Friday column: Even the gullible will think twice about these

Thank God for the credulous.

You know, the folks who believe our president wasn’t born in America, the moon landing was faked, and certain powerful lizard humans secretly run the world (oh, they’re out there, people).

If it weren’t for the credulous, who could O.J. Mayo possibly be talking to?

Mayo, guard for the Memphis Grizzlies, recently was suspended by the NBA for 10 games after testing positive for the steroid DHEA. He immediately went to what is usually Plan A in such situations — blaming the test result on something he inadvertently ingested.

In this case, Mayo put the onus on an unnamed energy drink, thereby showing a distinct lack of imagination. (Cyclist Alberto Contador blamed tainted meat; sprinter Ben Johnson, spiked ginseng; distance runner Dieter Baumann, nandalone toothpaste.)

As for his trustworthiness, this is the same Mayo who denied receiving cash and other goodies at Southern Cal even though the school — in the wake of its investigation — vacated all of its wins for the season Mayo was a Trojan and surrendered $206,200 in NCAA Tournament money.

I wouldn’t say Mayo and truth are strangers; let’s just say they’re not exactly roommates.

Sometimes, sports figures don’t talk to the credulous — they are the credulous.

Take Mets principal owner Fred Wilpon and team president Jeff Katz, who for years believed that Bernie Madoff produced 18 percent returns on their investments because, in their words, “he was smarter than everyone else.”

They believed that until the day the Ponzi scheme purveyor was hauled off to jail.

That belief — which, to be fair, no small number of investors shared — has resulted in financial instability for the New York franchise, leading to the Mets having to seek minority partners to ease their budget woes.

This might prove a difficult sell, even to their fellow credulous: “The ship is sinking — hop aboard!”

For another tough sell, I give you the words of Harvey Bruner, lawyer of record for one Chris Carter, a top Ohio State football recruit and a recent guest of the Cleveland City Jail.

Carter, 18, was arrested Tuesday and charged on suspicion of fondling as many eight high school girls while pretending to measure them for JROTC uniforms. One of the alleged victims is 15.

According to news reports, Carter not only admitted his guilt to police, he gave them the book he used to record the measurements.

Yet after his first visit with Carter, Bruner declared him to be a “fine, young man” who is innocent of any wrongdoing.

To the credulous, I would point out that in Bruner’s trade — criminal-defense attorney — an “innocent person” and “paying client” are synonymous.

Considering Carter’s admission and the “measurement book,” it will be interesting to see what defense Bruner employs for the “fine, young man.” I suspect it will have something to do with a conspiracy of the lizard humans.

(Oh, they’re out there, people).