Need snappy comeback for conspiracy theorist....

[eliza61]

lol, I had the most out of body experience yesterday and my brain suffered a meltdown so my normal witty repartee deserted me.

I'm taking a french class, love it. a very small class of 8, mainly working adults and all of us are massacring the french language. usually 90 minutes is instruction and then 30 minutes we have "conversation".

Anyhoo yesterday before class we were talking about going to a French restaurant for the holidays and trying out our new language skills. some one suggested the 18th which I jokingly said, wait that's the release of the new star wars movie, which led to someone mentioning that George lucas just received a Kennedy honor.

Here is where it got weird. A young girl (only under 50 student lol) said..

You know George Lucas stole the idea for star wars...

me: Wait, What??
Her: He stole the idea for star wars from a British play wright
me: George lucas? short stocky white dude with glasses and salt and pepper hair and beard?
Her: yep that GL.
me (turning to another women): are we speaking french now and I'm misunderstanding her?
Her: NO you have it right, he shouldn't get the honor because he stole the idea. He's Jewish and Hollywood is protecting him.
Me: wait, George Lucas!!! Darth Vader, Obi wan kenobi and all that, George lucas.
Her: Yes and him and Steven speilberg stole the Indiana Jones idea too.
Me: The force be with you, George Lucas? special effects George Lucas, skywalker ranch dude?


LOL, obviously I was having a hard time connecting the dots. Other people were chiming in also but the main idea was, Evidently George and Steven stole those ideas from cinema students and playwrights, paid them off to keep quiet and they are protected because they are Jewish and give a lot of money to certain campaigns.

anybody hear this?

 

[Lilacs4Me]

My go-to reply when people are being stupid and I don't care to fight the battle:

"OK - you win"

 

[kimblebee]

I would have just said..you are what the French call les incompétents..

 

[PollyannaMom]

I would have just said..you are what the French call les incompétentes...

Home Alone?


OP, I have nothing snappy. I usually go with "Interesting theory. I'll have to remember to read more about that."

 

[Patch'sD]

Tell them sure and Bill Gates started Microsoft by never telling the creator of DOS he needed it sell it to IBM and Steve Jobs lifted the Idea of a Graphical User Interface from Xerox. Oh Wait, those intellectual thefts are somewhat true.

Upon some further research. George Lucas wanted to do a Space Themed Movie based upon Flash Gordon. But he could not get the rights to the characters. He Also looked at Some Edgar Rice Burroughs works, Edgar Rice Burroughs got his inspiration from a British Writer Edwin Arnold Sci Fi Story Gulliver on Mars.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

"Are you off your meds again?"

 

[Mizzoufan]

walk away

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

May the force be equal to mass times acceleration.








-some kid told me that one the other day

 

[BigAlsGal]

Ugh....because he's Jewish. Gimme a break. I'm honestly not sure how I would respond to such idiotic information. It really doesn't even deserve a response. Just an "Oh,...uh....ok crazy person."

 

[Mikie]

Well, if he paid them off, he didn't so much steal their idea as buy it. . . So many great stories are compilations of ideas from prior works and historical events, you could probably argue that very few movies and books are truly "original". Of course, if you're Jewish you get a pass . . .

If I could think of it quick enough, I'd maybe say "oh no, I heard George Lucas is actually a Wookie and the story is based on his life. He had to pay off those theater students because they found out the truth!"

 

[cijay]

I usually find that when I ask them to show me valid, reliable sources it becomes "well, that's what I heard anyway." Either thaat or open your eyes wide and say "really? which students?"

 

[Teresa Pitman]

You can't copyright ideas - therefore, you can't steal them.

 

[holycow]

Mike you had me laughing out loud! I would have said. That is interesting. Where did you hear that? Oh, the internet? Well of course its true then!

 

[Bilberry]

Well, maybe it was an authentic French conversation! Hopefully not but I remember that article recent written by a Jewish Rabbi mentioning Jewish people have no future in Europe.

Chief Rabbi of Brussels: There is no future for Jews in Europe

http://www.jpost.com/Diaspora/Chief-Rabbi-of-Brussels-There-is-no-future-for-Jews-in-Europe-435069

George Lucas isn't Jewish I believe. I remember at one point a few even accused him of being anti-Semitic. One of the Star Wars characters has a Jewish stereo type with a big nose and being a merchant.

 

[Missy1961]

Honestly, this kind of conspiracy you'll never be able to shoot down - because they'll have an answer for every thing you say. I wouldn't waste my breath. If I remember correctly, Lucas isn't Jewish. I do know Spielberg is, so they'll use that.

So I would just shake my head, and walk away.

 

[SMD]

Honestly, this kind of conspiracy you'll never be able to shoot down - because they'll have an answer for every thing you say. I wouldn't waste my breath. If I remember correctly, Lucas isn't Jewish. I do know Spielberg is, so they'll use that.

So I would just shake my head, and walk away.

Yea, this. I just remind myself that some time these people will spout their crazy at the wrong time to the wrong person and face more consequences than I can dole out with a response. Although since I'm Jewish I might be tempted to say "We don't claim him" in regards to George Lucas. In my experience, revealing yourself a Jewish to a conspiracy theorist doesn't go over well.

 

[JaneBanks]

Yikes. I would have called her out on her anti-semitism.

 

[MickeySP]

Next time ask her who Mel Brooks stole the idea for Spaceballs from?

 

[BrianL]

As if it mattered, but George Lucas isn't even Jewish. He was raised Methodist I believe. He has never been a part of the "Hollywood Power Structure" either. There is no point in arguing with people who believe such crazy things though; you won't change their mind.

 

[bcla]

Well, if he paid them off, he didn't so much steal their idea as buy it. . . So many great stories are compilations of ideas from prior works and historical events, you could probably argue that very few movies and books are truly "original". Of course, if you're Jewish you get a pass . . .

If I could think of it quick enough, I'd maybe say "oh no, I heard George Lucas is actually a Wookie and the story is based on his life. He had to pay off those theater students because they found out the truth!"

Lucas has been pretty clear that he was a fan of serials, especially Flash Gordon. He blatantly borrowed ideas from others, such as Kurosawa's Hidden Fortress in that seemingly minor characters were placed front and center.

It sounds like the OP will get nowhere trying to argue.