During this scary and strange pandemic time, it has never been more important to take care of your mental health, which sometimes includes having a daily healthy dose of laughter. While numerous sources provide information about Covid-19, many of them have stretched the narrative far and beyond the rational, entering the weird and ridiculous space of Corona conspiracies. From 5G towers to microchipping here are the top 5 most hilarious and ridiculous conspiracy theories about Covid-19.
1. The Covid-19 Vaccine Will Contain A Microchip
Despite most of us waiting and hoping for the development of a Covid-19 vaccine, a certain group of people on the streets and also on the internet are sceptical about the real motive behind inventing the vaccine. The theory goes as follows: the Covid-19 vaccine will contain ‘nanotechnology microchips’ that will allow humans to be controlled. This theory will also be supported by our number 2 of the crazy corona conspiracies theories list.
2.5G is controlling our brains and spreading the virus
It’s probably worth repeating, as the World Health Organization (WHO) points out, that viruses cannot be spread on mobile networks and that the Coronavirus is being spread between people and has nothing to do with 5G networks. Even then because of the theory being spread by celebrities and many other “activists”, it has led to cellphone towers being set on fire in the Netherlands, UK, US, and other places. According to internet theorists, 5G towers are going to control the population with the help of the microchips found in the Covid-19 vaccine. Not only that but for the people not vaccinated 5G will spread the virus through the radio magnetic waves, causing more people to get sick.
3.Bill Gates
Many conspiracy theories, especially the Covid-19 ones are under constant ‘mutation’. They are being re-invented, re-written and re-told with several different variations at the same time. Lots of the theories, including the ones we already mentioned seem to involve Bill Gates, who has become a target of disinformed citizens and anti-vaxxers. According to the New York Times, anti-vaxxers, members of QAnon and right-wing pundits have seized a video of a 2015 Ted talk given by Bill Gates, where he talked about the Ebola pandemic, and warned about a potential new pandemic- which in their theory means that he had foreknowledge of the pandemic and/or purposely caused it to vaccinate the population and control it through the 5G towers... (I know, right?).
4.COVID-19 doesn’t exist
According to “professional” conspiracy theorists like David Icke and Alex Jones’s InfoWars, COVID-19 doesn’t actually exist but is a plot by the globalist elite to take away our rights and freedom of going out. The version of this theory has influenced anti-lockdown protests across several countries including many US states. This is one of those theories that while amusing at first, might have serious consequences as the believers of that theory by refusing to follow social distancing measures and could directly help to spread the virus even further.
5.COVID-19 as a biological weapon
Our last crazy conspiracy on the list is the variation of Covid-19 being released by the Chinese or American or Russian government as a biowarfare weapon. According to Pew research “nearly three-in-10 Americans believe that COVID-19 was made in a lab”. Such narratives have been curling around not only in US republican parties but also in China, where the conspiracy plot is reversed and the villain his time is the US.
With the incredible number of sources publishing Covid-19 related information, how can we recognize and debunk misinformation and conspiracist theories? We must trust nationwide research and credible medical sources. If you need to inform yourself further on the world development in battling Covid-19 go to https://www.who.int - the WHO official website, where you can be sure in the authenticity of the facts being presented to you. If you’re interested in learning and reading how to distinguish conspiracy theories from factual informational sources, I recommend you read John Cool’s and Stephan Lewandowsky's “The Conspiracy theory handbook”, both who have had extensive experience in combating climate denialism and documenting the process.
