax” continues to spill out of the mouths of the uninformed.
I mention this because today is the anniversary of a true event, which is often blistered by the hoax hounds. Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin stepped onto the lunar surface on this date, July 20, in 1969.
A big dang deal by all accounts, this occurred more than 50 years ago, thanks to a lot of genius. However, the conspiracy theories abound around this historical feat.
Above and beyond that, twelve NASA astronauts walked on the moon between 1969 and 1972. There have been releases of new photos of the landing sites. And then, there is the actual footage. And much more proof of the trips exists, including thousands of people who were physically watching the launchpad when those rockets sped high into outer space.
Yet, in the decades since those Apollo 11 astronauts first set foot on the moon, many theories have been put forward claiming that the whole Apollo program was staged. If that wasn’t enough, some people actually believe NASA’s whole function was built to generate space-related hoaxes. There is no space exploration, they claim. Just hoaxes.
Oh, for the love of Pete.
There, we have brave men and women who show up for the rest of the world in space exploration. Not to mention all of the genius and talent behind the workings of this. People give their entire lives to this. And down on earth, we’ve got some guy with a red ball cap on, popping open a can of beer, his high school diploma taped on the wall, and he cries “hoax.”
The same goes for our current situation. And it angers me even more. We are in the midst of a pandemic, with numbers surging across the country. There are 141,000 people who have died from this virus. Most of all, we have legions of health care workers who BRAVELY show up for the rest of us. And that same legion of people cries “hoax.”
How dare they?
If they believe it is a hoax, I only ask one thing of them. Do something good today. Go to the nearest hospital, and volunteer for one day, without any mask that infringes on your rights. Clean the bathrooms, or empty the trash cans, on the ICU ward where the COVID victims are on ventilators.
I wonder how many perspectives would change.
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“It is better to offer no excuse than a bad one.”
― George Washington
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“If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.”
― Mark Twain
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“Above all, don’t lie to yourself. The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him, and so loses all respect for himself and for others. And having no respect he ceases to love.”
― Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov
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