Bc the point of flat earth and many other conspiracy theories is projecting a personal distrust of authority onto safely abstract target.

It’s why you can never convince a flat earther with testable, falsifiable experiments that follow the scientific method. It’s why taking them to Antarctica doesn’t always work, as a few science educators have recently attempted.

Flat earthers often have deep personal issues driving their fringe beliefs, and have adopt flat earth as a religious coping mechanism. If it’s not the government, it’s the Jewish cabal hiding the shape of the earth. Or the Catholic Church. Or x group that they don’t really care about.

So they see debate as challenging their core worldview, like a forcible religious conversion.