Conspiracy Theories and Secret Societies for Dummies

I wanted to hate this book. It was one of those moments in the bookstore, like when I came across 'The Complete Idiot's Guide To The Kennedys,' when I said, 'You've got to be kidding' right out loud. Judging from the cover (yes, yes, I know better than that), I figured this book swallowed the whole New World Order / FEMA camps / 9-11 inside job / Zionists / Freemason / World Domination / Denver Airport line of Alex Jones style balderdash. Instead, what I got was a popcorn-like experience of standing in the bookstore for almost an hour reading, unable to put it down. (Yes I bought it.) 'Conspiracy Theories and Secret Societies For Dummies' is a truly rare find in a shelf full of drivel. I was already a fan of Christopher Hodapp and Alice VonKannon's book 'The Templar Code For Dummies', and they bring the same evenhanded approach to this material. Face it - it's easy 'or I assume it's easy' to write a book that does nothing but heap contempt on what are fringy beliefs, like shooting fish in a barrel. But this book is frankly densely packed with a huge range of subjects, crammed into a small, easy to like package. They manage to cover most topics with humor, without venturing into scorn or snarkiness (with the possible exception of the 9/11 truthers movement, which IMHO deserves all of the scorn it can get). This book avoids being a laundry list of subjects, and the chapters have a quirky logic that seems to work. I have probably 30 Dummies books on a vast assortment of subjects at home, and I always marvel at the way one author will totally get how to organize and write these books, while others seem clueless. Hodapp/Von Kannon are fast becoming favorite authors in this series of books. It makes me curious about how these books are created, but that's another topic. What I really found interesting was that they take the trouble to analyze where conspiracy theories actually come from. That sounds simplistic, but believe me, it's rare in books like this. Likewise, they don't just write little blurbs about secret societies, but go to the trouble of explaining their history and development, along with whatever they are accused of. There's deadly serious material here, along with the truly frivolous, and the breadth is truly amazing: Freemasons and Rosicrucians, UFOs, Tesla, HAARP, Skull and Bones, the CFR, Bilderbergers, Trilateral Commission. and even stuff like subliminal advertising, JFK, 'Paul Is Dead,' and Elvis spottings. There's a whole chapter on the Mafia that is the best explanation on the subject I've ever read. Likewise, the KKK gets covered in a brief, but very detailed manner. On and on it goes, and that's why I think this book is so good at a difficult subject, The authors keep it moving fast, but don't skimp on the details. And in the end, they seem to be letting the facts speak for themselves, instead of having a dismissive point of view. To me, that makes this book one of the best introductions to the subject.

The books so far is interesting, and there are a lot of weird theories out there. It is worth taking a look at it.

While Chris presents a serious topic in a light-hearted way, this is quite a useful book about what, for many, is quite a confusing subject.

Having read all three of Chris' prior books and being a pretty active conspiracy scoffer, I'd girded my loins for a disappointment this time around. Just more Freemason conspiracy (Solomon's Builders) and more Templars conspiracy (Templar Code for Dummies) with a little lettuce thrown around on the edges to make it look fancy and different.... HARDLY! Whether it's organized crime, the Illuminati, or world domination, Chris and Alice take you down the dark alleys of mystery and fear but always keep a flashlight focused carefully so you won't get grabbed by the hobgoblins. Trying to put a coherent order to the 'weird things of the world' would be a daunting task for anyone but the authors start with a very plausible premise: it all began with the French Revolution. They frequently reach back to that touchstone as the net grows wider in explaining the bizarre and while you might not accept it at face value, you soon realize that the premise has LOTS of merit. In the basic areas of foolishness (such as the Hoaglund 'Face on Mars'), the authors are wryly dismissive but in the more controversial or confusing things there's a calm and deliberate presentation of facts and a laying out 'common knowledge' interspersed with 'the rest of the story' (i.e., the FACTS!). In few cases they do pull out the 'tin-foil hat' award but otherwise it's basic exposition with an admission that there's no answer when, in fact, there is none. There's no doe-like innocence to be found but neither is there overt criticism. It's reminiscent of Sergeant Friday: "Just the facts, ma'am." - but this time with some humor added. It's clear that Chris and Alice have read from the major skeptics before beginning and they regularly refer to specific (and qualified) debunkers. Apropos of the subject, the book cries out for an annotated bibliography. Sadly, such is not the style of the 'Dummies' series. I'd happily pay extra for that because it would save me wearing out the binding looking back for things all the time. Sadly too, there aren't NEARLY enough Rich Tarrant cartoons here to satisfy: when you're knee deep in alien space monsters or gangland retribution, a little graphic levity can help! Because the author's three prior works were so steeped in Masonic 'stuff', I was expecting to simply skip over the Masonic section as 'old hat'. What a mistake that would have been. Somehow this book has managed to circumvent the 'old wine - new bottle' conundrum and has included a fresh and relevant approach coinciding with the book's title. They've got what essentially could be called the 'elevator pitch' on Freemasonry with explanations that are simple and understandable - and something any Mason could use when asked that question "What is Freemasonry?" that brings even long-term members to the point of stuttering. I did have a couple of small quibbles. One was the mention of a meeting between two 18th century conspiracists, John Robison and Abbe Barruel. My prior reading indicated t