I was just wondering if it is just paranoia or if groups like the Illuminati and the Bilderbergers are truly trying to shape the world to their desires. I am still undecided if even our own government is a part of this.
There is an easy way to tell if a conspiracy theory could be real. Real Conspiracies have humans involved!
Humans quarrel and get various cliques with in the group, some person is caught with someone else’s spouse and starts a fight, usually causing one to be a turncoat. People make plans that work out way different than expected, they brag, have web pages, screw up and send packages or emails to the wrong address, embezzle funds, have power struggles etc.
If there is supposedly a multi generational conspiracy that never made such mistakes, then they are fantasies.
There are more than a few conspiracies that have humans however, most are out in the open, but are just disingenuous about their goals, that does not make them less conspiracies.
Sometimes several conspiracies will work together if their goals coincide for the moment, but that does not make them just one conspiracy, though in cases like the Moonies and Dominionists, each thinks it is subverting the other, but are working together even though each has the other on its "to kill" list. So it can get quite confusing.
A few examples of real Conspiracies:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/document/rams/document_20070723.ram
BBC 1933 attempted American coup that went underground
http://www.reallynews.com/video/pon/powerofnightmares.htm
The Power of Nightmares – each claims the other is evil but the fight gives them both power.
A different view of the same-
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/08/24/2013753.htm
Bin Laden wanted US to invade Iraq,
http://www.democracynow.org/streampage.pl?show=2007-06-05
John Perkins global empire – about as close to "illumanati" as it gets, but not so organized.
The Secret Government: The Constitution in Crisis, One conspiracy that made all the papers.
an earlier incarnation of the same thing
http://www.lexrex.com/enlightened/articles/warisaracket.htm
War Is A Racket – Major General Smedley Butler (the web site is by nuts but is an accurate copy of Butler’s book)
Cagy Criminals& Election Fraud (an ongoing real open conspiracy)
http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=%22Mayfair+set%22&hl=en
"Mayfair set" – A financial conspiracy
http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=549
60 Terror plots From the Right- many conspiracies
http://www.publiceye.org/magazine/chrisre1.html
Mass Murder for Jesus – the Dominionist Conspiracy
http://words-of-power.blogspot.com/2007/06/hard-rain-journal-6-29-07-katrina-911.html
Katrina, 9/11 and Iraq — An Almost Incomprehensible truth
http://www.exponentialimprovement.com/cms/wealthhappens.shtml
Wealth Happens- a conspiracy without intent?
http://play.rbn.com/?url=demnow/demnow/demand/2007/aug/video/dnB20070830a.rm&proto=rtsp
Democracynow 2nd anniversery- interviews with some from Liberal conspiracies, fighting other conspiracies.
http://www.bostonreview.net/BR31.6/rosen.html
Nir Rosen: Anatomy of a Civil War more conspiracies- some that are not about Americans.
http://www.lutw.org/home.htm
Light Up The World Foundation ::a liberal conspiracy
As you can see the difference between a conspiracy and just folks working togeather (for good or nefarious reasons) is not a clear cut thing, and one person might be active in several conspiracies with similar goals, there is no clear lines.