Conspiracy Theories and political extremism.

I've been doing some thinking about political extremism and conspiracy theories lately.
Mostly, I've been wondering how it is people who subscribe to various conspiracy theories also mostly happen to be political extremists -- anarchists, libertarians, extreme conservatives and so forth. But what brings these people to jump on the conspiracy theory bandwagon ?

Everything from "9/11 was an inside job" to "They killed Kennedy" to esoteric things such as Bliderberg conference, masonic temples, UFOs and others. Mind you, it's not only conservatives who subscribe to these absurdities, but doing so seems to always go hand in hand with some form of political extremism. Is it true, as some speculate, that people are actually comforted by the idea that some greater, all-encompassing force is behind everything, pulling strings and making things happen?
I could see it. I myself once subscribed to the now thoroughly debunked idea that President John F Kennedy was assassinated by a group of conspirators, either from our own government or from the mafia. Why this idea is so much bunkum is a subject for a book and not a blog post, but I'll just say that I've seen enough evidence to indicate that there could not have been any sort of grand conspiracy in Dealy Plaza in 1963, and leave it to others to argue the matter. To me, the subject is closed, and will remain closed unless and until some future date when some convincing evidence may come to light. As I like to say, I have an open mind, but a hard nose. I require not just evidence or arguments, but carefully vetted evidence from multiple sources, and logical, non-fallacious arguments.

 But what about conspiracy buffs who are also "preppers" or "survivalists" ?

They do exist. People who live in a constant state of readiness for some sort of attack, or political upheaval, or some sort of totalitarian takeover of the government by whichever politician happens to be President. They live in a condition where they have a gun always within reach, where they have their Bug-Out-Bag on a hook next to the door, extra rations and gas in their car, or maybe even a specially chosen "survival car" that they have stashed somewhere. They are ready at any moment to either head for the hills, or run off and join some notional underground where they will fight an insurgent war against the Opressor Forces of the UN, or the Hong Kong Police, or the New World Order. They believe fully in the FEMA Death Camps, secret bases underground or hiding in plain sight in closed wal-mart stores. It doesn't seem to matter to them that none of this is even practical or likely. Living like this gives them a sense of purpose. A reason to be open about their fears and despairs. Instead of living lives of quiet desperation, they are confronting something. An imaginary enemy perhaps, but something they can focus on. A thing they can purpose themselves against, and so gain the courage to continue living, when suicides among white middle age males are on the rise.
Perhaps that's why so many turn to "prepping" or "survivalism" or even the more militant "Militia movement". Their innate survival mechanism has gone into overdrive in order to try to keep them from putting their gun in their own mouth.
Well, it's one man's hypothesis.