The Conspiracy Reader: From the Deaths of JFK and John Lennon to Government-Sponsored Alien Cover-Ups [Paperback]

Al Hidell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2000

Psst. Yeah, you. Come closer. Want to uncover some conspiracies? They're all here ... who killed JFK, UFOs, secret societies, espionage, mind control, suspicious deaths, and hidden history. In these exclusive articles culled from PARANOIA magazine, the world's most popular conspiracy journal, you'll get the real story. For anyone who has ever been tantalized by mainstream media coverage of conspiracy theories, but always suspected there was much more they weren't being told, The Conspiracy Reader is a must read.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This collection of articles from Paranoia magazine contains the usual hodgepodge of theories about the JFK assassination, UFO cover-ups, and CIA mind-control techniques. But it also has a few surprises, like the suggestion that David Bowie has been in contact with alien beings ever since the days of Major Tom and Ziggy Stardust, or that Paul McCartney may have ordered a hit on his former bandmate John Lennon. While the editors admit in their foreword that they're willing to sacrifice plausibility for the sake of entertainment value, conspiracy theory purists may be more frustrated than amused by items like this rather bizarre theory about Star Trek: "When we analyze [Captain James T. Kirk's] name, we first notice that James was the brother of Jesus.... Kirk's middle name was Tiberius, a Roman general and emperor. 'Kirk' is the most common European-language spelling of the word we know in English as 'church.' Put these all together: (brother of) Jesus, Roman (emperor), church, and what do you have? It was the Roman Catholic Church that was, symbolically, in control of the Enterprise."

Review

"Weirdness on a grand scale ... a dizzying web of connections!" -- The Village Voice

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Product Details

• Paperback: 354 pages
• Publisher: Citadel; 1St Edition edition (June 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806520418
• ISBN-13: 978-0806520414
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,212,495 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fills in some of the blank spots, September 22, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Conspiracy Reader: From the Deaths of JFK and John Lennon to Government-Sponsored Alien Cover-Ups (Paperback)

I read this cover to cover and liked most every essay in it. I had heard about many of these conspiracies, but only in headline fashion. These articals dig deeper and give the reader insight as to where the various allegations arose from. It's easy to say "the CIA started AIDS" or this group or that group was responsible for funnelling crack cocaine into the ghetto, but here a reader can see the stories and logic surrounding the allogations. Some of the articals were a bit brief and the one concerning the Apocalypse seemed out of place, but the rest should serve as a good springboard by which enthusiasts can begin research of their own.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Most Entertaining Collection of Conspiracies, August 3, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Conspiracy Reader: From the Deaths of JFK and John Lennon to Government-Sponsored Alien Cover-Ups (Paperback)

Al Hidell and Joan D'Arc are probably the hippest of the various conspiracy researchers and compilers.

2 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars The conspricy writer's conspiracy...., November 28, 2003

By 

J. Guild (Toronto,Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Conspiracy Reader: From the Deaths of JFK and John Lennon to Government-Sponsored Alien Cover-Ups (Paperback)

Haven't read any of this conspiracy stuff for some time;so thought I'd give this book a go.Nothing has changed,just the same old rehashed babble.Take UFO's for instance,the same old stuff is still being regurgitated from what I read 30 years ago.The only things that change are the names, places and the proponents of these wacky accusations and fanatical suppositions.
It's amazing that they have kept this up for so long and after all this time nothing has been proven.Maybe it's another government conspiracy that keeps these writers going.It takes one to know one.
They even dump on Erich von Daniken,calling him an amateur;at least I found his enjoyable supposition.This book would like you to think that they have things figured out;sprinkling words like science,research,analysis,experts, study,etc.,throughout the text in an attempt to give it some credibility.
This book was published in 1998,but don't be fooled ,a lot of this stuff is just a rehash from decades ago.Just because some conspiracy theorist makes a statement,backed up by some 'expert',doesn't make it so.
Maybe I'll check back in a few years,but I don't expect to find anything new.