Conspiracy 101 An Authoritative Examination of the Greatest Conspiracies in American Politics

by DeBole, Paul

• ISBN13: 9780825309823
• ISBN10: 0825309824
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2027-06-29
• Publisher: Beaufort Books
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Summary

Was Lee Harvey Oswald the only shooter on November 22, 1963? Did Union soldiers kill the real John Wilkes Booth twelve days after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, or was it an impostor? In Conspiracy 101, author Paul DeBole uses facts to determine the legitimacy of some of the greatest conspiracies in American politics.

For decades, society has viewed “conspiracy theorists” as people who live in their parents’ basement, wearing baseball caps lined with aluminum to keep the Martian death rays away. But the truth is that conspiracies are not reserved for people with a tenuous grasp of reality; to some extent, we all want to know the unknowable.

In Conspiracy 101, political science professor Paul DeBole delves into the why, how, and what of conspiracy theories: why humans are prone to believing–and spreading–misinformation; how the nature of our political institutions fosters distrust, paving the way for conspiracy theories to run rampant; and what we can do to filter out theories that are not based on fact, but rather hearsay, innuendo, or just a “strong feeling.”

He then breaks down the most notorious conspiracy theories in American politics, including the Lincoln kidnapping plot and his subsequent assassination, the possible escape and eventual suicide of John Wilkes Booth, the Sacco and Vanzetti trial, the JFK assassination, the RFK assassination, Watergate, the Iran-Contra scandal, the Vast Right-Wing conspiracy, as well as modern-day conspiracies based on misinformation and “fake news.” Based on his incredibly popular course at Lasell University called “The Conspiracy in American Politics,” Conspiracy 101 examines these conspiracies in a conversational tone.

In an era when what is believed to be true is suddenly up for debate, read DeBole’s thorough examination of these enigmas in American history and decide for yourself if what you know is true or false.

Author Biography

Paul DeBole has a B.A. in History from Suffolk University and a J.D. from the New England School of Law. DeBole has taught Political Science at Bentley University, Suffolk University, and Emerson College and current teaches at Lasell College. In the past, he has worked for the City of Boston, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, and as a campaign aide to Senators John McCain and Lamar Alexander. He lives in Swampscott Ma. Conspiracy 101 is his first book.

Table of Contents

Forward Acknowledgements Introduction: Why and How I am Writing This Book Chapter One: An Introduction to Conspiracy Studies Chapter Two: Salem, Massachusetts and the First “American” Conspiracy Chapter Three: Some Thoughts on the Witch Trials Chapter Four: The Assassination of President Abraham Lincoln Chapter Five: More on Booth and the Plot “to Capture” Chapter Six: Of Conspiracies and Conspirators Chapter Seven: The Other Two Presidential Assassinations – Garfield & McKinley Chapter Eight: The Sacco & Vanzetti Trial Chapter Nine: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy Chapter Ten: The Warren Commission and the Beginning of an Entirely New Conspiracy Chapter Eleven: A Closer Look at the FBI Investigation Chapter Twelve: Let’s Look at the Photographic Evidence Chapter Thirteen: The Unanswered Questions Chapter Fourteen: The Assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy Chapter Fifteen: RFK: Another Look at the Evidence Chapter Sixteen: Justice for Sirhan Chapter Seventeen: A Short Introduction to Watergate Chapter Eighteen: He Was Not “a Crook” Chapter Nineteen: What Hath Watergate Wrought? Chapter Twenty: The Iran Contra Scandal and a Hamstrung President Chapter Twenty-One: The Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy Chapter Twenty-Two: Misinformation, Disinformation, Fake News, and Information Warfare Additional Notes Annotated Reading List