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End of Empire – Propaganda and the American Myth

Cognitive Dissonance's picture




 


End of Empire – Propaganda and the American Myth                                                              

“Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive”….ourselves. With apologies to Sir Walter Scott.

If only life were as neat and orderly as my ancient history text book showed it to be. There it was on glossy paper, spread out across two sets of adjoining pages, maps of the ancient and modern world. Including time lines top and bottom, with countries outlined and identified. Underneath their modern English names were one or two older names in smaller stylized script, often including exact beginning and end dates. I remember one in particular that caught my eye. “United States of America” followed by the year 1776. But with no end date indicated, it looked like unfinished business to me. You’ve got to love those historians and their exact dates.

Of course, in reality there are no exact dates for the birth and death of city/states, other than in the author’s mind. Children continue to be born, the old still die, and life goes on under different circumstances. But you’re rarely informed of the subjective nature of historical events when you’re young and impressionable, so they’re presented in the history books as fact. The last thing the reigning Empire wants is to appear uncertain about previous Empires. Even before we begin to read and comprehend on our own, we’re presented with the illusion of a beginning and end to everything, often with very clear lines of demarcation. This concept is continuously reinforced through our daily indoctrination of carefully scripted news stories, care of our modern media saturated existence. Naturally, critical thinking is optional and definitively not encouraged.

Mix in a healthy dose of hard core science, where you learn very early there are correct and incorrect answers to all your questions, and a pattern of social myth making emerges. Of course, the correct answers are held for public safekeeping by our cultural high priests and authority figures, be they academic, governmental, scientific or religious. Lest you forget, cultural icons and heroes must always be respected and deferred to. Maybe now’s a good time to remember that most history and science books are written and re-written by those very same keepers of the public mythology. What we believe as a culture, sometimes called our public myth, is usually determined by those whose pockets are the deepest or most powerful, not by those who are the wisest and most knowledgeable.

Have you ever read a book written by the survivors of the vanquished, the so called losers? I have, a number of times, and it’s usually very enlightening to see the world from the other side of the bloody divide. In their hands, our cultural myths aren’t treated with the same loving care and respect we afford them, nor should they be. But of course they must be lying because they have an ax to grind. Revisionist history is how those in power politely describe the writings of the defeated and the victims crushed in the head long rush of conquering empire. The public myth tells us that the losers can do nothing but taut the victorious with their lies. Ignore them and they’ll go away. Besides, the winners never lie about the facts, though we’re told there’s plenty of room for differences of opinion. And just about everything can be reduced to an opinion if you’re looking to obscure.

Of course, one of the unspoken duties of the winners is to distort the written and visual record, so that it conforms to the public myth. This is the principle reason why recently retired or replaced holders of powerful governmental and military positions are handed huge advances to write their memoirs. These sacred tomes of divine wisdom are quickly embraced by other propagandists as the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help their Gods of propaganda. Once in hand, it’s quickly woven into the fabric of the public myth as supporting documentation. Thus another slice of the propaganda cycle is complete and ready for its next rotation.

We possess extremely complex belief systems and world views. How they develop and evolve is greatly influenced by external information sources we rarely question or challenge. After all, these sources are our cultural authority figures, the experts, professionals and intelligentsia that form our cultural propaganda delivery and support system. These sources cannot be seriously questioned, particularly from within, without being declared a heretic. Just look at how Zero Hedge, and other non-conforming web sites, are treated as an example of how heresy is handled these days. While we may not pay much attention to everything we hear or see, our unconscious is absorbing it all, raw and unfiltered. This information feeds into and supports our world view with little conscious thought or scrutiny. This is the reason why repetition is so vitally important to effective propaganda. Our brain always absorbs even when we do not look and listen.

It’s shocking to realize how seldom we change our basic beliefs or understanding when confronted with new information that normally would affect change. Instead, we bend or ignore facts to fit our established world view. John Maynard Keynes once said “When the facts change, I change my opinion. What do you do, sir?” Sadly most people don’t subscribe to this logical practice. Instead, conformation bias and denial are the tools we use to manage and manipulate information to our liking. And there are plenty of governmental, corporate and private citizens ready to help us accomplish this through deliberate and targeted propaganda. The most common personal warning sign that this is happening is the pain of cognitive dissonance, which is usually set off when new information is in conflict with long established and dearly held views.

Rarely do we push through this cognitive pain to reappraise our inventory of established truths for validity or relevance. It’s so much easier to discard ugly deviations, or cherry pick information that confirms our preferred vision, rather than conduct the top to bottom review that’s called for when the facts change. Intellectual laziness is the polite term for this phenomenon. I think a more honest explanation is deliberate and mostly conscious denial. However, even when I’m alert for and aware of this phenomenon, I’m still surprised how often I participate. It’s frightening to see how deeply conditioned we are in the art of self deception. The truth hurts, so I employ the most powerful pain killer know to man, that of denial. It’s extremely difficult to reject popular opinion and strike out on our own independent path. Group think is indoctrinated into us from birth and socially rewarded at every turn. It’s emotionally safer and more comfortable if you stay near the center of the pack. Herd mentality in all its glory, which is corralled by the public myth and which we too are the keepers.

I often say all writers are essentially propagandists and that applies to me as well. I’m using this forum to cherry pick information which I then present in the most compelling manner to make my case. In effect, I’m feeding you my spin, which along with other pieces can be used to build a myth. The most effective propaganda is that whose basic premise is slipped by the reader or TV viewer so smoothly it’s never recognized. Once the premise is planted and accepted, the hard work is done and the fish is quickly reeled in. What’s that you say? You’re too smart to let the wool be pulled over your eyes? That you can discern truth from lies and would eventually figure it out given enough time and inclination? Honestly ask yourself, how much effort would you put into examining something you already believe to be true? Wouldn’t you deem it a major waste of your time? Consider the premise I put forth in the title of this article. Did you notice? Did you question? Or did you accept and start to read?

Most people see information as chunks of data that can be compartmentalized, examined and manipulated. But rarely do we recognize that many of the truths we hold as impeccable are based upon long lines of information. If at any point this information could be proven false, the entire line is suspect, along with your impeccable truth. Consider a long string of mathematical calculations. While there may be dozens of individual problems with separate answers, each answer then feeds into another calculation as a sum or variable. Make a mistake at any point in the line and the entire data stream is corrupt. How we view our world is based upon many preconceived notions and beliefs. Change just one small piece we previously thought correct and everything changes to some extent. Change two or three and suddenly we have a crisis of confidence and a cognitive dissonance. Yet when we feel that pain, how often do we reboot and reexamine everything? Why would you reexamine what you think you know to be correct, particularly when most everyone else is in agreement? Peer pressure and conditioning are hard to resist, even in the privacy of your own mind. “We are never deceived; we deceive ourselves.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

My basic premise and the basis for this series of articles is that the American Empire is ending. In fact, it has peaked and is now in rapid decline. While I can’t offer an exact date for this change of direction, it doesn’t diminish my argument in the least. I’d be hard pressed to give you the date for the decline of the Roman Empire, but clearly it followed the same trajectory. Did Rome’s downward spiral start when the capital was moved to Constantinople in 330 AD? Or when Rome was sacked by the Visigoths in 410 AD? It matters little at this point, except to the historians. While America descends, China and India ascend.

Actually I would argue that while Empires come and go, the culture of environmental and human exploitation and destruction we call civilization has grown in efficiency over the past 3000 years. We Americans now stand proudly at the pinnacle of the insanity, picking up where the Romans and Europeans left off. I’ll leave that thought for another day but I think you get my point.

America as a social and financial entity ceased to function at peak efficiency decades ago. This rapid decline is the main reason behind the massive increase in financial engineering, which is now coming apart at the seams, deliberately in my view. To argue over this or that detail is to be in denial of the obvious. In fact, I consider the official bickering over these details as a deliberate attempt to distort and distract while the final looting and rape occurs. Using propaganda and other psychological operations, our leaders lie about the economic condition of America. They do so not because they expect the lie to withstand close scrutiny, but rather to enable those who wish to believe the lie a plausible excuse to do so. Remember our conditioning. When in doubt, defer to authority and suspend disbelief.

A classic sales technique is the assumed consent close. Rather than directly asking you to purchase this new car, I simply assume you are purchasing and begin asking you closing questions. “Do you prefer the red one we looked at first or the blue convertible with the beige interior? Could you please get your insurance card out of the glove box before you clean out your car? Just sign here and here. Thanks.” You’d be surprised how many new automobiles, rooms of household furniture, whole life insurance, variable annuities and pieces of expensive jewelry are sold in this manner. Something similar to this technique is being used by the mass media to sell us something we already wish to buy. Only they aren’t selling the death of America, but rather its remarkable resilience and miraculous comeback. We’re being sold false hope, disguised as assumed consent questions such as, should we audit the Fed, can we expand healthcare with a public option, will Son of Stimulus be rolled out by the first or second quarter of 2010, should we……..well, you get the picture.

False hope binds us to impossible conditions and situations. Please read that statement again and then let it sink in for a minute.

As long as we believe there’s residual value in keeping America on life support, we’ll continue to pour borrowed money into this mess, rather than roll up the derivatives, fire the managers and start over. We don’t wish to face the reality that we’re in way over our heads. As long as we’re not forced to look too closely at the horrible condition our country’s in, we’re all too willing to do our part and avoid applying critical thinking to the subject. Like an old bull unknowingly led to slaughter because he thinks he’s off to mount another cow, we’re desperately trying to keep alive the magical American myth of life, liberty and apple pie while shielding our eyes from the rotting corpse it’s rapidly becoming.

That’s probably too harsh for the average American’s sensibilities, but let’s ask ourselves a few questions in an effort to find the truth, or at least something approaching the truth as we know it. Let me be clear on something before I get flamed for my harsh tongue. I’m not America bashing in the least. I’m America myth bashing. The American myth of exceptionalism is enabling her destruction as we stand idly by, applauding the mythical facade our leaders and media display 24/7. As long as we cling to the hope that all she needs is a tune up and some minor repairs, we’re condemned to a long and painful death spiral. We’re being sold exactly what we want to hear when we need to hear it. To claim otherwise is to lie to ourselves and to each other.

America is crumbling from the foundation up, and yet we gather around the TV, talking about a fresh paint job and a new screen door, both bought on credit, while handing our grandchildren a bill they’ll never be able to pay. The only way we can live with this lie while perpetrating these despicable acts upon our own family members is to deny it’s even happening. The big lie, which we must continue to tell ourselves, has taken on a life of its own and is consuming everyone and everything in its path. We are addicted to our own public myth and to sustain the lie, we simply ignore the truth. The only way to break through this lie is to go back through decades of propaganda and myth and find out what went wrong. Since this would be too painful, both individually and as a society, we distort reality as quickly as we change cable channels. It’s not just our leaders who are corrupt but we as well.

We have become cowardly, unwilling to commit to the tough decision of setting aside instant gratification in order to assure our grandchildren a home to live in. This is the ultimate act of selfishness, compounded by the fact that we claim we’ve been hijacked by our leaders. Sadly, our leaders are doing exactly what we want them to do, which is to continue the lie. Did we really think we could put our toys and war machines on the charge card and not worry about the bill, just because some politicians said we could? What are we, 5 year olds, pointing our fingers elsewhere when asked who broke the vase? Even if we personally followed the path of fiscal prudence, why didn’t we scream bloody murder, demanding we stop this insanity before the country began its suicidal plunge? Why do we still remain silent? Our hands are bloody and the only question is, how much is yours and how much is mine. Citizenship is all about individual responsibility, something we’ve been avoiding for a while now, at least since we started calling ourselves consumers.

Look at the endless propaganda on TV that’s used to lull us back into a drugged stupor, so we don’t dwell on what we’re doing to our children’s children. American flags wave in the background as chiseled men and full breasted women expound on how wonderful we are for building and loving this great nation of ours. The great American love story, brought to you nightly on prime time TV. This is where the bad guys always loose, men are men and women are sexual objects to lust after. Watch closely children, this is the American dream. Why wouldn’t we love America the myth? It’s everything we want without the pain. Nationalism is our unifying religion, a potentially fatal addiction to our public myth that enables us to fiddle while America burns. More drugs over here doctor, the patient’s waking up.

So how do we deal with this, and what does this have to do with Zero Hedge? Well, I would say it has everything to do with ZH, but then again I’m just a propagandist, weaving my magical myth. But to be honest, in desperation I’m seeking another way, a different path. I’m tired of moving in and out of the various stages of loss and grief. One moment I’m screaming at my zombie neighbor, imploring him to wake up and see the insanity. The next I’m filled with self righteous indignation as another patsy banker’s head is placed on the public pike. Sometimes I start my morning bargaining with unseen powers, begging for a truce or cease fire, only to end my day crying in my hands in fear and frustration of it all. And I’m not alone.

Zero Hedge seems to be a refuge for the walking wounded, a safe haven inside occupied territory for the psychically damaged and demoralized. But we need more than rest and relaxation in order to regain our feet. We need to heal and grow our ranks, to find a way to help ourselves and those who follow us into the refuge. Surrounded by lies and deceit, we are indoctrinated to such an extent that we still speak the language of denial without realizing it. We have no choice but to start at the beginning. While Zero Hedge speaks truth to power, we need to speak truth to ourselves, to talk openly about what has happened and where we’re going. Part of the seduction of denial is the avoidance of personal responsibility. In my view this must stop, thus my declaration that we’re all responsible for this mess. I have no doubt America can be repaired but the process starts at the personal level.

From a financial point of view, I’m sure we’ve all held a winning trade past its prime, giving back money we should have booked. And who hasn’t kept a dog way too long, when we should have thrown it overboard months ago? While I’m certain there are multiple reasons for poor investment performance, a fearless and thorough examination often shows that bad investment decisions are the result of personal shortcomings, such as wishful thinking or denial. For myself, when this happens, I find I’ve violated one or more of my trading rules. They are as follows.

One, know myself, particularly my strengths and weaknesses. Two, know my trading environment or don’t play in the sandbox. Three, always consider the other side of trade. If I’m buying, why is the other guy selling? If I’m selling, why is the other guy buying? Look for weakness in my thinking. Four, from time to time, mentally clear my computer screen of existing positions and then follow step three with each holding. If I wouldn’t buy or sell it now, why am I holding it? Five, trust my instincts, not my heart. My heart lies to me all the time with plenty of help from my brain. Instinctually I usually know when to buy or sell but often I ignore my gut feeling and wind up screwing the pooch. Over the years I’ve found that too much thinking gets in the way and often makes things worse.

These trading rules, as with life itself, requires a clear eyed view and a deeper understanding of ourselves, our fellow man and the real world, not as we wish to see it but as it really is. Unfortunately we still engage in wishful thinking way too often, constantly pushing the hope “dope” button and regretting it afterwards. Considering the direction our world is headed, it’s going to be more difficult to think clearly unless we make personal changes. Old habits die hard because we desperately cling to them for emotional support. Understanding why we do this will go a long way to helping us jettison that old baggage. Even if we are trapped on the crazy train to hell, just because we can’t get off doesn’t mean we must participate in the insanity.

So with the active participation of my fellow Zero Hedge readers, I would like to continue this exploration in a series of “End of Empire” articles, each time focusing on a different aspect of the unraveling. We need to develop our intellectual, emotional and financial coping techniques. Of particular importance to me will be the comments and feedback I get from you, for I assure you I don’t have all the answers. This isn’t a rally to arms but rather a cry for help. Either we heal as a community or we continue to hemorrhage, alone and isolated. It’s going to be a wild ride so let’s buckle up and do this together. After all, there’s safety in numbers, inside the new herd mentality of Zero Hedge.

Cognitive Dissonance

 

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Mon, 11/30/2009 - 03:36 | 145983 Rusty Shorts
Rusty Shorts's picture

trav777,

 

Conquest aside, it's what one does with the land that counts...the Native Americans did not rape the land, and destroy the water as the white man does. What we see today is just the dead corpse of what the North American continent was just 350 hundred years ago. The great forest are gone, literally every major waterway is contaminated, and the land has been destroyed, plowed under and divided by asphault, 80,000 dams that has wiped out almost all migratory fish, the migratory birds are gone, the native grasses are gone, etc, etc, etc.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wiRhVzsXFM

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 06:32 | 146038 i.knoknot
i.knoknot's picture

sorry, doing wonderful things with the land you steal doesn't really matter to the ones you murdered and stole it from, it just makes you feel better about yourself. Welcome to the tribe, primal human.

theft is theft, murder is murder, and the bigger guy usually wins. so it is, and will continue to be, 'till man ends.

reality is just what it is - no more. The self-righteous sugar-coating you looney-bins wrap it in is the bigger problem. "it's what one does with the land that counts..." - good god.

let's try this as a contemporary parallel "let's take the money from the rich and spend it better than they can - then it's okay to take from them...", clearly it would be bad to take from the rich and go to Vegas... Let me guess, you voted for Obam...

and so it goes on... this is going to be a tough road, folks. lots of work to undo.

 

Sun, 04/25/2010 - 03:19 | 153481 Rusty Shorts
Rusty Shorts's picture

..

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 09:42 | 146102 perchprism
perchprism's picture

 

 

Exactly!!   It may not be possible to see past our biases.  History is for historians.  Current events will always be subject to spin spin spin.

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 12:31 | 146272 Hephasteus
Hephasteus's picture

Hey. I want to break his door down and cut his family into small pieces and feed them to thier own garbage disposal to see if he really believes in what he is saying or he is talking shit on the interenet.

You guys are ruining it for me!!! RUINING IT!!!

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 03:16 | 145973 Hephasteus
Hephasteus's picture

I like the way you think. What's your address? I'll check on google maps and see if it's better than where I live right now.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:35 | 145676 Shameful
Shameful's picture

Outstanding post!  Could not agree more with the level of propaganda that is going on in America.  When I started leaning about sales tricks, and other ways to "influence" people it became clear to me that we are being manipulated as a society.  I've been trying to explain the fallacy of false choice to people when it comes to political parties but people refuse to step away from their indoctrination.  Even when they admit to me that both sides of our one party system are corrupt and nothing more then looters they immediately profess a preference to one band of looters over the other.  America is trapped in this 2 sided 1 party system and that is preventing any real political change in this country. 

People don't change until they are forced to, till they "hit bottom".  As long as they can cling to their belief set they will.  To admit that they were wrong is to much for many people.  After all most people see themselves as the hero in his/her own personal narrative, and society teaches us the hero can't be wrong.  I think that we are rapidly approaching a great shift that will force people to reassess their views, and they will be very, very pissed off.

Look forward to more posts keep up the good work! 

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 23:03 | 145782 MileMarker17
MileMarker17's picture

The 2 sided, one party system you refer to has one goal.  It's goal is divide and conquer.  We're in the bread and circuses stage of empire and the masses will be kept distracted until the treasury is fully looted. 

Maybe it's just because I'm nearing 60 and all of time seems to go by faster and faster as I age, but from my vantage point, the decline into chaos is picking up speed.  I think it was the late 1970's that I first sensed the future was not so bright, little things at first...sales clerks not being able to make change unless the register told them how much.  Somewhere along the line, the Dumbing Down of America took hold.

 

Lack of education, lack of common sense and self reliance, lack of morals, lack of ambition and so forth,  I tell ya, there's a lot to fix if it's going to be done.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:35 | 145675 Carpenterman
Carpenterman's picture

My hat is off to you, sir, for this thought provoking post. Now that I have busted-out on my gold and silver shorts and have time on my hands, I will be starting an "Economic Club" in my small midwestern town. Time to get ass in gear, if only for my own sanity.

As an aside, my college sociology professor used to say that the decline of the American Empire began the year the weight of American cars began decreasing. 1973, I believe.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:33 | 145674 Sancho Panza
Sancho Panza's picture

Free healthcare for everyone!!

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:31 | 145672 dnarby
dnarby's picture

I guess it all depends on where you think America is on the timeline compared to the Roman empire, e.g. 100 BC or 800 AD?

IMO this is akin to trying to call a supercycle top, except more challenging.

Even if you are right, and this is the peak of the decline, there's still a lot of empire to go from here, and that rules out the prospect that perhaps this is just the necessary clearing out of old, broken systems to make way for new, efficient ones.

Of course, getting to the other side of that river is a challenge...

 

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 22:06 | 145740 Mad Max
Mad Max's picture

History rhymes, it does not repeat verbatim.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:21 | 145667 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

Thanks CD. That was a great read. I have been lurking here, Calculated Risk and at other sites starting in mid 2007. I am a scientist working in the environmental field. I have spent the better part of the last 29 months getting up to speed. I feel I have been sleep walking in a very bad dream. I am fortunate to have a good income and have managed money in what I thought was a sensible manner (saving). After watching 50% of my investment portfolio evaporate, I began my quest to understand this mess in earnest. I can't begin to express my gratitude to TD, this site and others for the "education" of the last 29 months. I believe I'm not alone in having blinders on through my 50 years on this planet. I try at all times to spread the word about what I have learned and what is going on today wrt the financial mess we are in. Hopefully we can gain enough interest in the issue to re-take this country. I speak daily to people of all socioeconomic levels and refreshingly find that many are not deluded by the MSM propaganda. MANY are ready and willing to act and I believe would rally around STATESMAN representing the people of this country rather than special interest shills. How, in your opinion, should we start the process of creating a third party? or other political entity that could appeal to enough people to win elections?

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:17 | 145664 Green Sharts
Green Sharts's picture

You lament this:

Rarely do we push through this cognitive pain to reappraise our inventory of established truths for validity or relevance. It’s so much easier to discard ugly deviations, or cherry pick information that confirms our preferred vision, rather than conduct the top to bottom review that’s called for when the facts change. Intellectual laziness is the polite term for this phenomenon.

But then follow it up with this:

I often say all writers are essentially propagandists and that applies to me as well. I’m using this forum to cherry pick information which I then present in the most compelling manner to make my case. In effect, I’m feeding you my spin, which along with other pieces can be used to build a myth.

So what the heck is your point?

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:36 | 145673 Daedal
Daedal's picture

The point, I gather, is to think for yourself and to weigh thoughts and ideas on your own (as objectively as possible), and thus come to your own conclusions. CD admits that biases exist with all content, but that doesn't make the content necessarily right or wrong; ignoring uncomfortable truths while swallowing great tasting lies is often a byproduct of cognitive dissonance.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:55 | 145686 Green Sharts
Green Sharts's picture

ignoring uncomfortable truths while swallowing great tasting lies is often a byproduct of cognitive dissonance.

Unfortunately, a lot of that goes on at ZH, where creative license to make up or embellish facts or to misquote or to dream up conspiracy theories seems to be acceptable to most as long as the right people do it and it's directed at the right targets.  

Don't get me wrong, there's a lot of great content at ZH.  But it could be a lot better if we read critically and called people out when they play fast and loose or selectively with the facts, the same way we do CNBC or the Fed or Tim Geithner or Goldman Sachs.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 21:58 | 145727 MsCreant
MsCreant's picture

"read critically and called people out when they play fast and loose or selectively with the facts"

I feel free to do this at any time. I have done so. Do you not feel free to do this?

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 22:52 | 145776 Green Sharts
Green Sharts's picture

I didn't suggest that I don't feel free to point out when somebody doesn't have their facts straight and have done it on a number of occasions.  But most people here don't seem to care.  There was a post by Tyler Durden in the last few days that said U.S. consumer spending was 75% of U.S. GDP and about 1/3 of world GDP.  Actually the numbers are roughly 70% and 1/6, which is half of 1/3.  I pointed it out as did 2 or 3 others scattered through the discussion.  But the discussion simply carried on as if facts don't matter. How many people actually read and think "does that make sense?" as they read it?  The funny thing is that most people here would say they're independent thinkers, yet the herd instinct and groupthink seem to be as powerful here as just about anywhere else. 

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 03:41 | 145985 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

I think you may be missing a critical aspect of ZH - Marla and the Durdens do the hard work and run it up the flagpole, and the readers respond based on their opinion or expertise. I try to balance between the articles and the comments.

There have been a number of times that I have changed my mind regarding an article based on something I read in the comments.

So to me it is not important that ZH go back and 'correct' the articles - what is important is that informed readers add their perspective/corrections/facts and let the rest of us come to our own conclusions.

-Tethys

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 04:14 | 145997 Marla Singer
Marla Singer's picture

We do go back and correct when there is something significant, but often we prefer to just post a new article on the topic. After all, with some big pieces getting 20-30k hits in the first two days and 500 thereafter, what's the point of correcting? That feels far too much like the tiny bit of newspaper acreage dedicated to "errata." ("The Times regrets the error.") Yeah. I bet. Also, there is a certain fidelity to leaving old errors where they lay. You can go see what we fucked up as easily as you can see what we had spot on by just searching. (It's probably 40/60 or so, we just hope the 40% is characterized by blockbusters- you tell us).

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 23:47 | 145822 Miles Kendig
Miles Kendig's picture

Green Sharts,  I remember that thread.  From my perspective one of the highest forms of praise I can bestow is to let a comment stand alone.  Simply because a comment is not expounded upon does in no way make that comment invalid or unworthy.  Rather, from my perspective it reflects my desire and one that I believe is shared by many here to ensure the comment remains unencumbered.

The process of herding and ostracization in human affairs is well documented and I am sure that these concepts occur here as well.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 23:57 | 145800 Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance's picture

"The funny thing is that most people here would say they're independent thinkers, yet the herd instinct and groupthink seem to be as powerful here as just about anywhere else." 

Group think is everywhere, including among those who think they are not subject to group think.

Is there such a thing as weak or powerful group think? Is there such a thing as independent group think, by which I mean does it drift and float like a balloon on the wind, to be affected or directed from within? Or is group think always directed or channelled by an outside force? If the force is from outside, is that outside force a higher or lower consciousness?

Down the rabbit hole we go.

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 09:42 | 146101 Bob
Bob's picture

Talk about laying it on the line, CD!  Beautiful piece of analysis, man.  We are clearly all, although perhaps to varying extents, plugged into the American matrix. 

Powerlessness seems to be the thing that makes the effort necessary for reasonably informed intellectual integrity so damnably painful for those willing (or "perversely" compelled by their nature) to do the work of seeing through the bullshit.  What good does it really do you . . . how does it not lead to profound despair?

Action seems to be the medicine for that disease.  Posting in blogs I regard as an analgesic, rather than a cure.  But it could be enough to free the collective body from paralysis enough to get it moving. 

My thought for collective action:  Sell all our interests in the Squid except the single share of common necessary to attend the GS Annual Stockholder's Meeting.  Corruption is indeed everywhere, including the bathroom mirror, but ya gotta start somewhere. 

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 23:13 | 145796 MsCreant
MsCreant's picture

I wonder how much time they have to read comments and take in feedback like that? I am thinking you would like to see them correct it in the article, particularly if it impacted the point that they were making. I would. Like any newspaper, do a correction in red, or even a retraction if necessary.

If it did not change the impact of the point they were making, I may be inclined to, as you suggest, flow with the herd. I do think that is a slippery slope, but it feels anal to go after it ardently if the changing of the stat does not change the point. Argumentative for the sake of arguing.

In your example, 70 vs. 75, I can keep talking, the 5% difference does not negate the point. It is kind of like a type-O. In the second example, big difference between 1/6 and 1/3. It should be correct because others will cite the stats later, in conversations, and be wrong. Harms one's credibility when it is hard enough to get folks to even listen to you. Got your facts wrong, they have permission to dismiss everything you are saying.

I agree, generally, it is important.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 23:38 | 145818 Green Sharts
Green Sharts's picture

Got your facts wrong, they have permission to dismiss everything you are saying.

I agree, in fact that's the central point I was trying to make.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:14 | 145659 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

OK, I hear the call. Personal responsibility is our greatest weapon in this revolution. We need to come together in community.... Each dollar we spend is a vote casted. Vote wisely....choose local, organic, artisan products. Avoid big chains that deliberately force our local businesses to go under. When Walmart says "we'll match or beat any price", you can be assured that with the printing press culture at their back, they are forcing local businesses out, and once the monopoly is complete, they will rape and pillage local economies as best they can.

Spread the light, share genuine humor, assist your neighbors, and smile freely. This is no time to retreat into paranoia, fear, or anger. To overcome Goliath, we need to expose the achilles heel, and use the slingshot of our focus to bring the giant down. The achilles heel exists, as sure as I write this today, and we will find it.

I look forward to further works. With the Empire ending, perhaps we can gain our Republic back.

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 09:54 | 146114 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

Ok, Lou Dobbs. Please. I hear you're having a presidential exploration committee set up, and throwing a party in Tijuana to announce your candidacy. Where did you get the populist, organic, hippie message in Cognitive Dissonance's above missive? I didn't see it, and I doubt you did either. Myths indeed.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:10 | 145654 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

America is in rapid decline? Definitely.

End of the American Empire? Don't know.

How do we deal with this? Now, THAT is the question.

I'm pretty much powerless. As are nearly all individuals. The only way we will make a difference is working together. We needn't agree on everything.

How about starting with "no additional federal debt"? None. Zero. 12 trillion is enough.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:10 | 145653 ReallySparky
ReallySparky's picture

"One moment I’m screaming at my zombie neighbor, imploring him to wake up and see the insanity." And this line resonates with me.  Lately I have felt compelled to "scream" softly at my loved ones and friends to wake up.  Yet I ultimately feel so frustrated that I can not offer them a solution other than, call your representative. Tragic, agree with Sancho, when will a leader with integrity, honesty and lack of fear appear?  Soon I hope.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:30 | 145671 Sancho Panza
Sancho Panza's picture

When?  Good question.  For starters, we already have some leaders like that: think Ron Paul.  The question is when will these leaders gain enough traction to affect change.  I don't think it will be soon.  When you see 25% unemployment and $250 oil in 2 to 5 years time, politics may start to get interesting again.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:09 | 145652 Daedal
Daedal's picture

Bravo CD. Who do I have to thank for this -- myself? ;-p

Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something.

The masses, I'm afraid, cannot distinguish between the two.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:07 | 145650 xppt
xppt's picture

Great peice CD.  The world is fortunate there is no Hitler/Japan on the march, that Iran does not have nukes... yet. In time these things will change and Americans or whoever is left will have to make tougher decisions than what to do with what is left of their 401k.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 20:03 | 145647 Sancho Panza
Sancho Panza's picture

"Group think is indoctrinated into us from birth and socially rewarded at every turn."

Nice post.  That line resonated with me.

Fall of an empire?  I reckon things would have looked awfully bleak back in 1930 too.  I'll keep an open mind but I'm not ready to throw the towel in just yet.  One person can make a difference.  I recommend a book I read a few months ago to any fans of Ayn Rand or Von Mises, "There Is No Alternative: Why Margaret Thatcher Matters".  Where is our next Thatcher?  Our next Reagan?

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 22:01 | 145731 Mad Max
Mad Max's picture

The US wasn't really an empire back in 1930.  Britain was, and France also to an extent.  Look where they were 15 years later, and then 15 years after that.  Our domestic economy and social structure peaked around 1970.  Since then we've been creating and extending empire while rotting internally.  2000/2001 was the first warning sign, but a massive credit bubble blew it away.  2007-present is the real serious warning sign.

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 12:40 | 146285 Anton LaVey
Anton LaVey's picture

Back in 1930, not an empire? What about Puerto Rico, the Philippines, almost complete control over Cuba and Haiti, not to mention the infamous "Banana Republics" of South and Central America?

I'll grant you that the "empire" was, at the time, much smaller than either France and the UK, but you could already see a pattern of neo-colonialism and interventionism that was fairly clear.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 21:14 | 145697 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

Nice. Thatcher and Reagan are the one's who got us into this mess. Things have been amplified since, certainly. But if you want a real start, it begins with those bozos.

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 06:17 | 146034 i.knoknot
i.knoknot's picture

sign your name and justify your words, idiot.

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 09:26 | 146089 perchprism
perchprism's picture

 

I wonder if it's possible to assign a timeline to the Fall of the Republic, being as how it is a current phenomenon.  Tacitus wrote about every emperor except the ruler of the day, out of political expediency.  How can we agree to the causes, since we are part and parcel ourselves?  Was it the founding of the Fed, in 1913?  Social Security?  Great Society that broke the family unit?  Roe v. Wade that eliminated millions from the ledger of possibility?  Carter's double digit inflation and gold at $850 ($2,250, inflation adjusted)?  Reagan's deficit spending?

The two previous posts argue about Thatcher and Reagan.  Contemporaries.  Perhaps it is impossible to subjectively separate and distance ourselves from current events, because they make us who we are.  We are our opinions, to some extent.

 

 

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:25 | 146494 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

It's quite possible, if you just look at the biggest contributors to the current fiasco. The biggest contributor, as a person, has been Greenspan and his bogus economic theories.

But he's just one symptom of the problem, and that was the mindset of the laize faire, free market capitalism rhetoric. And the whole dismantling of the system which supported and protected the middle class in order to enrich the wealthy.

It hasn't worked, it's never worked, but it does make a few people really wealthy. And it's great at suckering in all the wannabe's who really have no hope. Absolutely brilliant propaganda, but extremely expensive (if not fatal) to most.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 19:59 | 145646 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

Evolution of consciousness is the prime currency ~ all else will cycle to and fro sustaining the passing illusion of "value." For there to be truth there must be a lie -- for there to be reason there must be choice and potential. When Neo discovered it was not what was "out there" that mattered but what was inside that mattered most -- knowing there really is no spoon -- he was able to be become one with it all -- in it yet not of it -- part of it yet a detached observer of it. As distant from it as one could be yet able to send Healing Ripples into which manifested like never before. No matter how hard the intellect chooses to accept or believe any fixed paradigm or reality there is yet a Potential which can move and be moved. Call it paradigm retrace if you will... Keep contemplating CD. Loose the fear of that which is transitory. In duty there is Peace...

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 19:58 | 145645 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and agony. Look at the other side of the story: America is undergoing a renewal process with a thoroughly painfull period at hand. The country will adjust and prevail and find a new role in a world in which the nation state may fail but Americanism will prevail. America was never an Empire, and the strength and value of its people will continue to provide hope for a better future for generations to come. Look at all the people from all corners of the world who keep coming to these shores, this writer included.

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 06:15 | 146032 i.knoknot
i.knoknot's picture

i think the frustrating part of the "renewal" you site, is that most ZH readers both see the situation roughly as it really is, and we see much of the pain involved in this process as being at least partially preventable by taking our blows now, and/or changing course ASAP.

This "superior vision" of ours only highlights our helplessness against the momentum of oblivious MSM trusting sheeple, and a naturally oppportunist elite - even though "we know better", it's become pretty clear we can't do a whole lot.

Appreciating the author's point though, we must do what we can, and we must do it one step at a time. and I, for one, will. good luck to all.

 

Fri, 12/04/2009 - 22:26 | 153533 Rusty Shorts
Rusty Shorts's picture

by i.knoknot

 
Hey "superior vision"

 

 "The self-righteous sugar-coating you looney-bins wrap it in is the bigger problem. "it's what one does with the land that counts..." - good god."

"... Let me guess, you voted for Obama..."

by i.knoknot

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

 - What does one do with the land Einstein ???

 

 - Obama...are you fucking for real dude?

 

Thu, 12/10/2009 - 07:04 | 158753 i.knoknot
i.knoknot's picture

sigh,

 - the concept 'superior vision' was quoted for a reason. duh. Although, i do think most ZH readers have a sense that something big isn't quite right out there... call that vision what you want - time will certainly tell.

that you would respond here, referencing an unrelated quote where i'm responding to your socialist rant is ... well, bizarre. since you did, in my defense:

 - if the land is mine... *I* do whatever the hell *I* want with it, so long as *I* don't "pollute" in a way that negatively impacts those around me (e.g. chemical dumping, unreasonable noise, etc.). Context is key. If i cannot do this, then *I* don't truly own the land, do I?

 - i comfortably stand by my assertion that stealing 'for a better use' is still stealing. and stealing is wrong. you have an argument with that? e.g. fining me for not buying into an insurance pool to help those who are less able = theft. this differs from eminent domain.

  - yes I am "for fucking real", and concerned that socialist extremes are now considered mainstream plausible in the USA. Obama is a scary man surrounded by scary people. I'd have a beer with him, but I don't think he's the right guy to drive this country. (neither was Mcain/Bush/Clinton... so don't even try to label me with that noise)

 - If you believe that taking land for a better use is OK, then it seems safe to assume you voted for "hope and change" as that is certainly not a conservative value.

good luck out there

Sun, 04/25/2010 - 03:13 | 316762 Rusty Shorts
Rusty Shorts's picture

i.knoknot,

 

..

 

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 19:57 | 145644 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

Wow CD

Been reading ZH for a few weeks now but never responded before. That is a totally awesome post. Keep up this series. It'll probably have to be published as a Samizdat after the internet becomes, um, more politically acceptable.

whaleoil

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 19:53 | 145641 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

Oh, quit whining.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 19:43 | 145636 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

you lost me when you abruptly turned to the topic of "trading".

Otherwise, I resonate with the rest of your article. Personally as a 60's youth I knew a great many truths about power and leadership in this country and bad war and racism. After awhile I settled into a wage slave role and raised two kids oblivious to the details of what was happening around me.
While I knew my value as determined by the makers of the rules to be my usefulness as a creator of profit for the corporation, I could shove all that intuitive knowledge into the back of my mind so I could raise those kids.

Now that job is done. During this downturn I was discarded by the corporation that fed me while I made them profits. During my idleness I have re-educated myself to the horrors of what is happening day in and day out. ZeroHedge is an appreciated information resource.

My new heroes are Howard Zinn and Amy Goodman. I also regard Noam Chomsky. I have searched in vain to plug into some group whose calling it is to lead americans to civil disobedience. I have uncovered a truth that personal passion for an issue is requisite for action. Another truth that tripped me up is that personal passion generally comes from a personal situation or affront. Minus that I am simply a rudderless soul looking for a cause or a job.

Americans will take action when a common pain of injustice for an issue binds them together in firey fury.

I have noticed some mention on zero hedge periodically of commenters calling for action to fight against the criminals running the country. I share that desire but bide time waiting for the collective pain to increase as more and more working class folk become detritus.

Sun, 11/29/2009 - 23:30 | 145809 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

For me trading has provided numerous opportunities for introspective analysis of personal strengths and weaknesses which are relevant in the context of many other life experiences.

Mon, 11/30/2009 - 00:35 | 145869 onelight
onelight's picture

Indeed, direct exposure to market volatility is not merely the tracking of noise, rather in it can be found the patterns of natural and emotional life that we experience everywhere else in our lives,and these are the vibrations of life itself...

And so it can be seen as a kind of flight-simulator for the psyche that is also a real phenomenon inasmuch as so many others are making it happen, i.e it is happening even though it is manipulated

I watch it across a dozen large chart screens, waves within waves (and no CNBC), and frankly it makes me think of my sailing on the Bay, inasmuch as the imperatives of flowing and working with natural phenomena are so similar

The ocean does not want to drown anyone but if they will not learn to stop forcing and start wanting to work with wind and tides as they unfold in order to harness sail power, then they will drown themselves surely

Granted the big players manipulate price action in the smaller spheres at least, still they too are part of the natural order, and they are "manipulating" the discovered math patterns of the natural world, and so eventually the larger patterns unfold as they will

So much is lost by chasing, ie thinking that chasing is necessary

And yet because the markets are a mirror to the inner emotional state, such as it is at any moment in time, and phase of life, none of this is easy (it can be traumatizing), and if you trade for real as most do, it is not at all a flight simulator for your brokerage account balance...

It is interesting however to see how the volatility patterns surface fears of losing and the all-too-human fascination with random rewards, both things that we come by honestly, but which make it a real question just exactly how much virtual exposure to that dynamic is really needed or good for a person, when there are so many other useful things to do with one's time, and our communities may need our skills more than we need to trade..

That said, to become adept at shepherding working people's financial resources through the volatility markets, keeping them safe through shrewd risk management, and making good-enough gains over time, come what may, so they can enjoy the fruit of their labors....well that is not without value

So much of what passes for financial management in recent years has been like the role of Carybdus (sp) ferrying folks to the financial underworld...

 

 

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