We asked the BuzzFeed Community for the spookiest conspiracy theories they know of. Here are the unsettling results.
Note: These are all ~theories~, so have fun reading this. None of the following are presented as facts.
1. The Titanic's sinking was totally planned.
Apparently it was NOT the Titanic that sank, but its sister ship, the Olympic. Supposedly the Olympic had been damaged in a collision, and there was evidence to prove that the owners had switched the two ships, and then sunk the “Titanic” (aka the already-damaged Olympic) for insurance money. HOLY SHIT.
2. The Denver International Airport is a hub for the Illuminati.
The intricate murals on the walls have led travelers to believe it's a central meeting place for either the Illuminati or neo-Nazis. OH, and the hallways apparently make a swastika shape when you look at the building from the sky. K.
—Mary Bridgman and Mary Kelly, Facebook
3. Willy Wonka is the childrens' version of Saw.
Some people believe Willy Wonka was actually a serial killer, murdering all of the kids on the tour one by one. This theory also says Wonka led Charlie to kill himself through the insanity of knowing that the murders had taken place without him knowing, and that's why they fly away at the end. Fucked up, right?
4. The current year is actually 1719, not 2016.
The Phantom Time Hypothesis says Roman Emperor Otto III liked the idea of ruling during the year 1000 — even though that wasn't the date when he was in power. Did he forge documents to change the year? Were the Early Middle Ages totally made up? WHAT IS THE TRUTH?
—Maureen Longoria, Facebook
5. There are actors planted at shootings and terrorist attacks for TV news channel use.
Crisis actors are supposedly planted at these horrific events by the government to control what gets reported to the public. WHAT THE FUCK.
6. The entire universe and all of your memories were created just last Thursday.
7. The government is spraying chemicals in the air to control our health and food supply.
Though many scientists have disproven this theory, many conspiracy theorists believe that aircraft trails are purposely scattered throughout the sky to affect the population.
8. The reason everyone remembers certain events and details differently is because there are multiple universes...
This theory's called the Mandela Effect, because of this example: When Nelson Mandela was in jail, people remember him dying. Then, when he was released from jail, people were confused because they had remembered his death and the details so vividly.
—Julia Graham, Facebook
9. ...and the Berenstain Bears theory is an example of that scary-ass theory.
10. A UFO expert's mysterious death earlier this year was planned by the government.
British ufologist Max Spiers was closing in on details about UFOs earlier this year when he was suddenly found dead on a couch in Poland. Doctors said he died of natural causes, but his mom worries that someone wanted him gone, because he sent her a text the week before that said, "If anything happens to me, investigate."
11. Paul McCartney actually died in 1966, and now a lookalike stands in his place.
Supposedly the other Beatles were in on the whole thing, and helped to hire someone who looked, sounded, and acted just like him. But soon they began feeling guilty for lying, and started hiding clues about his death in their music.
12. The CIA undertook an intricate mind-control program in the 1950s to force criminals into confessing.
In the early '50s until 1973, the government experimented on people to develop procedures and drugs to be used in interrogations, by forcing confessions and weakening the spirit of the person being tortured.
13. Aliens are trying to communicate with us via crop circles.
Okay sure, people can mow all the shapes they want into a field, right? But sometimes these designs are so detailed and so intricate yet sometimes appear in the course of an hour. Aliens could be the explanation for these works of art, or just a really fast mower. Or chemicals that kill grass. WHO KNOWS.
14. The Earth is hollow, and other populations live inside its core.
Wanna shit yourself with disbelief? Well supposedly other humans or creatures are living in the Earth's core and have their own central sun. It's not really a widespread belief anymore, but it's still weird as hell.
15. The fluoride found in tap water makes us more obedient so the government can control us.
There is an entire organization that prides itself on spreading the facts and details of this theory.
16. The moon landings were faked.
Y'ALL, there are so many people out there who believe the first few moon landings weren't real, and that the photos, videos, and all other evidence have been tampered with so we'd perceive the whole event in a certain way.
—Maya Mathews, Facebook
17. And JFK’s assassination was planned by the government.
A CIA historian recently revealed that the government knew more about the assassination than originally stated — including the fact that Lee Harvey Oswald spent quite a bit of time with some well-connected higher-ups. This pretty much says that if he was in fact guilty, he probably wasn't working alone.