In Canada, 25% of people are now saying they support sending troops to Ukraine even if it means casualties. With about 65k active personnel, who wants to bet that 25% of the country has never volunteered to serve in our military? But they are happy to send our young men and women to die in a war they know nothing about. The ideology, indeed, IS their identity. Sickening.
Social media is addictive, but unlike most addictions, it has not limiting factor. You never get full the way you do with junk food. You never have an orgasm the way you do with porn. You never lose consciousness the way you do with alcohol or drugs. You just keep doing hit after hit after hit.
Bravo, el gato. This is the Rosetta Stone for understanding the turnkey emotional manipulability of the agitariat. The concept of oppositional external validation alone is solid rhodium.
Because the agitariats are devoid of substance and individual identity, they can be filled and scripted at will.
So perhaps, just maybe, we can counteract that vulnerability by helping them to develop their own ideas, personalities, and abilities? If they focus on some passion, talent, or skill instead of defining themselves in opposition to the ragebait of the moment, maybe they will no longer be swayed by the power of the negative?
Somehow, ionic bonds come to mind:
“Ionic bonds are created because atoms want to have their outer shells full of electrons; so, when an atom has an outer shell that is not full, it will be attracted to other atoms that have extra electrons.” (https://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-chemical-bonds.html)
Complex, in-depth, nuanced, out-of-the-litterbox genius I can only assimilate on third reading. It's been shocking to watch the media masses switch, in less than 12 hours, from Covid to Ukraine, as if Covid magically just disappeared, not that it was there in the first place. I feel even more alienated than before. What movie are we in??? It brings the whole notion of mind-capture to a startling new level. But as Brandon has his SOTU speech tonight, I guess it was all carefully planned as per usual. George Carlin would have made mincemeat out of him, out of all of this. George? Are you there??
Gato: "just about no one even noticed when the russians used chemical weapons in syria."
Little bit disappointed that you have apparently swallowed this story hook, line and sinker. Here are just 2 articles that should raise at least considerable doubt in the mind of any objectively-oriented person:
Your posts have given me so much joy, despite the fraught times. Finally signed up to be a paid subscriber. I'm sorry it's taken me so long. Long live your feline musings!
For me, my methods of internal self sufficiency will always lie in making things with my hands; dabbling in music and art; growing plants; practicing contrariness as an antidote to conformity and boringness; seeking breath, silence and zen midst the chaos (as an antidote to my sometimes manic contrariness!) - and, of course, engaging in the requisite worship of our household feline overlords. Simple pleasures!
There is no way out but through; we don’t turn back the tide on this. But we have an option. Our best bet is in-person community. Intimate, connected, warts-and-all gathering of people. The introvert memes are funny, but we can’t let them win. The devilry of the past two years worked like never before because the machine successfully kept us from holding hands. The foundation of the communities we build now is that we will not allow this again. We will hold hands until they ride through our ranks, and then hold hands again. We will sing songs and meet them with mirrors sewn into our clothes.
And we will laugh. We will laugh and laugh and laugh.
Very very good - it reminds me of the result of Professor Iain McGilchrist 30 years research resulting in an update of the previously discredited Left / Right brain theory. He is of the opinion that those dominated by the brain's left hemisphere are leading us into destruction & much of what you describe above fits in with that as - they can never be wrong, everything is either black or white, anger is their dominant emotion, big into reductionist materialism & all that spawns from that.
He worked for years on split brain research & he mentioned a patient who had a right hemisphere stroke after an accident in which he also lost an arm. He was reduced to only the Left side which was illustrated by the fact that he refused to believe that he had lost that arm - maybe Biden has had a stroke or various mini ones.
In Canada, 25% of people are now saying they support sending troops to Ukraine even if it means casualties. With about 65k active personnel, who wants to bet that 25% of the country has never volunteered to serve in our military? But they are happy to send our young men and women to die in a war they know nothing about. The ideology, indeed, IS their identity. Sickening.
Good reason to give up social media for Lent.
If you don't stop writing such superb analysis, I won't be able to quit the internets.
if you don't believe in God, you will believe in anything
Social media is addictive, but unlike most addictions, it has not limiting factor. You never get full the way you do with junk food. You never have an orgasm the way you do with porn. You never lose consciousness the way you do with alcohol or drugs. You just keep doing hit after hit after hit.
Bravo, el gato. This is the Rosetta Stone for understanding the turnkey emotional manipulability of the agitariat. The concept of oppositional external validation alone is solid rhodium.
Because the agitariats are devoid of substance and individual identity, they can be filled and scripted at will.
So perhaps, just maybe, we can counteract that vulnerability by helping them to develop their own ideas, personalities, and abilities? If they focus on some passion, talent, or skill instead of defining themselves in opposition to the ragebait of the moment, maybe they will no longer be swayed by the power of the negative?
Somehow, ionic bonds come to mind:
“Ionic bonds are created because atoms want to have their outer shells full of electrons; so, when an atom has an outer shell that is not full, it will be attracted to other atoms that have extra electrons.” (https://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-chemical-bonds.html)
Complex, in-depth, nuanced, out-of-the-litterbox genius I can only assimilate on third reading. It's been shocking to watch the media masses switch, in less than 12 hours, from Covid to Ukraine, as if Covid magically just disappeared, not that it was there in the first place. I feel even more alienated than before. What movie are we in??? It brings the whole notion of mind-capture to a startling new level. But as Brandon has his SOTU speech tonight, I guess it was all carefully planned as per usual. George Carlin would have made mincemeat out of him, out of all of this. George? Are you there??
Gato: "just about no one even noticed when the russians used chemical weapons in syria."
Little bit disappointed that you have apparently swallowed this story hook, line and sinker. Here are just 2 articles that should raise at least considerable doubt in the mind of any objectively-oriented person:
https://consortiumnews.com/2020/01/24/opcw-investigator-testified-at-un-that-no-chemical-attack-took-place-in-douma-syria/
https://thegrayzone.com/2021/11/22/corrupting-science-in-syria-probe-opcw-erased-experts-inconvenient-findings/
El gato.....once again proving the most incisive mind on substack....is feline.
As awful as the great reset is for all of us...I find a strange satisfaction from these posts....still gives me hope.
“‘Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.” -Voltaire
This may be the best description of the current situation I have seen anywhere.
Thank you for the reminder that the terrible mischaracterization of pollywogs in 16th century ranine poetry still haunts us.
Superb article! Please see Eckert Tolle for additional insight on the role of fear, false hope, and hate.
Your posts have given me so much joy, despite the fraught times. Finally signed up to be a paid subscriber. I'm sorry it's taken me so long. Long live your feline musings!
For me, my methods of internal self sufficiency will always lie in making things with my hands; dabbling in music and art; growing plants; practicing contrariness as an antidote to conformity and boringness; seeking breath, silence and zen midst the chaos (as an antidote to my sometimes manic contrariness!) - and, of course, engaging in the requisite worship of our household feline overlords. Simple pleasures!
There is no way out but through; we don’t turn back the tide on this. But we have an option. Our best bet is in-person community. Intimate, connected, warts-and-all gathering of people. The introvert memes are funny, but we can’t let them win. The devilry of the past two years worked like never before because the machine successfully kept us from holding hands. The foundation of the communities we build now is that we will not allow this again. We will hold hands until they ride through our ranks, and then hold hands again. We will sing songs and meet them with mirrors sewn into our clothes.
And we will laugh. We will laugh and laugh and laugh.
This is the only way.
Very very good - it reminds me of the result of Professor Iain McGilchrist 30 years research resulting in an update of the previously discredited Left / Right brain theory. He is of the opinion that those dominated by the brain's left hemisphere are leading us into destruction & much of what you describe above fits in with that as - they can never be wrong, everything is either black or white, anger is their dominant emotion, big into reductionist materialism & all that spawns from that.
He worked for years on split brain research & he mentioned a patient who had a right hemisphere stroke after an accident in which he also lost an arm. He was reduced to only the Left side which was illustrated by the fact that he refused to believe that he had lost that arm - maybe Biden has had a stroke or various mini ones.
Think I'll go back to reading Proverbs.