In Chapter 4 of
Unspun, the primary focus is how people are generally easy to convince and sometimes becomes followers rather than leaders. The story that interested me most in this chapter was about Marian Keech, who claimed that she had received messages from beings called Guardians on Planet Clarion saying that North America would be destroyed by a floor, but her followers would be taken to safety on a UFO before the calamity. People were frantic and prepared for their journey. Of course, the tragedy did not occur and Mrs Keech claimed that she had received another message saying it had been called off because of the believers' devotion. It intrigues me how people can follow absurd things without question.
The idea of this as a cult reminds me of the Jim Jones' cult, the Peoples Temple. I think it is ridiculous how many followers he maintained. The cult began in Indiana, moved to California, and became famous in Guyana. The cult members believed everything Jones told them and were incredibly devoted to him. Eventually the government became suspicious of the cult and Jones acted by giving his members a drink laced with cyanide so they could kill themselves. The mass murder was the result of the followers being unable to think for themselves.
It is scary how people will believe everything they hear and it seems to be the case in Unspun.
I also found this chapter more interesting than the others. I know that we are all guilty of becoming "spun" from time to time. However, I find it astonishing the absurd fallacies that people will believe. Where do these people draw the line? Next they will have people believing that grass is actually purple!
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