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An Inconvenient Truth - The Truth Shall Not Set Us Free
An Inconvenient Truth - The Truth Shall Not Set Us Free
By
Cognitive Dissonance
There is a widely held belief among those who wish for ‘the truth’ to be exposed that once this is accomplished the insanity will begin to unravel and a new day will dawn. Unfortunately this belief is erroneous, delusional even, and by itself also a part of the insanity. The uncomfortable and extremely inconvenient truth is that ‘truth’, regardless of where it originates or whether it’s really truth or not, will never set us free because the official lies are not the ultimate source of our bondage. Instead the lies are just a small part of the overall control system, a system that relies upon our willing (some would say informed) consent not only to exist but to endure.
Hidden somewhere deep down inside any discussion of true and false statements by politicians, the Bureau of Lies and Statistics (BLS), psyops and disinformation programs, WikiLeaks or any other governmental, corporate or individual propaganda is a simple and fundamental truth that’s widely known but carefully ignored. We are being lied to by hundreds of entities about dozens of different subjects, all for the purpose of maintaining or increasing control and power over the masses. The truth of these fundamental lies is all around us and yet we are still not free.
The only way a relatively small nucleus of people can control a much larger population is through psychological manipulation regardless of whether it’s by way of brutality or baubles. Spending our days minimizing, dismissing or bargaining with these controlling lies is simply the process we use to avoid dealing with our own internal self deception. This is also a well understood and universal truth that is self evident, obvious even, to those who wish to honestly look. Yet it is denied as well.
We hide this fact from ourselves by differentiating between big and small lies, from their evil propaganda and our harmless little tales. And we always tell ourselves the ultimate controlling lie, that we don’t really ‘lie’ so much as we tell small fibs and half truths in order to feel better or to get through the day. We want to believe that we are different from ‘them’, that we know we aren’t really lying because we know ourselves and thus can’t lie. We all deceive ourselves into believing that to ourselves we are true.
The ugly truth is that we expend a tremendous amount of energy each day maintaining our extensive network of internal denial and self deception. The result is a mishmash of fact, fiction and fantasy we call our world view and the act of denial itself becomes such an integrated component of us that for the most part it’s seamless and nearly invisible. The control system enables our denial by feeding us a constant stream of ‘news’ and information that serves to reinforce this internal narrative while massaging our confirmation and normalcy biases.
Why do we need ‘proof’ of something that’s self evident, of something we know to be true? Exactly what sort of proof would satisfy us that we’re being systematically and consistently lied to? More to the point, what would we do once the perfect proof is offered that we would refrain from doing without it? So many of us fall into the trap of demanding specific and infallible proof before we’ll ever consider changing our beliefs, an almost impossible condition to meet and precisely why we require it. Others demand that the liars admit they are lying. What then? Do we forgive them for their past transgressions so we won’t need to confront them (or ourselves) the next time it happens?
What proof of truth (or falsity) do we need to receive in order to be absolutely certain? And will we ever receive enough proof to overcome our aversion to taking a stand and declaring that enough is enough? All of these questions are reasonable queries to ask, but we avoid them like the black plague because following them to their logical conclusion would sweep away all our self deceptions and delusions. Asking these questions, then candidly answering them, would force us to be honest with ourselves, an outcome we collectively and studiously avoid.
Clarity of Vision Contrary to popular belief clarity of vision, which is what truth and proof is supposed to provide for us, is the last thing we want because clarity removes any remaining plausible deniability we might cling to in order to justify hiding within the faceless herd. Clarity compels action in the same manner that a clear and present danger compels action. If we don’t act once we finally have clarity, especially after demanding it for years, then we must confront our own lack of moral courage. In effect we either deal with this cognitive dissonance or we kick the can down the road and bury our denial in another layer of justification and rationalization. For example, let’s say you’re startled awake at 3 AM by the apparent sound of someone breaking into your home. Are you going to roll over and fall back to sleep until you receive absolute “proof” of a break in or are you going to react to the information at hand no matter how limited it might be? While the answer might be obvious, the question is so simple it’s often dismissed as silly. I’m not talking about confronting the potential intruder, but simply acknowledging his or her presence instead of demanding more proof before rousting yourself from bed. Of course you’d acknowledge the potential break-in. Then you’d begin to react accordingly. What it really comes down to is not whether we receive enough proof to act, but rather how close we perceive (or deny) the danger to be in order to overcome our reluctance to deal with whatever it is we are avoiding. The noise downstairs demands our immediate attention because it’s coming from within our home at a time of night when we’re most vulnerable. It’s hard to ignore this frightening situation. However as long as we can successfully deny proximity we can avoid the singularity of confrontation regardless of the actual circumstances. And a skilful manipulator will encourage our denial using a variety of tools and methods. Consider that the Nazis took deliberate steps to enable the concentration camp inmates to remain in denial about their inevitable destruction. Most knew what was really going on, but the façade was convincing enough to enable just enough denial of proximity to keep the majority calm and under control. This was mutually beneficial for both parties involved, allowing the Nazi’s to use very few guards relative to the large number of inmates. Our master(s) benefit from our denial as well, thus they expend large amounts of energy to enable our denial rather than just forcing the issue. It appears to me that those who are unaware of, or outright reject, their inner spiritual connection are more likely to engage in fantastical thinking and denial framing all in an effort to deny proximity. Let me make it clear here that I’m not talking about a God or religious entity, but more like a centering or recognition of our presence and purpose within the cosmos. This ‘knowing’ helps us to maintain a realistic perspective and inner calm when others become deer in the headlights. Our masters are experts at frightening us with continuous fear based mental images of dangerous boogiemen while promising us that the danger will never be proximate to us as long as we do as we’re told. And we play along because doing so enables our own internal dishonesty. In the case of the downstairs burglar it rapidly progesses well beyond clear and present danger and has morphed into red alert proximity since we’re trapped upstairs and can’t leave without descending the stairs and moving even closer to the very danger we’re trying to avoid. But the insanity coming out of Washington, Europe, Libya, Japan or wherever today’s madness is emanating from is somewhere way over there, meaning not proximate to us and thus easier to push aside and deny.
Learned Helplessness
Until that is the danger is proximate and can no longer be denied. Of course once the obvious can no longer be pushed aside the next step is to trot out another inconvenient truth redefined in the form of an excuse, that the problem is so big that we can’t do anything about it. Intellectually we declare we’re quadriplegics trapped in our own wheelchairs and unable to do anything about the situation. This self victimization is called learned helplessness and it’s an example of how we actively participate in our own impotence and subjugation. And its use is not restricted to the uneducated and poor. In fact it’s a highly refined intellectual tool of the educated and professional classes who twist our self victimization into superiority or entitlement impulses.
What we really want, what we so desperately seek, is for someone else to shoulder the personal and emotional risk that comes with taking responsibility. We definitely want the good outcome, just not the sweat, tears and pain that might also come with it. Our insistence that we know exactly what happened, the so-called truth, followed by our never ending demand for even more proof, is simply our psychological defense to any assault upon our carefully constructed world view that we are just helpless victims and powerless to do anything except to be the perfect injured party and take care of ourselves. This is also the perfect excuse to abandon any sense of obligation to neighbor or community.
The beauty of being the unfortunate victim, of being a planned and intentional failure even if that plan is on a subconscious level, is that this condition is easily accomplished and usually requires little to no active participation on our part. Thus our needed plausible deniability comes from doing nothing, which then reinforces our apathy and justifies our inaction. It just doesn’t get any better than this. All that’s left to do is to construct an intellectual shield stout enough to justify our inaction, child’s play after decades of personal experience shifting blame to the spouse, sibling, boogie man, politician, dog or boss. Our ego immediately takes over and skillfully massages our lying eyes and guilt feelings.
Lost to Ourselves
It’s important for the reader to understand that I’m not necessarily speaking of professional, career or even political failure when I address the concept of being a planned failure. Ultimately these are all artificial constructs, fantasy representations of our denied inner being, the outward manifestation of an ‘us’ we wish to project to those around us for a variety of reasons and purposes. Instead what I’m referring to is our inner being, our spiritual entity, our essence, that part of us that might be called the soul which only we answer to.
This unique sanctuary, our own safe haven or refuge we can flee to when we wish to engage in contemplation and reflection, can be the source of our inner strength and moral courage in the face of hostility or our pitiful failure to be a moral person and spiritual entity. Because we cannot hide from ourselves while visiting our inner being, for the patently self deceptive this is a place to avoid at all costs.
The external ‘us’ often has little connection to our true inner self unless it is deliberately pursued and sought after. Our inner being doesn’t come looking for you or me, but rather the other way around. I have found that the more superficial our outer skin is, the further away we are from connecting to our inner truth and meaning, often described as our centering, knowing or intuition.
The weaker the connection to our inner self the more desperate we become to believe the self validating lie that if only we knew what really happened with unerring proof it would expose our external tormentor (and keep our internal one hidden as well) thus forcing other people to finally act. Is it really surprising that someone who lacks moral courage and strength would try to find others to do his or her bidding?
We convince ourselves that with absolute proof of the official lies in hand the illusion would be unequivocally exposed, thus compelling ‘we the people’ (meaning ‘other’ people) to reject them and it. This is the lie we tell ourselves to remain hidden from ourselves and safely within the consensus herd which acts as an extremely poor substitute for our missing inner communication.
We wish to believe that simply knowing the truth will somehow displace the lie, similar to Archimedes splashing water over the sides of the tub as he settles in for his weekly soak. Somehow this absolves us from the obligation to act because "the truth" is now known and the liars will wither away in the bright disinfecting sunlight of truth, justice and the American way. The ugly truth is that a ‘truth’ (as well as a ‘lie’) has power only when it’s embraced, not simply because it exists. Since we don’t wish to embrace the inner truth, we must support the external lies in order to use them to feed our plausible deniability. While we might not fully understand this form of self deception our masters are well aware of it and skillfully use it against us.
Many truths lay abandoned on the side of the road for years, decades even, because their abandonment serves the needs of nearly everyone, not just the official liars, to ignore their own culpability. Once a truth is exposed the liars have no control over the truth except in their (our) ability to convince us to ignore or distort it. The spin doctor’s only purpose is to enable our own self deception. They don’t ‘hide’ the truth as much as they help convince us that it’s in our own best interest to ignore or distort it. You really don’t want to look in there, do you? The con man never forces the mark, but rather skillfully leverages the situation.
Seductive Submission
This entire process reminds me of the quintessential seduction scene in a Harlequin romance novel. The women is ‘taken’, seduced in the arms of someone who may or may not have her best interest at heart. Very little is said about her willingness to believe the lies and promises, of her own desire to suspend disbelief and accept the attractive lies, other than to present the supposedly mitigating factor that she’s emotionally overwhelmed and thus ‘not herself’. After all if you’re not yourself you certainly can’t be held responsible for anything your ‘self’ might do, right? Naturally no one wants to ask where we might find the ‘self’ if it’s not ‘here’.
She’s being told what she wants to hear and its music to her ears. The incredible natural high we receive when our egoic lies are confirmed by outside sources, conceits we actively solicit precisely because they induce that endorphin buzz, puts to shame any man made pharmacological magic created to date.
Of course this behavior isn’t restricted to the fairer sex. Males are just as accomplished at self medicating as the female side of the species. I guess surrendering to passionate desire (and greed) is justification for any transgression as long as the emotion is pure, intoxicating and oh so good. We wouldn’t let our children get away with a bullshit excuse like this yet it seems fine and dandy for the adults in the room.
This is a classic example of self victimization, but it’s diplomatically presented as a near innocent who is being intentionally harmed by a scheming evil doer who’s only after her lying labia lips. Notice that it’s rarely pointed out how the liar would never be in her arms in the first place without her willing consent and active participation. We hear about his ‘power’ over her, but very little about her willingness to submit and let someone else be responsible for her (in) actions.
Layers of self deception this deep can only occur when we are patently dishonest with ourselves, yet this type of behavior is glorified in far more ways than just romance novels. Nationalism is a perfect example of the process we use to allow ourselves to be controlled by others, to surrender to the herd mentality and any responsibility for our actions. We’re all familiar with the seductive urge and the invisible pull to engage in herd behavior where the anonymity of the crowd washes away any personal responsibility for ones actions.
There’s nothing more we need to know, no other proof needed, other than the certain knowledge that we are lied to on a daily basis. This is obvious and widely known, but rarely openly acknowledged. Our need to know the truth and our demand for unequivocal proof that it is the truth, proof that we often insist must come from a person of ‘authority’ (usually one of the authorities who told us the lie in the first place) is a reflection of our inner reluctance to remove the liars from our lives, starting within ourselves.
Doing so would require us to move out of our comfort zone and face who and what we really are, co-conspirators and dance partners rather than helpless soap bubbles blowing in the wind. Our masters know this and to further enable our self deception they constantly shrink our comfort zones, giving us all the more reason to remain safely huddled within our contracting world.
We say we want freedom yet true freedom is just as frightening to us as truth itself. For the most part we are kept animals and as distasteful as this may be to our sensitive egos we like it this way. Many years ago I overheard one woman tell another that “Children like it when we set boundaries and rules for them.” I agree. Very young children want, in fact need, to know they are safe in a world that is capricious and unfathomable.
So it makes sense that externally imposed rules and boundaries would give children an artificially implanted sense of order and predictability, at least until their own conditioning is complete and they can maintain their own illusion of personal safety through denial. The same applies to us as adults. We all want our freedom just as long as it comes with a reasonably clear set of rules that thankfully keeps us from straying to far into personal accountability and responsibility.
Love Your Captivity
While few among us would actually admit this we are trained to love our hamster wheels and for the most part we do. Or more accurately, we fear having no hamster wheel because then we would need to be self sufficient and personally responsible for all our actions in a world that has no overall order imposed upon us. That’s the key difference here because presently the prevailing attitude amongst us hamsters is quite simple. Just show me the maze, hand me the rule book and I’ll figure it out as I go along. Or at least I’ll survive long enough to feed and breed. This is of course a crass oversimplification of our social order, but you get the idea.
Because we allow ourselves to be seduced by the rules of a world that’s created for us we are easily manipulated by the controllers and the control system. It does this by making the rules……wait for it……wait for it……capricious and unfathomable if we don’t submit to the whip. By surrendering our inalienable right (and I submit our inner moral and spiritual duty) to be free and independent souls in return for a set of externally created and manipulated rules and conditions we condemn ourselves to a life of predictable infantile responses that are easily controlled.
The cognitive barriers that define our comfort zone and the lines we claim we don’t wish to be violated are all an illusion presented to us. And after sufficient assimilation they are perpetuated by us. They are thus easily modified by us each time the line is crossed by the liar, affording all of the liars plenty of wiggle room. “OK, I’ll give you one more chance. But don’t cross this line or next time you’re really gonna get it.” The inconvenient truth is that the battle isn’t with the external liars; it is with us and within us. And our external liars, our masters, unquestionably know this which is precisely why the insanity is escalating as they pile lies on top of more lies.
As this spinning top begins to wobble out of control and despite our protestations and demands for the truth, we really don’t want the lies to stop because if they do the day of our own internal reckoning will also be at hand. The definition of collective insanity is our willingness to be destroyed as a group so long as we are not judged as individuals. Or worse that we are not forced to judge ourselves. But even this we’ll deny knowing in order to maintain our plausible deniability. Thus we begin to understand the reason for the continued lying by all the parties involved, victims as well as the victimizers, and why I constantly describe the insanity at its most basic level as self induced.
We talk about financial moral hazard on Wall Street and within the Too Big To Fail (TBTF) banks as central to their escalating greed and corruption. And yet we all participate in a similar social moral hazard that fully enables our abusers. We’re trapped inside this insanity because to acknowledge it means dealing with a life time of denial. It’s so much easier to accept one more beating by our master rather than to come to terms with a lifetime of self abuse.
Presumed Informed Consent
Tragically, because we willingly participate in our own subjugation, regardless of whether it’s occurring on a conscious or subconscious level, the abusers see this as informed consent and the green light to continue the abuse. This is why they often tell us exactly how they’re going to abuse us long before doing so. In our role as victim we declare the abusers to be sociopaths and ourselves as virginal bleeders in order to shift blame and responsibility away from ourselves. It’s all part of the dance of denial and the abuser will accept the role of the heavy in exchange for his or her own rewards.
We may say we want the abuse to stop, but our verbal and non verbal communication says otherwise. How is this any different from the Harlequin woman saying “No, please stop” in the arms of her seducer while returning each kiss with passionate urgency? This is the unspoken communication between the abused and the abuser that is witness to and evidence of the real insanity of the dysfunctional relationship, regardless of whether it’s between husband and wife, nation and citizens or Ponzi and the world.
By the way I am in no way, shape or form justifying or condoning the abuser, rapist or thief simply because I’m explaining the process involved along with our own participation. My position is simple. If we can’t even honestly discuss our own weaknesses and foibles, we are well beyond self redemption. I often say that we are only as sick as our deepest darkest secrets and examining how much of our world is considered verboten and not to be discussed demonstrates this concept superbly.
We’ve all been in relationships where the dysfunctional discourse goes something like this. I won’t ask difficult questions of you if you won’t ask them of me. And I’m not talking about being sensitive to someone’s unsightly mole or dandruff, but rather avoiding a healthy discussion about our spouse’s basic character flaws in order to be spared our own undressing.
This is the fundamental basis for all dysfunctional relationships, including the present one between an intentionally self absorbed and distracted population and our enabling and manipulative masters. As long as we are given the choice between believing the lies and rejecting them, the vast majority will accept the lie rather than risk the perceived emotional and psychological harm of challenging our victimhood which supports our fantasy view of how the world works.
Because we don’t wish to undergo a rigorous self appraisal or emotional unveiling, we completely blow out of proportion the intellectual and emotional harm we will suffer if we do so. This serves the dual purpose of creating plausible deniability while feeding our inner victim. In this way we fulfill both roles of the dysfunctional relationship, that of the abuser and the abused. I call this process a familiar circle jerk with me, myself and I. Add anyone else and the room would become too crowded.
The master’s lies are a direct and personal challenge delivered to us on a daily basis and our controllers know that as long as their lies are not seriously confronted they are safe………and so are we. So they work very hard at keeping the lies from being contested, expertly using a variety of tools including ridicule to turn public opinion against truth. In reality it’s really not that hard to seduce us with lies when so very few of us really wish to hear the truth to begin with.
This explains perfectly the assault upon Assange and Wikileaks from all sides. He’s promoting himself as a truth speaker and thus challenging the lies not so much by what he’s exposing, but by the very fact that he exists. He is a danger to everyone, not just the official liars. If he is accepted as a truth speaker, we the people must then do something about the truths he speaks of. We definitely don’t wish to be forced to confront those who lie to us because then we would be required to openly admit we participated in the lying. This is why we want them to lie, to allow us to remain out of harm’s way. “Daddy, tell me another lie so that I can believe it’s the truth.”
True or False, it Doesn't Matter
Assaulting the truth messenger also removes the need to know if he’s a disinformation agent or a real truth speaker. What’s missed entirely in this discussion is that it doesn't matter if he is or is not a psyops operative. It's the message of ‘truth’ he's delivering that’s the source of our power, not the actual revelations. The powers that be don’t fear the truth; they fear people embracing the truth. Ultimately this is the secret to our inner peace and freedom. Understand that it is not the truth that will set us free because we can free ourselves at any time. The inconvenient truth is that perpetually seeking the truth while doing nothing about the ‘truths’ already established is the crutch we use to avoid facing the original lies that begin within.
When we have abandoned the willingness to honestly look within for truth, when we are complete strangers to ourselves and no longer posses the capacity to 'know' something without the need for external affirmation we then desperately turn to poor substitutes from corrupted external sources. This is why there’s an increasingly desperate need by the population at large to seek 'proof', 'truth' and 'facts’ which must always be secured from those who are widely considered to be 'authorities'. The only authoritative source worth consulting when seeking truth lay deep within us, unless of course we are also hopelessly corrupted.
Once we are completely lost within our own insane world of distortions, lies and self deception we become obsessed with finding ‘truth’ everywhere else in order to validate and sanctify ourselves so that we may continue to perpetuate our own lying. This infantile need for affirmation after we have lied to ourselves and to others is similar to the child who has just lied, then seeks confirmation from the authority figure that the child is still loved. Often the adult knows s/he was just lied to, but chooses to say nothing to prevent opening their own can of worms. This in effect makes the lie socially acceptable and further cements the bond between the two dysfunctional parties. It’s also how we teach our children the art of self deception.
The pathological liars and self deceivers we have become serves to compel us to continuously seek external affirmation that we are not a ‘bad’ liar, meaning socially unacceptable, precisely because we can’t provide that ‘proof’ internally. We can’t hide from our own lies since the one thing we always know is the source of them. As was so wonderfully illustrated in the movie ‘Inception’ we know where the root of the lie originates, thus we must dig ever deeper into our own insanity in order to bury our self deception. This in turn just compounds our raging dysfunction. Because everyone engages in this behavior, yet no one talks about it, everyone’s insanity is considered to be a normal part of human nature.
This is the pathology of our insanity and precisely why it must be vigorously dug out and then thoroughly rejected. A quick splash of paint or a rough wall papering will not suffice. If this is not done, ultimately we revert to worshiping Golden Truth Idols and false True Gods as saviors of our lost and abandoned souls. If we are honest in our desire to seek truth and we begin a fearless search within, we eventually come to realize that the external seeking of ‘truth’ is immaterial and all just part of the control system we gratefully embrace in order to hide from ourselves.
04-10-2011
Cognitive Dissonance
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Cog....I love your posts....ever consider just posting a link to the original "The Matrix" could have saved you a ton of time....Some of the concepts in The Matrix are genious...it is the rare person who after becoming an adult...has the pychological make-up to become aware and see/know/live in the truth and not have a complete mental breakdown. You cannot talk people into seeing something or being awake no matter how hard you try...it seems to me that the few people who do end up seeing things as they are...are the ones with zero credibility becasue they were drunks, drug addicts ect...came to the end of the line....realized all there previous mental constucts were wrong and started over...wounded but honest and real....Would love to have a conversation with you...but I hate talking through posts and emails. Bottom line..for most people ignorance is bliss...that is until you here the intruder walking up the stairs.
Every single essay I post here on Zero Hedge starts off as a conversation with myself. I have a thought or idea and as I put it down on paper I begin to work through it. Often I find my thinking is flawed or based upon assumptions that are incomplete or have been planted there by others.
So I work through the process and come out the other side with a better understanding of the subject and myself. It is always uncomfortable for me as the author because I am constantly challenging my beliefs.
The point is that I am writing for myself to myself. When I am done if I think it will add to the general conversation I refine it for public consumption and then post it. But it always starts off as an internal dialogue.
CD,
You are one of my favorites on ZH...I always enjoy reading your work.
Here's an analogy to help explain our predicament -
Suppose there is a network similar to Animal Planet, except that all of its shows are about humans and teaches all about our many habits, instincts and behavior patterns. Let’s say this network already exists, but Human Planet is not available to all residents in your area or across the country. In fact, only about 1% of the population subscribes to this channel and it’s very popular with them. Think about that for a minute. One percent of the population leaves their homes every morning and knows more about what you are likely to do (see fight or flight response to danger) and what stimulus elicits what specific response from you and the rest of the herd. Most importantly, the 99% of those that don’t get Human Planet don’t even know it exists.
Back to my original statement of why do you suppose think there is almost nothing on television teaching us about the habits and psychology of you and your fellow human beings? Simple. Because it is far too lucrative and important for the 1% that already knows this information to maintain their advantage and control the other 99% of us.
We don't know what we don't know. Everything that's been put in your head and passing itself off as knowledge has been put there either by a government run "education" system, government controlled mass media or from your family, friends, co-workers who have all gone through the very same government run "education" system.
We are much more basic or primitive than we want to admit when it comes to how we act and interact with one another. In fact, you can watch most any show on Animal Planet, National Geographic, etc and simply replace the particular animal the show is about with “humans” and much of the information would still apply to us.
"Because we allow ourselves to be seduced by the rules of a world that’s created for us we are easily manipulated by the controllers and the control system. It does this by making the rules……wait for it……wait for it……capricious and unfathomable if we don’t submit to the whip. By surrendering our inalienable right (and I submit our inner moral and spiritual duty) to be free and independent souls in return for a set of externally created and manipulated rules and conditions we condemn ourselves to a life of predictable infantile responses that are easily controlled."
So spot on it's not even funny. We're worse than flagellant priests at times, "Ow! that hurts! Oh! Give me more! Must conform! Stop! More!" ad nausem.
Once again CD, awesome contribution. I am humbled on a daily basis from your (and others) input on ZH. Please, don't stop now -- with this crazy world of ours I need mental/intellectual stimulation!
Thank you.
It is a source of endless fascination for me to read which part(s) of my essay triggers others. Every author will tell you that they have favorite phrases, sentences or paragraphs within the body of their work. I do as well. The fact that others find value in other sections just proves to me over and over again that we never know what will make the tumblers align in someone else. Thus the reason I keep on writing.
It doesn't matter how many times something has been said as long as there are people who find value in it being said one more time.
"The fact that others find value in other sections just proves to me over and over again that we never know what will make the tumblers align in someone else."
One of the things that I find fascinating is the ability for authors to lay down complex thought within their work and have that appeal to many readers. This is opposite to the way my mind works in the fact that I can conceptualize and understand abstract and/or complex thought (even to a degree that sometimes staggers myself), but I have a complete inability to then convey that information in a cohesive manner to others in a way that envokes an emotional trigger in the reader.
This is especially true in ethical, philosophical, or complex systems.
Hence the reason I enjoy authors that are able to do what I am not, and yet still provoke a logical/mental playground for me to explore. Part awe, part jealousy, and part intellectual feeding.
Good times, and thanks again ;)
EDIT: Grammatical/syntax mistakes.
Thank's CD !
OK Socrates. From the perspectives of real, imaginged or hybrid paradigms - we can all agree that gasoline is $4.00/gallon and 20% of us don't have jobs. I believe the proletariat doesn't give a rat's ass about a philosophical (non) solution.
The article was worth the wait! Brilliant. A girl cannot read this and walk away with her Cinderella Syndrome intact. Thanks, as always, for all your time and hard work.
Thank you.
I was hoping my female readers would not be put off by the Harlequin romance reference. I used it primarily because it's a reference that is well know and thus would work well.
To counter any perceived slight I took great pains to mention that men do the same thing. We just don't admit to it and we cover up our participation with a little bit of dirt and lots of macho posing.
Funny you should mention this. The wife and I sat down a few weeks ago after a nice meal and a bottle (or two) of wine and discussed women and the 'Cinderella Syndrome'.
Man; before I was married I had no clue to how much (or should I say the extent) of manipulation American/western society places on women in the form of: image, expectations, definition of beauty, societal boundries, etc.
Crazy stuff. I feel for you gals.
I feel for you gals.
I don't.
I find women to be instigators of their "Cinderella syndrome" rather than victims of it.
It's blatantly apparent in the dating scene these days. Women thinking they're "all that", and holding unrealistic expectations because of it.
I've not found a truly emotionally independent woman.
Single women talk about how they want to find love and be loved ...then in the next breath start badmouthing men ...men they picked by the way.
I have no problem with a woman being emotionally dependent on me. But don't sit there playing judge and jury.
Cranky,
Yes, however there are some women who 'feed' on this ideal and live on it. Like a woman who is so devoid of her inner 'compass' that she must live vicariously through the ideal that society produces. These women are very common. However, I've started to notice lately that there is quite a large subset of women who are sick of this precept and have started breaking out of this 'mold'.
Somewhat of what you describe is a woman who is scorned and bitter. Mind you, I have been out of the dating scene for quite a while and we may be talking apples-and-oranges.
I'm sensing more and more that it isn't a male/female thing, it's a human thing. We have been so sold on the reactions to our presentation, that we spend countless hours in salons and shopping (and many other activities) to show others our worth. In the end, others' opinions rarely offer proof or anything productive. It is ourselves we have to answer to. Net equity lies within.
Like a woman who is so devoid of her inner 'compass' that she must live vicariously through the ideal that society produces.
I find most women to be devoid of an "inner compass", holding tenaciously to one or more fantasies.
I've had no success finding a woman who lives in the real world.
But then I don't really hope to. At the risk of sounding chauvinistic, I believe a woman's mind is "hard-wired" to be emotionally dependent on a man, and I don't see it as a weakness. I believe "God" (or whomever) intended for men and women to live together, the "natural order" of things you might say. Making a woman emotionally dependent on a man facilitates that, just like a man's mind being "hard-wired" to care for a woman, bring in the bacon, etc, again, the "natural order" of things you might say.
Problem is, many women don't want the natural order of things these days. They refuse to acknowledge their natural mentality.
And yes, many men are abandoning their natural mentality too, abandoning their natural mentality as a leader, becoming wimps ...which is disgusting to a woman.
As bad as the pressure is to conform to these often unrealistic expectations, it is just as difficult, if not more, to function amongst others when you try to stop pretending these ideas are valid.
This is why I constantly talk about how we are the control system. We perpetuate it, support it, even expand it. We are wed to it by our training and conditioning and we use it as a poor substitute for what we could find if we were to look within.
Indeed. Quite the classical 'feedback loop' and very much self-perpetuating.
I cannot imagine.
It's hard enough to look into the 'mirror' and see the image, how much more so it must be when you look into the mirror and see not yourself but an image constructed for you. I'm not denying there isn't pressure on men to conform to certain norms, but I've only come to recently appreciate how much more so this is true for American/western women.
Good article CD...my own search has led me to a conclusion that there is a deep fear of lonliness within humans that manifests itself in different forms.
The aggressor is lonely, so is the aggressee. Its a symbiotic relationship.
The moment we are born, we see separation, between us and the environment. This separation cannot be explained but can be manipulated in many ways. I am not sure if there is anything called as truth out there...as everything for me is relative.
I haven't yet had a chance to digest your thought provoking paper. I see myself many times in many lines trapped in the delusion that I can make a difference outside my reach:)
One of my greatest trading failures after all these years is the early < 25% stop loss trade. Since profit is my focus I seldom have plan B in time ha!
CD, once again you amaze me my friend:) I would love to share a fine meal and several bottles of a very fine Argentine Malbec (Gascon)with you some summer evening and talk of the world and our own backyards.
Thank you
It is so rare to find someone to engage with who is willing to listen as well as talk. So many people projectile vomit their thoughts rather than conduct a conversation, which by my definition is a two way street.
How many people do we know (guilty hand raised) who are just waiting for their turn to speak rather than actually listening to what is being said?
EXCELLENT POST CD !
Thank you.
I spend way too much time crafting these essays. In the end I always hesitate posting them because then they are gone and I must start all over again. The amazing thing is that I have over a dozen nearly finished pieces waiting in the wings for me to give them the final review and proof reading before releasing them.
I find that my point of view is evolving so quickly that if I leave something on the back burner for more than a few weeks, I need to rewrite it to include my newest thoughts. I am rapidly becoming outdate. Time for a major upgrade. :>)
Yeah I know, things tend to run fast and it is hard to get around to it....but the fact is, people NEED these kind of posts just like the giordano's post, excellent peace of work...I translated it and posted it on a french web stite...might do the same with yours....People need to be "decontionned and then reconditionned to reality"..
Thanks again CD
Oh, so you admit you're using ZH as an outlet for your mental masturbation?
I spend way too much time crafting these essays.
Understatement.
In the article, the picture of the word "TRUTH" made up with Lies says it all.....
I agree. That's why I left it for the end.
Banzai7 showed me the value of combining images with words. My ego hopes people will take the time to actually read the words will gazing at the attached images. :>)
One inconvenient truth appears to be the possible conclusion that humans are still just animals, seeking to survive and even thrive. Those who are subjugated dislike it because they cannot achieve the level of success of those in control. So they break free of one system of control, only to either find another, or worse, replace it themselves with a new system favorable to themselves. The latter ensures that others are subjugated to them.
I wonder if there is any escape.
i suspect this is why Voltaire had Candide escape into his garden at the end of the novel.
plants don't lie. they are always brutually beautifully honest.
I guess one difference is that plants don't complain when the weed chokes them, they simply die. Does the dying sun get upset as it goes supernova? These things are systems, governed by laws. Those in control would argue that psychology allows for us to control and be controlled (CDs harlequin analogy), and breaking free requires... what? Overcoming our natural wiring? I'm not even sure such a thing is possible unless one withdraws from society entirely. Maybe that is fleeing into the garden.
Farmers, education, and real money set us free, existence without any of those is not much fun...
we are rich as hell... we have lots of great education/books truly awsome shit... modern communications are recreating the 4th dimension to infinate... US weapons have no comparison... US bread and circuses are the best fuck it... the girls are warm just like the food... plenty of beer... lots of guns and bullets... Hollywood is fuckin' amazin' if any yall down there catch a wiff of this... lifeblood amenities are on the shelf
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but alot of powerful people are just rich and like it
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all that cool shit is sustainable as long as we dont go apeshit saving human sex in afghanistan for lithium and opium... if people start to think we are douchebags
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let me say it now FUCK YOU MY MIGHTY LEADERSHIP
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and yo i editied this crap... rite here... infinate money is just a power grab... do you trust in the US or not, are we free are we going to starve are we going to kill one another... yes or no... now, who needs all this fucking money
Nice essay CD. You have an interesting pov.
My ego thanks you.
I love that I can change my point of view at any time and for any reason. When we are wedded to a belief system we are the biggest losers. I find that when I treat beliefs like a fragile butterfly, to be gently held and released at any time to fly away, it leaves plenty of room for other points of view. Then I am a rich man because I hold nothing.
CD
In reading your most recent missive, I am reminded of a couple of quotes that had meaning for me:
"It was as if he were drunk, and now he is sober. It is as if he were asleep and now he is awake"
Gospel of Thomas
"Spirituality is the art of being awake"
Meister Eckhart
"I came to understand that my most profoundly held beliefs were lies and illusions."
Emmit Fox--The Sermon onf the Mount
"Many of us have tried to hold onto our old ideas and the result was nil until we let go absolutely"
Bill Wilson
Bill
From what I have learned the basis for Alcoholics Anonymous was and remains spiritual in nature though some of the terminology has been scrubbed from the message in recent years in an effort to reach more people. It is our resistance to change that binds us to the insanity. One must purge before one can be refreshed and begin the process of renewal and rebirth.
I have several friends who are long term recovering alcoholics. For them the key seems to be to remain in the here and now one day at a time in order to constantly refresh. It works for them so who am I to question. Instead I just learn and benefit from their revival.
Well Done CD.
I PDF'd it, if you don't mind.
Once I hit the save button it becomes public property. Thank you for finding enough value in my words to consider saving them. You honor me.
Thanks for your compelling essay; a very detailed description of a state of human consciousness, with its mechanisms and abilities to deny self-awareness. As you say, and which is what I believe to be the point of your thought process; take personal responsibility for your self-awareness ie truth. Knowing the truth about oneself does indeed set you free. There is nothing to hide once you come to terms with your weaknesses and strengths, shadows and light. There really isn’t much need to dig very deep within oneself, cause as you say, our habits of denial are so well crafted by the ego that it takes a well-trained eye to spot, yet they are right in front of us all the time. So the task is to develop a well trained eye. Sometimes it is good to find a trusted guide who has taken the trip to help you get started on your way.
One comment I would make about your paper is what I perceive to be a conclusion you have come to which implies that a person who begins to “wake up” will be compelled to challenge what you call “our masters” or the ones manufacturing the lies. While that may be true for some, I understand there are many ways coming upon the truth of ourselves can and will lead each one in many directions, all of which integrate not so much to challenge the prevailing state of human consciousness, but to create another prevailing state of consciousness. Resisting the current state of consciousness manifests resistance from that state of consciousness. That “collaboration” of consciousnesses is providing the foundation for what will unfold next. If it is born in resistance so it shall be. It is my humble opinion that the current state of human consciousness must, and will inevitably collapse. I believe we are witnessing this as we live and breath right now as the forms created by that consciousness fall under their own shallow foundations. If there is no alternative outside of this reality that is collapsing then it is back to stix and stones so to speak.
The most significant challenge to the current state of this world and the powers that be would be if enough people simply began to withdraw participation in its forms, thought processes and lies as a result of self awareness. The biggest lie, as you wonderfully described is how we each have found a way to deny our own inherent birthright. With that birthright (freedom, creativity, individuality), being true to ourselves makes it possible to experience freedom regardless of all the limitations we find around us.
You seem to be using the words 'challenge' and resist' interchangeably. They are very different words. Yes, upon looking within and discovering more about yourself you will challenge the masters. But that does not mean you will resist. In my book challenge simply means that you disagree with. It doesn't mean you push back against, depose, erect barriers, fight with etc.
However I suspect that any master who is challenged will consider it to be opposition and resistance. So your idea, which I agree with, that another prevailing state of consciousness will be created will also been seen as resistance and opposition by the masters. Withdrawing will also be seen as opposition to the prevailing control system.
uhhh... good try, CD, but "The War Nerd" and says it far more succinctly: at core we humans are SOCIAL animals; we look to, we DEMAND a social network around us to prevent our vulnerable little bodies from being PUMMELED by a rival gang, so we invest much of our time & mental energy building up our own little gang (extended family, clan, tribe, nation, empire)... and securing our place in the HIERARCHY in it.
About the SUREST WAY TO GET YOURSELF KILLED in human affairs (if no lions or other dangerous beasts are walking about) is to insult the clan leader, tribal chieftain, local warlord, (or be accused of "sedition" (treason) by the state on behalf of a distant, but even more powerful ruler), all of which could land you in misery & disaster very quickly. (For a fairly recent, 'modern' example, sailors aboard royal navy warships could be FLOGGED - half to death - at the nod of an officer.)
Thus, our human minds spend mucho energy FIGURING OUT WHO is the ruling power, and trying not to offend them, even if this endeavour makes us twist logic and rational discourse into knots.
Interestingly, TOUGH, brutal times sometimes overturns the normal order of twisted "kow-tow logic," the classic example is the American Revolution, where the focused intellectual firepower of the founders was backed by the several magnificent (if contentious and at times regressive) ages of progress the preceeded it: the Enlightenment, the Reformation (with its decades of bloody religious wars), the Renaissance, etc.
CD - thanks for all the hard work that goes into your contributions.
I believe the elite are very vulnerable, and can be taken down without a shot fired... if only people know a little truth and act in their own best interests. By that I mean we need to stop feeding the beast.
1. Stop buying anything except food, fuel, necessary medicines and PM's.
2. Do not do business with a large, national bank. Move all your funds to community banks.
3. Stop watching TV and for gosh sakes, don't buy anything advertised on TV.
4. Don't vote for another democrat OR republican. Opt out or vote for a third party. Forever.
5. Extra credit - Barter or buy used goods when ever you can.
Do this and you'll be working more for yourself and not some corporate/gov amalgam that wants to feed off of us. If 1/2 of us did this it would bring down the system without firing a shot. STOP FEEDING THE BEAST.
yeah, lets go back to the stone age. F*** that, I happen to like my TV and the programmes i watch, it helps me vacantly relax if that's ok with you, and occasionally i LIKE to buy stuff other than food and lumps of metal. I love it too, the worlds' a colourful place to live outside the oppressive paradigm of masters and slaves and mind controlling laser beams, you might want to have a little peekaboo some day. I dont want to live in a world of shitty little inbred towns where folk are swapping the fillings of they're teeth for bread and beans then walking home to read the bible to their embittered children by candle light.
Give me "debt slavery"(though im not actually in any debt) and TV, throw in some beer & pizza and a games console, a Pro Tools rig and top of the range monitoring system, ASDL and trading platforms... that'll do me brother, thats my life and i happen to be enjoying it, and if this is slavery i intends to be enslaved for as long as possible. The only thing i can think of that's worse than living in the west, is not living in the west. lol stop watching TV and bring down the elites, get the f*** outta here, and while your there wake up and give yourself a shake man. I'll feed the beast alright- here kitty kitty kitty, i got some beans for ya.
What did TV ever do on you Mr? Tell you lies?? Ha ha ha, too funny, you cant even handle a talking box telling you lies and you want to bring down the system. And build what? a system where the talking boxes don’t tell lies?? I tell ya, some of the nonsense on this site is comedy gold. oh dear, everyone’s' a lying bastard. LMAO QUADRASPAZ, MAKE IT STOP!!
This one's been in the Matrix too long. Disconnecting him would be fatal. Better to just step over the lifeless corpse.
Yes that's it, walk on by, pretend you never heard it, back to your comic book stories. Of course you're not a fantasist or anything outrageous like that, the matrix had a big effect on you, no big deal, i have seen it to, its not as if you own a Spiderman suit… Isn’t that the movie where we’re all in a hyper-simulation and when we are disconnected go to a world of spaceships, eating slop, wearing rags and downloading karate porn through chunky Scart-lead data ports in our skulls? Where anything can change if you just believe hard enough, (conveniently) rendering our actual reality extremely negligible, therefore to be dismissed, as it can change outrageously with just a little truth, concentration and will power?
Yeah man, really powerful stuff, I wonder why it appeals to so many men though; perfect emotional template to slice and dice reality into digestible but mostly rejectable pieces perhaps? a perfect mental scalpel to create a mesmerizing “us and them” scenario out of any situation imaginable, fantasy gone apeshit perhaps? It’s not a surprise the ideas have been hijacked by those looking for a safe and pleasant ride home. (no wonder America went down the tubes, you all want to be fucking super heroes to the point where you WILLINGLY delude yourselves, give me a break, it don’t matter who’s running the freak show, its still a freaking freak show. The arrogance of thinking you could change anything if you knew the truth is staggering, you probably cant even change your own pants without face-butting the floor) Is it not the case that you are just a useless bunch of twats who hide behind the fact that "they dont have the truth"? Wouldnt you still be a useless twat if you had the truth?
A lot of people don’t get the stinging irony of the matrix, that irony being that the film The Matrix, actually is the matrix. When you plug into it, its ideas intend to set you free for entertainment purposes, persuade you to believe through a medium of utter gobbledygook that you are something you’re not, that there is “a way”, a higher path for “special ones” who believe and look within; sadly it gives carte-blanche to all kinds of wankers in the world who forget to UNPLUG! and therefore end up going ultra quadraspaz , living out the theoretical and intellectual equivalent of trying to suck their own feet while headbutting their balls.
Unfortunately it really is a dangerous emotional fallacy that has left a lot of people evidently perturbed, yearning to split the world up into unmanageable elements that can never be part of any stable equilibrium(such equilibriums as 99.99% of the world’s population are mad and stupid, and you aren’t), and so will never actually exist. Similarly with the Fight Club horseshit, the energising meme has infected the in-patients, and they just burn out wasting they’re talents in the search of something they know not of- and every time they put they‘re finger on it, it just disappears in to hyper-complexity, which is fine because then the bullshit can continue. You all scramble for the truth, but the truth is that you are actually scrambling to get away from it…you don’t know how to handle it or what you are doing with the truth you seek, that’s why you feel the need to put frilly knickers on it.
I think CD’s out-pouring is perfect for this site, the people here have no idea they are drowning in they‘re own crap every time they open they're mouths, and this poor chap is ripping himself to pieces trying to justify your sufferings now by flittering over the actual definitions of what the fuck truth actually is. Sorry, I just have to laugh, but will give you some truthful advice that you should really consider…learn to relax (and you don’t need to accept you are a slave before you can either, I‘ll tell you that for free) Other than that, put it all on a blog and have windbags groan over it.
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Peace out hairyhole.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjYaAO1GvE4
or, " the truth shall set you free but first
it will piss you off." somebody said that before.
People can't handle the truth.
The truth is you don't need the police to arrest someone.
The truth is you don't need a District attorney to prosecute a crime.
The truth is everyone is sitting around waiting for the criminals to police themself.
Great article CD. I enjoy your insights. However, this is something I want you to know:
I've read all your articles and they make sense to me. I feel like the information you post is second nature for me. Here is a prime example: my friends said this of me and continue to say it; "If you want to hear the truth, as a drunk, a lunatic or Subprime JD". I have always been a brutally honest person, with myself AND others. I have broken up with every single girl I dated before my wife. In fact, I broke up with my first girlfriend (age of 21) on my birthday! It mattered not that it was my birthday, it was time for the relationship to end.Ive seen countless others drag on failed relationships for years and it makes me sick. As soon as I realized that the relationship was doomed for some reason or another I said "ok, this isnt gonna work, its time for us to be truly happy and to split up because you want X and I want Z". It wasnt "true" to stay in said relationship and i ended them. Of course the girls would cry and beg me not to go, but i would tell them that deep down inside they knew its what they wanted. I would tell them that they were NOT what I wanted. Straight shooter my entire life.
When I have an argument with my woman, I get right to the point, immediately. I'm 5'8'' and readily admit that I wouldnt mind being a bit taller. But since Im 5'8'' thats as tall as Im going to get so that is that.
Perhaps your work has a drastic effect on others, but for me its like drinking a cup of tea. When I first heard of the 9/11 theories I gave them an honest look. Once I saw the physics of the matter it made sense that the planes were not the cause for the buildings turning into dust. Countless of others have said "theres no way the gov can do that, i just cant accept that." I would state "the facts speak for themselves."
Even in 4th grade I angrily responded that the US killed "innocents" during the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I was sent to the principals office as a result of the outburst. I knew the class would frown at me for disagreeing with the official line that it "saved lives in the long run" I stated that innocents were killed and we knew they would die. It was the TRUTH! I have always been like this CD.
Wow impressive, you should start your own revolution.