RTL Today – Did you know? : Luxembourg does not exist!
Does Luxembourg really exist? This question may seem crazy, but on closer inspection, there is indeed something to wonder about.
Luxembourg does not exist. This is the conclusion reached by several Belgian students during an experiment on conspiracy theories.
According to Matthieu Peltier, professor of philosophy in Brussels, everything can be proven. During his conference at the Cercle Cité as part of the exhibition “Gleef dat net…!”, translate “Don’t believe in that…!”, he dismantles the mechanisms of conspiracy theories. The exhibition, which aims to better distinguish reality from fiction, runs until January 16.
It all started in 2018. The professor decides to conduct an experiment with his students: lead them to believe in the non-existence of the Grand Duchy. “With its imaginary of banks and tax-evading wealth, Luxembourg was a perfect target“.
Indeed, the teacher explains that conspiracy theses always convey the idea of two camps: an elite that dominates the population and the dominated who are subject to it.
He therefore introduced the following thesis: Luxembourg would have been invented from scratch by a rich and powerful elite in order to have a state to which all citizens contribute, except itself.
SOFT DOUBT
Thus, he even doubted it with his students by presenting them with a multitude of proven facts which suggested that Luxembourg never existed:
“Luxembourg is the big banks, it is a country which is very rich per capita and it is also a lot of companies which have no real activities, no employees.” Matthieu Peltier adds that it is also a country that bears the same name as its capital and a neighboring province. “Lots of suspicious things“, he finished.
The professor who explains for a conspiracy thesis to be successful, you have to mix true and false. To lead his students to believe in the non-existence of the country, he never directly asserts his theory. He asks questions, additional information and create the necessary blur so that they come to this conclusion on their own.
According to him, it is the enchanting character of conspiracies that dresses their defenders. At a time when religion was in decline, believing in alternative theories fulfilled this need for belief. There is no miracle solution to this problem. His advice:hindsight and benevolent doubt“.