Related: How to Rig an Election
Originally Written: May 12th, 2018
Propaganda
Whether or not you are from the United States, the example here can be learned from. USA Today has published an article with an analysis of the Russian bought Facebook ads from last year.
And their goal is pretty clear, it’s to divide us. The weakness they’re exploiting? Our racism. That is what they saw as the strongest weakness they could take advantage of.
One thing everyone reading this should do even if you don’t have time to read the article in full, is scroll to the bottom and look at the slide show. This shows you some of the ads.
While doing this, keep this in mind…
This is what propaganda looks like.
It’s not in any way obvious like I would have expected it to be. When you look at each one, try to imagine who the intended recipient of it is.
What feelings would it give them?
What would those feelings cause them to believe?
And remember this: These were proven to be created and paid for by Russia Organizations
Example 1: Target Conservatives
Reinforces belief that Hillary is bad and evil.
Example 2: Target Liberals
Reinforces belief that Trump is bad and evil.
Example 3: Target Black Americans
Reinforces belief the American government does not care about them.
Example 4: Target White Americans
Reinforces belief that BLM (Black Lives Matters) are anarchists and criminals.
More details can be found in the Mueller Report.
Analysis
One thing that should stand out to you, is that these ads are telling two different sides an almost contradictory view point.
Typically, someone takes a position and supports it while attacking the other to gain supporters. But their goal wasn’t to actually gain supporters for any specific belief, the goal was to cause internal conflict.
The ads they chose to use, were chosen for their ability to incite fear, anger, disgust, or a feeling of moral superiority. They were chosen to get people to engage, to argue and to turn against their fellow Americans.
Some of the people they were arguing with weren’t even American, but bots or paid trolls pretending to be one… but the result was the same.
Our country became more divided as people on both sides of the political spectrum were shown content that aligned with their beliefs and made them more extreme.
Distorted Realities
Today we live in a world where two people living even next door to each other, can have vastly different realities.
Objective reality will be the same, but the subjective reality each perceives… the one that we use daily to determine our beliefs and governs our behavior.. is getting more divergent and distorted than ever.
As one neighbor watches their favorite TV talk show and hears about the crimes committed by a person of some ethnicity, the other watches videos on YouTube of police violently assaulting someone of that ethnicity without cause.
Psychedelics taught me many things. One important lesson, was how poorly our subjective realities match objective reality; and just how “real” things can feel that simply aren’t true.
Our cognitive biases will cause you to feel something is true that isn’t, and you must make an effort to mitigate these biases. Your ego will have to be dragged away kicking and screaming as it tries to hold on to these beliefs… because it says how could you be wrong when it’s so “obvious”?
But the most important thing they taught me was the value of empathy. No one by themselves can see objective reality. Our vision of it is cloudy, inverted and has the worst Snapchat filters you can imagine applied to it.
Only through open and honest communication with others can we start to see it more clearly. We take their perspective, and use our empathy to see the world as they do, and compare it to our own.
We can then start to form a more accurate understanding of objective reality.If you take the time to truly see things from another’s point of view, you can begin to understand why they believe the things they do.
Even if their beliefs disgust you, or enrage you… they came to those beliefs because it fits the reality they saw. And once you know what parts they didn’t see… you know where to shine the light to help them see the truth.
How to See Clearly and Show Others
The truth, is none of us is better than any of us. And thinking you are… is a weakness. One that a government recognized it could exploit and actively did so!
The only defense against propaganda like this, is humility and empathy. Be humble, so that you do not presume to know the truth. Don’t become self-righteous and prideful when you see evidence supporting your beliefs.
Empathize with those who do not share your beliefs, especially those who believe things antithetical to them. You will not convince people you are right unless you can first earn their trust and respect. You do that by being a friend and a good person.*
You will only ever catch glimpses of understanding of objective reality, and they are fleeting. As you start to see it through the many different lens others see it through, you can start to imagine it more clearly.
As you make friends and share your perspective and experiences, you help them do the same. And at some point, with the friends you’re able to fully share your subjective realities with and see the world as they do, you will experience the feeling behind namaste.
You will see them not as their faults and strengths, not as their name and portrayed identity, but as a conscious entity experiencing life through the lens they were given. One no different than you, had your consciousness ended up in their mind and body instead of yours.
When you see that… when you feel that… remember that it isn’t just them. That is everyone. That is the truth. We are all the same, though we wear different clothes and pretend to be different things. That is why none of us are better than any of us.
The belief in a lie that some are superior to others, or better than others, or more deserving than others… is what leads to the beliefs a government has exploited as a weakness.
Lesson of the Day
The moral of this story is simple.
Hatred is weakness.
Love is Strength!
🔮😈☯️😇🔮
🧙♂️~Lucifer 🧝♀️ <- I still Love you…
🔮😇❤😈🔮
Peace, Love, Unity, Respect All Life
We are PLURAL
One Truth, One Love
We are ONE
* = Here’s a great TED talk by a former member of the Westboro Baptist Church who left her family and their beliefs behind after people with opposing beliefs earned her trust and respect, and were able to convince her to change her beliefs because of that.
P.S. Troll Bots
This is what Troll Bots look like.
They hit and run, then come back to taunt again; even if no one has an idea what they’re talking about… 😂
