It is ironic, but the conspiracy theory is a contradiction in terms: it shows fear and respect for the superpower, by showing there is no other power besides the power of the superpower. Therefore, there is nothing one can do about it, except being paranoid.
That is the view Robert Graves left in his masterpiece, I Claudius, whose BBC adaptation is one of my all time favourites. There we see Livia, Augustus’s wife, creating the Roman Empire by herself, using any means necessary, including killing her own family. It is rubbish, but we like it, don’t we? Being good at being bad is impressive. It is the same with American movies, especially science fiction and catastrophe films. The message sent is that no matter what comes, America will prevail (very similar to the fights with beasts in the arena the Romans had). Hence, those who think they are attacking the USA with the 9/11 conspiracy theories are completely wrong: they are saying to the world that USA really rules, for better or for worse.
Conspiracy theories are an old phenomenon and a two-edged knife from the start. Perhaps the most famous one is Alexander’s death, which was spread by his own mother. We have no proof and neither did she, but it was politically convenient for her then, because she needed to destroy her strongest enemies (she didn’t, they destroyed her instead). It was convenient as well for all the others who wanted to show that Alexander was a failure, who died poisoned by his own men. And it still stands: just check Oliver Stone’s recent biopic.
Then came the Great Fire of Rome. Attributed to the Christians by the Roman State, it went down in history as being Nero’s own work. Of course this is totally untrue, as any historian knows: it was Summer and Nero was not in Rome at the time. He returned to take efficient measures to control the fires. He was a lunatic in many aspects, but he certainly did not play the lyre during those days. He also had the city rebuilt, the ruins of which are the ancient Rome we can visit today. If we rule out a religious motive for the arson, the most probable suspects are property owners, who wanted to make some profit by getting rid of their old buildings (and they did). The conspiracy theory made up by Nero’s enemies, not all of them Christian, was ever since spread by the yet to come Christian Rome and it is still the popular theory nowadays.
So, there is nothing new in the fact that some Americans believe that their own President made the 9/11. Bush is seen as the new Nero thus, and certainly he has a lot to do with the situation Nero had with the Christians, only this time it is with the Muslims (but not the way the "conspiratists" think). People should learn that the famous Book of Revelation, the Bible’s Apocalypse, has to do with Nero (not with the future) and it reflects how Christian fanatics yearned for the destruction of Rome then, just like Muslim fanatics yearn for the destruction of the USA now: Nero is the Beast 666, Rome is the Great Prostitute, just like the USA is the Great Satan and Bush is the Enemy of Allah.
Yet Nero was not the end of Rome. On the contrary, Rome stood strong for three more centuries. Nevertheless, after that, it was Christianized. Ironically again, Christianity owes its existence to the Roman Empire.
If the analogy stands, the USA will go on as superpower for a while, but it will be Islamized in due time. Afterwards, the USA will consolidate Islam in the world. I really hope, in this particular case, History doesn’t repeat itself.
P.S. Oriana Fallaci died today. She was a woman of courage, who knew too well the two-edged knife suspended over the West like the sword of Damocles.
