Holocaust and 9/11 Conspiracy Theorists- birds of a feather

I've lumped these two somewhat disparate groups together because, frankly, it baffles my mind how certain people think, or in this case, don't! What alternate reality do they happen to live in? I've never actually spoken to someone with either of these beliefs, so I have no clue what makes them tick, but what I find truly frightening is that many of these people are educated, seemingly intelligent people who you would think had some rational sense of reality. They are academics and scientists and socialites and actors: reasonable people, you would think.

Apparently not.

Iran has just hosted a Holocaust Conference where deniers from all over the world gathered to debate the Holocaust issue and whether it actually occurred. Granted, there were only 60 plus nutso participants (whose theories range from complete "exaggeration" to total "myth"), but how many other people in this world share their mindset? I might expect this from an Arab Muslim population that has been indoctrinated, since early childhood, that the Jews are evil and must be decimated; but from Americans, and Europeans, Brits and Australians and even other Jews? What makes their reasoning so defective?

With the massive amount of information that was gathered (including photos, film, personal testimony, War Crimes Trials, etc.) documenting the horrors of that particular act of genocide, how can you not be totally convinced that something horrific happened? French academic Robert Faurisson believes the Holocaust to be a hoax and the gas chambers a myth, he is joined in this delusional thinking by ex-KKK leader David Duke who claims he is merely a "Holocaust questioner" (oh, please!) and was at the conference to "defend freedom of speech". Duke praised Ahmadinejad for holding a conference "to offer free speech for the worlds most repressed idea: Holocaust revisionism." (What possessed the Republicans to let him represent the GOP in Louisiana in 1989??) Then you have Michele Renouf, an Australian socialite (former model, dancer) who has described herself as an actor and the Jewish religion as "repugnant and hateful" (though she claims she is not anti-Semitic. Huh?). She went so far as calling Ahmadinejad a "hero" for hosting the conference. The most surprising of all those who attended, was a delegation of anti-Zionist Orthodox Jews (Neturei Karta) who believe that, although a "crime" did occur, the Holocaust numbers were exaggerated by Zionists to further their aim of creating a sectarian State and that "the entire concept of a sovereign Jewish state is contrary to Jewish Law."

What makes all these people unable or unwilling to see proven facts as Truth? Is their hatred of the Jews so powerful and poisonous that it has actually clouded their judgement and distorted their mental processes?

As for the adherents of a '9/11 Conspiracy': what planet do they come from? I'm embarrassed, but not surprised, that several in the entertainment industry have joined the fray in voicing their opinion that 9/11 was some vast governmental conspiracy to justify engaging in war with Iraq. James Brolin (Mr. Barb Streisand) recently revealed, on the TV show 'The View', that he doubts the official version of events and believes that the Twin Towers and Building 7, were brought down by controlled demolitions. Director David Lynch, apparently told Dutch TV that the crash sites in both Pennsylvania and at the Pentagon were suspicious because there was a lack of evidence. Hmmm. Wonder who all those dead people were?! Extras from Central Casting? And they're not the only celebs who share those suspicions. There's Ed Asner, Charlie Sheen, Richard Linklater, Jesse Ventura, Matthew Bellamy (English alternative Rock musician). And that's only the entertainment industry line-up that has actually fessed up. There are probably many others. Then you have the rest of them: academics, economists, engineers, writers, reporters all with varying versions of what they think happened and why. None of which have any basis in reality. Google '9/11 conspiracy' (or anything similar) and you'll come up with more sites and blogs than you could ever find time to read. Thankfully there are many sites that debunk these kook theories, which helps re-affirm my faith in humanity.

And what makes all these people question and, in some cases, deny the horrendous events of 9/11, in spite of obvious factual evidence? Is their hatred of G.W. Bush (and the U.S government) so potent and toxic that it clouds their judgment and thinking, and forces them to grasp at anything to discredit him?

Sadly, what seems to bind these 2 groups together is their formidable capacity to 'hate'. When hatred is allowed to fester, it adversely affects our minds and bodies. It becomes all consuming and can make rational people irrational. But how do you eradicate such hatred when it is so deeply rooted in their psyches; when those particular individuals seem to revel in that hatred, for whatever sad and pathetic reason? I think, for them, it eventually becomes easier to embrace those negative and dark emotions than to make the necessary changes to bring light into their world. Many people also seem to need a 'cause' to rally around, however misguided their cause might be. Too bad they don't direct those energies toward helping eradicate world hunger or establishing world peace, rather than contributing to the hatred and strife that already exists in this world by trying to prove that the Jews and others were not massacred, in cold blood, during the Holocaust, or that GW Bush was somehow responsible for the thousands that died during 9/11.