my mask defines me
you can tell a lot about a tribe by the symbols it uses
one may agree or disagree with the political aim and messaging of parties and groups.
this is not about that. this is about looking at the symbols they choose to use to convey that messaging and in particular, masks which have emerged as such a strong symbol of the current american left.
comments like this are common:
but let’s consider what it really means first to chose such a symbol and second to not just feel compelled to present it, but to mandate it for others.
masks are pseudoscience, unsupported by real data, and protect neither you nor others
masks are uncomfortable, inconvenient and carry real risks to the wearer
masks erase identity by hiding faces thereby vastly limiting communication
masks alienate and dehumanize. they have long been used as tools for brainwashing and punishment
this is not a great start for a symbol. however one feels about trump and his MAGA hats they were none of these things. so what are we to make of an ideology that chooses such a dehumanizing symbol and then seeks to mandate it?
it means that they are all about control. they value conformity, submission, and oppose your agency and they are happy to inflict discomfort to get it.
so ask yourself a simple question: do these seem like people you want in charge?
because, make no mistake, as tools of brainwashing and propaganda, this stuff works.
consider young david hogg, admittedly a guy who has never been accused of being terribly smart, but listen to what he’s saying:
he’s been vaccinated
he knows he’s low to zero risk
he finds wearing a mask unpleasant
but he STILL wants to do it so people will know which tribe he’s in
and it’s an especially powerful need for him because others are doing it
stop and really parse this. this is someone engaging in self-harm for no useful purpose because signaling his identity as a “liberal” as defined by engaging in self harm is more important to him than science, sense, or self-identity.
um, “yikes”?
he’s flat out telling us that his need for conformity and group identity exceeds “facts” that he knows to be true. not much of an avatar for “the side of science” is it?
seems more like this:
now let’s add in the desire to force adoption of your symbol not just upon your adherents but upon everyone. what does this tell us? it tells us you feel at least justified and probably righteous about forcing your choices onto others. you feel entitled to rule.
this spreads the need for conformity and submission from just “us” to “them” as well. that’s moralistic holy war. stop and let that sink in, because it’s rapidly becoming the axis mundi of american politics with the side that claims secularity playing the role of the jihadi while wallowing in denial that they could ever be such because “we’re the rational ones.”
this is their religious mantra, justified by nothing but faith. perversely, the less rational they become, the stronger this faith must be. the wronger you get, the more certain you become that you are not just right but righteous.
just as the discarded stone becomes the cornerstone, the derangement of reason becomes the polestar around which this increasingly broken attempt at proclaiming rationality inevitably revolves.
claims of justification and reason grow ever more shrill as their basis in fact diminishes.
then, one day, just like little davey, you don’t even need reason any more. you can outright admit you’re not making sense. the draw of the group has become too strong and your own identity too dependent upon it.
self-flagellation as a demonstration of devotion becomes and end unto itself.
crybullies like hogg FAR from alone. this has been extremely effective programming.
unrelenting fear coupled to dogmatic claims that masks serve the community (they don’t) while generating alienation and dehumanizing people is the behavior of a cult waiting for a spaceship to arrive so they can all drink poison kool aid together and fly off to zebulon.
take a spin through some of the comments on his twitter posts. see for yourself:
it’s desperate need for signaling epoxied into place with fear.
everyone must know what side i am on and that is more important to me than my well being.
everyone else is frightening and unclean. i must not trust them.
these are the markers of a cult, not a political party. this is harkening back to blue eagle iconography from the 30’s. at least those did not cover your face.
this has been a very dark time and it has broken a lot of people. the lunatics and tyrants that took our lives for a joyride have done their work well. this psyop was as effective as it was amoral.
keep this in mind.
we’re going to be dealing with deprograming, not re-opening. not everyone shares your desires to get back to normal. some never did, some are newly fractured.
it’s going to take time for that to heal. the real long covid will be the legacy of this mental damage that lingers for years in our societies.
the human immune system works by learning to recognize pathogens and how to suppress them. so, the second time you come in contact with it, you spring into effective action. you just got exposed to real, in the wild fascism. how did you like it? what did you learn?
you’ve seen its symbols, its aims, and its dishonesty. you’ve seen the amoral stand up and claim to be moralizers. remember it. all of it. and when you see it again, do not let it get started. push back, refuse to comply, and vote out anyone who shows these tendencies. stand up to the crybullies early before they form into their ranks and legions.
the society you save may be your own.
In a lot of ways, I am the same, although the opposite expression. I never have worn my mandated mask in the street, because I don't want people to think I am compliant to tyranny.
I believe we will definitely face this threat again. I believe that those who would wield power over others used this opportunity for a trial run to observe who complied and who resisted. I believe that from the perspective of those of us who stand for individual rights and freedom, the world failed the test. Too many allowed their own fears to drive them to give up their rights, while many others found that by aligning with the right side, they too gained power over others, with the side benefit of telling themselves that they are the righteous and deserve this power.
We will face this threat again. The next “emergency” may look different. But the proposed solutions will be the same, with similar promises of safety, virtue and power if you comply, and public shaming, rejection and isolation if you resist.