10 years ago, conspiracy theories might have been silly stories teenagers would share among friends. In 2021, conspiracy theories are not silly, they are a danger to society. There are numerous issues within the topic of conspiracy theories, such as people conspiring against COVID 19 or vaccines for children. Several years ago you might have laughed these theories off, but with the amount of technology and fake news on the internet these days it’s hard to believe what’s real and what’s not. 

With many people feeling paranoid or stressed during the pandemic the stress levels only rise when there are theories in the mix. According to The Slate, almost 4 out of 10 Americans believe that the  death rate from COVID-19 has been “deliberately and greatly exaggerated.” Not only does this idea make a mockery out of the virus, it could also encourage people that COVID does not have any serious consequences.  Also according to The Slate, 27 percent of Americans think that it’s possible that vaccines for COVID-19 will be used to implant tracking chips in Americans. Again, this idea makes a mockery out of vaccines, which could put off a person from getting one. While this may be my perspective of theories on COVID, there are opposite viewpoints.

An opposing viewpoint to this topic might be, “Those theories are not harmful, the people who created the theories just have their own perspective about COVID.” While it’s true that they have a perspective on COVID, their perspective might be more harmful than they think. With people conspiring about masks and vaccines it can discourage people from wearing masks, getting the vaccine, or following other guidelines of COVID. With having these conspiracies potentially less people will take precautions about the virus, and that could extend the pandemic. 

Ultimately remember to be careful with what you believe on the internet. Some sources to fact check from is Politifact, FactCheck.org, and FlackCheck. After seeing these harmful theories you might want to argue with the creator but there is a better way to approach these conspirators. To reduce the amount of misinformed conspirators, ask them the information and evidence that their theory includes. This might show the person that their theory does not have strong evidence, and that they should do more research on the topic. Conspiracy theories ten or twenty years ago might have been about Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster but now they leave long lasting effects on our world.