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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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Thank You CD. I plead guilty.....But I'll pass on the guilt complex.
Even worry is a form of paralyzing fear, our greatest enemy.
Opposites such as truth and lies, up and down etc. are only found in the physical realm. The man at the north pole says this sphere is rotating counter-clockwise, while the dude at the southpole says it's clockwise. Are they each half right?
One great advantage of seeking the non-physical aspects of mind etc. that sustain the physical, is that it diminishes the instinctive fear of death, thus making it easier to honestly confront that strange human we see in the mirror.
I too am guilty. I have resigned myself to the idea that I will never get it 'right' but will always be learning. What a wonderful thing to be condemned to.
ZH readers might also take a look at www.jrnyquist.com for some critical analysis of our predicament
If people stopped dealing with their "beliefs" and concentrated on what "is" or the "real", we'd have half a chance as a species...I'll be waiting...
An Inconvenient Truth - The Truth Shall Not Set Us Free
More ZH bandwidth wasted by CD's mental masturbation.
Of course the truth sets one free ...assuming truth is ACCEPTED when discovered ...something most people refuse to do because it interferes with their cherished beliefs.
I was sitting at the counter at a local restaurant one night eating dinner and talking with other people at the counter. One guy says he has a son in Iraq. He carries on about how we're over there safeguarding freedom. I say it's bullshit, we're over there keeping Iraq oil priced in dollars and control Iraq oil in general. He gets very upset. I ended the conversation. The truth interfered with his cherished beliefs.
Christ said truth shall make you free. What he didn't say, but is inferred, is truth must be accepted when discovered, not denied and ignored.
Truth is the #1 thing Christ taught. Truth in every facet of life. He said those of truth hear his voice. He also said (indirectly) those of truth are the ones who will make it ultimately ...meaning those who reject truth won't make it.
correction: Christ said: You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.The acceptance can be inferred
It's a shame you didn't get much further than the title because among other things I discuss this in my article. But why waste your time actually reading when you can infer all you need from the title.
Oh, so you lied in the title? :)
But why waste your time actually reading ...
Yes, quite correct, reading your drivel is a waste of time.
And yet you waste your time commenting. So who is the greater fool here?
Writing an article about truth and lying in the title?
I think it's quite apparent who the fool is here.
Truth is all religions are bullshit. They exist because groups with a common belief system have a better chance of survival and thus religions have been selected for via evolution. Belief systems can have positive value for survival and be completely untrue.
Truth is all religions are bullshit.
Yes.
Aeschylus
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THANK YOU ~~ !! ~~ ANOTHER GREAT INFO-BACKED ZEROHEDGE PAGE FOR ME TO ADD TO MY FAVORITES !! I love this website !! sincerely .....
I agree. I learn far more from Zero Hedge than I can ever hope to give back. The balance of payments is gonna be a bitch when it comes due. :>)
CD,
what ZH attracted me (and likely a lot of others) is that so many in-spi-rational thinkers/writers post here and you are one of my top five (WB, ORI, you are another two) that I regularly look for. And WHAT a journey! And I am looking forward for more. As Neo is in Matrix, we are all fighting to rid of the programming and we must embrace the duality, and walk the talk.
Thanks for sharing
I would consult your wife before making any hard donations, except as intellectual donuts, to ZH. Women have their own logic...but when it comes to donations they all know deep down..."that diamonds are a girl's best friend!"...That's where hard rock café always is!
The last time a large segment of the intellectual population struggled philosophically with the willingness/fear of individuals to act on their conscience, the movement was called existentialism.
It is curious and telling that our current world situation has so many parallels to that era which preceded World War II.
One trait that many who lived through that period often recall was the seeming inability to influence much less control outcomes that logically and intuitively seemed inevitable but distant.
you would love...Albert Camus.
Anyone who wants to peer into the knowledge that the madmen of that time exploited to their own ends, should take a look at Gustave Le Bon's "The Crowd-Study of the Popular Mind".
A fascinating piece of work which landed on the night tables of both Hitler and Stalin.
There are many precedents to existentialism. All of them attempt to make sense of a world that doesn't work like we were taught it should.
At the opposite extreme of existentialism, Calvinism and predestinations of various stripes have the exactly same motivations.
And they all end in a desperate "Escape from Freedom" per Erich Fromm.
The Fourth Turning and 80 year cycles.
I'm always amazed how nature is full of cycles inside of cycles inside of cycles. But man in his arrogant hubris denies the effect of cycles upon him because he is supposedly sentient and thus he has free will. Cycles are only for the animals, not for humans.
It's not nice to mess with Mother Nature.
Ah, but the herd is the real problem isn't it? Since it's always been this way in recorded history it does seem like man's natural state doesn't it? We have the herd and shepherd, and the rare few who "get away". The individual who tries to break away are scorned by the shepherd and the herd.
I see no way to change it since this does seem to be man's nature. Sheep, shepherd, or outcast sheep. Not ideal choices, but this is not an ideal world or we an ideal species.
I'm sure many will take offense, fine. How often have you seen people fall back to sleep when they get comfortable again "Oh a republican/democrat is back in office, everything is ok now". Most only feel the discomfort of the material pain of being fleeced, and once they get used to that pain or it ceases of a moment they go back to being a happy sheep. I'm certain pain drove many of us here, and I wonder when that pain is removed how many will go back to watching their TVs and back into their old mental frameworks.
[W]e willingly participate in our own subjugation... .
A theme relentlessly and brilliantly explored by Georges Simenon in his "psychological" (ie., non-Maigret) novels.
Ironically, CD, the truth of this insightful article might be liberating indeed, not as the prime mover, but as a means to individual liberation. It is much appreciated.
maybe it's time to bust out some Sartre's Being and Nothingness? This is kinda low-grade Truth nonsense. Or simply refer to: "Nothing is true. Everything is permitted." The last words of Hassan i Sabbah, Old Man of the Mountain.Which isnow used by a major videogame - is that like a double CG negative truth-out?
nice article. its tough to take a critical look at ourselves in the mirror. i think all humans have the ability to act on our perceived lies about us and the lies told to us. One great thing about the bible(i am not religious) is it had a plan, you follow these truths and ever loving salvation will come. very similar to point you make about wanting to believe the lies, because we have a lot rapped up and invested in our American dream. BUT there comes a point where the lies we believe are so unpalatable, that you must do something. Everyone has a different threshold to where enough is enough. look at Egypt,Libya Bahrain Iceland etc etc. PIIGS ain't far behind. I guess if we are gonna have a revolution we need a plan. The only way to make it easier for people to make the leap over that threshold is for them to have a plan.(in my opinion). Right now there are a lot of media and alternative media out trying to keep people calm and also trying to get people afraid, very little to non are talking about what we want out of society, Even here, every one has the feeling that they are on their own. BUT if we had a universally generally accepted plan for how we want to live in a different society, i think many would take the leap
So what's your plan?
to be the bridge between the great and the small.
the micro and macro cosmic, to be the bridge. man has a
history of doing it, his survival is founded on it. of late
we just forgot or were misled like lemmings to the place
where there is no bridge, just a cliff. followers beware.
or as g.c. says... wake up !
Though leaves are many, the root is one;
Through all the lying days of my youth
I swayed my leaves and flowers in the sun;
Now I may wither into the truth.
While others have done so,to date I have not.
A well deserved "Thank You" to ZeroeHedge and 99% of the knowledgable posters and all that submit content.
GREAT JOB!!
"The unexamined life is not worth living" delivers the same impact and saves much time, effort and energy. CG's brilliance could benefit from a ruthless editor.
If everyone learned at the same pace using the same tools and the same words we wouldn't be where we are today, meaning in a heap of shit. I know many people who suddenly 'got' something because they read about it worded a different way or it was written using different analogies or a conversational style rather than dry text.
Personally I think it is the height of arrogance to think that the phrase "The unexamined life is not worth living" is sufficient for everyone simply because it was for you. But then again that's just me.
I also thank you CD for this fascinating treatise on "truth." I think the question we all ask here regularly is "Is JUSTICE attainable" myself, "but that's just me." When I substitue this word for the word "truth" I find myself relaxing in the easy chair "much more easily" while reading what you say. Insofar as "truth is not attainable" is simply not true. More often than not "it is all too easily attained"--and why I believe the "truism" of the above quote is so profound. "Truth unexamined is a VERY dangerous thing." Having a "point of view" is the most basic form of "truth manipulation"--we're manipulating ourselves when we say it. To the point: "for the expert" it has nothing to do with lying. Why are so many politicians lawyers? It's not because "they're just liars"--although one could argue that and be "very right." But no, that is "not the truth" at all. In fact "they are victorious with our hearts and minds" because they are making an argument and thus engaging in George W. Bush's famous "truthiness" thuys "allowing us to believe in the alternate reality." Don't mistake this for Mickey Mouse make-believe, though. They're LISTENING very, very, VERY closely. When "the goobermint" get's involved they know "they're not dealing with the ultimate liar"--but in fact "the ultimate truth"--namely, this guy/gal has to go back before the people and "Justify my Love." And there's that word again, isn't there? "Justice." That's the "meat and potato's of living." That's why I'm fascinated by the Middle East and "what will Japan be"--as well as "Bailout Nation" in the USA--where's our hero? Where's our JUSTICE League? "And then the story begins...
Great article CD. I read, and reread it very slowly. Getting sicker and sicker as I went along.
I am going to forward this to all that I know would take the time to read it.
It does give me a heavy heart to read it and think about what you wrote. I have always thought of myself as a truth-seeker. Trying to awaken others to the perils and injustices of modern amerika. I guess I need to look a little closer to home.
One line from "V" (my favorite movie) that was so significant to me that I used it as a forum signature seems to sum up your enlightening work:
"If you are looking for the guilty, you need only look into a mirror."
pods
The fact that you were getting sicker and sicker as you went along is a good sign. It means you care enough to care. That is also our Achilles heel because it blinds us to our weaknesses. But even that's OK because if we can learn once, which got us to this point, we can continue to learn.
Growing up is tough under any circumstances. Growing up in a society that rewards adults with 6 year old minds is nearly impossible without shredding a few egoic viruses. We are getting better. Or fault is in thinking we are already better. It's all relative. We are better than most, but no where near as well as we can become.
Isn't that great? It gets better from here, not worse. I find that though inspiring.
Oh absolutely. I agree that it is a good thing. I have gone through a big transformation in the past few years. An awakening of sorts.
Just when I think I have come a long way, I see another stretch of that road.
I have gone through many stages. Hard drinking end of the world powerlesness, depressed, etc. Then moved on to being a control person, who had to think of every scenario to survive.
Now I realize that this is going to go on longer than I thought, and all I have to do is get through it. I do not have to find that one piece of information that will bring the system down. The system is designed to crash (thanks mako).
I just have to prepare my family for what is ahead. If others are looking for information, I will help, but I do not have to seek out and save everyone. Your piece has opened up a new avenue for my development.
Great work, I will have to go back through all your essays.
pods
I do not have to seek out and save everyone.
A hard lesson to learn for those who give a damn. If I can just find the right words, they will get it. Some, maybe. Not everybody.
Consider Noah and the Ark. God told Noah to build the Ark, and to warn everyone of the coming destruction. Noah did both faithfully. But God gave Noah the dimensions of the Ark at the beginning. There wasn't room for any of the people that God told Noah to warn. Lesson: Maybe you are only supposed to save yourself?
I have found with myself that while each time I think I am making great leaps it was in reality as you stated, simply stages we must go through to understand the futility of each. It is only when we realise that we are unimportant and not primary to the unfolding stages that humanity at large is progressing through that we then begin to concentrate on our own self development.
Then the real work begins.
Thank you for your thoughtful and honest conversation.
Perspective is so important to your truth. Some Russian friends, a couple, told me their view of America from Soviet Union perspective was a place of freedom that allowed one to work hard to gain the fruits of their labor. The man had a PhD in Physics and the wife a gynecologist...so well educated people.
Their perspective of America from America was: "If they only knew that the bureaucracy in America was as controlling as the bureaucracy in Soviet Union, they would have never left the Soviet Union". They admitted the form of the different bureacracies were vastly different, but the control of the people were the same. I think we all must evaluate the meaning of freedom. We are actually free from what?
Nice work, CD. We appreciate your thought and effort!
"We" as in "WeeWilly" or as in "Wee" and "Willy"?
Just curious? :>)
Metaphor of the cave. You can turn and face the light but you;re still in the damned cave.
I enjoy your trips into thinking more deeper than the customary post. But, I have several issues with the topics covered here.
First is your examination of the use of the lack of knowledge as an excuse for lack of action. This is a self sabotaging behavior in some, but not all persons. You say, know thy self and you will spontaneously know what to do? I disagree. Knowing yourself is important. By that knowledge, you will gain insight on how to react to a given set of circumstances. The question that your spend most of the essay on dismissing, is knowing what those circumstances are. To know that, requires knowledge of the truth to some degree of accuracy. What is the truth? I am no philosopher, or an entertaining writer, so to spare us all, I will slovenly resort to cliches. Truth. A cross between an onion and the allegory of the cave.
On the surface, the mass of sheeple's view of the truth is Amerika Idol and what the latest tweets are saying. Libya is some country in Africa, or maybe Asia? well anyway, we need to help those poor people
A much smaller group venture into watching the MSM misinformation campaigns. They know that oil is going up because of trouble in the middle east and increased demand from our improving economy, at least that's what Bubbletiromo told them
A yet smaller subset venture onto the internet, where between clips of GonG action, and emails from nigerian general looking for partner to most help them expatriate very large money sums, they hear of corporate dealings, cash flows, and a maze of conflicting charts and graphs. Oil is gushing upwards because of incompetent money policies from the Bernank. One site says gold, the hedge against disaster. The next site warns gold in a bubble get out now.
Further down the rabbit hole, you hear the MENA is a giant conspiracy. "They" are after the oil and driving the prices up. Depending which site you lean towards, "they" could be any combination of CIA/NWO/Socialist/Soros.
And yet further down we find that we are all being played by our reptilian masters...or was it the tall grey faction against the small greys?
So, I ask you CD, which "truth" is supposed to be self evident to our inner selves? Which truth do we take up arms against? Each different truth would require a completely different set of methods to deal with. Your inner self may tell you how to react to a given circumstance. But what circumstance is it? One of the major control methods of the TPTB is by getting people to act, but based on superficial knowledge of the truth.
Acting without possessing significant supporting facts does not cause positive change. It causes chaos. It is how the TPTB manage humanity. Do you know what happens when you act without detailed reasonable knowledge? You get idiots putting bullets into a president thinking it will get him a date with a movie star. You get an idiot taking the fall for bullets going into a president who was probably going to stop a useless war. You get morons blowing up buildings full of innocent civilians who have nothing to do with what your protesting against. You get wars fought for the wrong reasons against the wrong people. You get sheeple calling "remember the Maine" Anyone found those WMDs yet? At least 99 congressmen thought it sounded sort of truthful at the time. Think a little more reflection on the truth could have helped?
Those same methods of lying to keep the doomed walking quietly into the showers were the same methods used to convince those guards that they were acting to do the right and necessary thing. Perhaps someone should have stopped and verified the "truth" they were acting under. The Gleiwitz radio station attack was the truth for many. twin towers for others.
Self delusion and victimization can be excuses. Limitless demands for more facts can just be cover for procrastination.
But yet CD, there are some actions, whos results are completely irrevocable, so dire, and with implications so far reaching, that the truth must be known to justify the act.
When you hear that intruder CD, before pulling that trigger, would you hesitate and ask yourself, "is that one of the kids getting a drink of water?" if not, you probably had a lot of thirsty kids.
of course, there is alot to be said for reconnaisance by fire. tell us what you find. if you're right, you'll be hero. if not, you might get internet privileges in prison for good behavior.
"Truth. A cross between an onion and the allegory of the cave."
If you really believe that then you are lost!
Truth is a very simple concept and to question it only causes confusion. Let me make it simple for you. 2+2=4 (true)
If you begin to question that simple truth then you are truly lost. Every thing will become wishy washy at that point. You will never have any firm ground to stand on. I'm sorry to break it to you but humans do not get to decide what truth is. We do not know every truth so it is OK, and even necessary to ask questions and be weary of things that can't be proven, but that does not change the definition of truth.
Good article CD. I like your analogies. Being a Christian man, it comes up somewhat short for me, but I know it is true that people can turn off their conscience ("sear it as with a hot iron" to borrow an analogy) and convince themselves that any thing they do is OK. (or at least not to listen to the inner voice that is telling them it is not)
And for all you Christian haters out there, I am fully aware that innumerable atrocities have been committed in the name of Christ. I'll give you a simple explanation for that. When Lucifer failed to stomp out Christianity, he switched tactics and decided to become the head of the church on earth. He then changed the ten commandments. (compare the catholic version to the bible for proof) He also helped the clergy to translate the Bible in a way that was contrary to many of it's concepts and vigorously defend their dogma's by killing and excommunicating people who disagreed.
I'm sorry to break it to you but humans do not get to decide what truth is.
Yet you point to 2+2=4 as an example of truth. That is true only because humans say it is. Humans do get to say what it true. All of mathmatics is created by humans.
Plus, think a little more carefully.
Cog Dis was being general, due to limitations on space and attention spans. There is way more to be discovered in the specifics of each of the subjects he raised. Here is something a little more specific than he mentioned:
Personal truth - what is true about me, but maybe not about you. I (being human) get to state what this truth is. I can be fat or slim. Can I decide what that truth will be?
Universal truth - what is true for everybody. Again, I (being human) get to state what this truth is - even if I don't know that it is true for everybody else. I know it is true for me, and so I get to say it is true. Everyone is either dead or alive. Could I decide what the truth is for me (suicide or embrace life)? Can I decide that truth for everbody?
Can I decide what the truth is about Hitler? (no)
Can I decide what the truth is about my neighbor? Let's say I throw acid on him and he is disfigured. Did I decide that truth? Or maybe he was going to commit suicide and would not still be alive except that I decided to intervene. Did I decide the truth that he is still alive?
Humans decide what the truth is all the time. But it is correct that they don't decide all the truth.
"Yet you point to 2+2=4 as an example of truth. That is true only because humans say it is. Humans do get to say what it true. All of mathmatics is created by humans."
That is the most ignorant and absurd statement I've ever heard. I guess you get to decide how many electrons are circling around the nucleus of a helium atom too huh? Wow. Where did you go to school? I would like to know so I can keep my kids as far away from there as possible.
Further more, your post goes a long way towards proving CD's thesis. If you can deny the fact that 2+2=4, then you can deny anything. You are the problem that is causing what the article is all about. You can look at the most undeniable facts and deny them. I have an exercise for you. Take four pennies out of you pocket and put two in each hand. Now, put them together and count them. Repeat this process until you are convinced that 2+2 does in fact equal 4. But on the bright side, when the boot is stomping on your face, you will be able to convince yourself that it is for your own good.
I am in private communication with several people who call themselves Christian and they all tell me the same thing, that I have fallen a bit short for their taste but that they still have hope for me yet. :>)
I speak about universal ideas and concepts. So I'm not surprised that they appeal to a wide range of religious people who also find that I come up short. I purposely avoid certain phrases and words because I am trying to appeal to a wide audience. Consider that I am casting my net wide in the hope that I may gather in many different fish.
Excellent article, and great photos too. I especially love that goldfish image! :-)
I agree with almost everything in your article as being a valid generalization. I sometimes wonder what it is like to live inside the mind of "normal" human beings. Your article fairly well describes what I always assume that experience must be like.
Though I have theories, I have never understood why everyone did not take the intellectual path I took at age 4. Different adults gave me different answers to even the simplest questions. That made it obvious to me, as it should every 4 year old intellect, that if we want to understand the world, we cannot depend on others. I also observed that different groups of people in different parts of the world had radically different ideas, habits and tastes in food, clothing and so forth... which made it obvious that humans everywere were NOT learning from reality, but adopting bogus ideas from the people around them.
For me, my decision to observe and think for myself at this point was obvious, a total "no brainer". I decided I must continuously observe for myself, draw my own provisional inferences, and rinse and repeat endlessly as long as I live. I have not had any reason to change that decision, or consider any other modus-operandi.
Why others never figured this out, I never fully resolved. However, I could observe the corrupt intellectual processes that others embraced, practiced and suffered, and many of these were indeed what the article describes. Actually, I assume everyone did arrive at this recognition somewhere along the way, but refused to make the obvious change to their intellectual habits. Somewhere between age 4 and 8 I came up with a visualization of myself as an "alien in orbit around the earth, observing a strange species". This metaphor identified my separation from the ideas and insanity of the species, and my intellectual independence and individualism. This has served me well, but annoys just about everyone else, because they want me to be insane just like them. Sigh.
Just for laughs, here is the best and most fun definition for "sanity" that I've come up with so far.
Sanity is seeing what's in front of your face, and not seeing what isn't.
Though that's a rather self-explanatory definition, read it carefully and slowly for more subtle understanding.
The other tiny contribution I'd like to make to this article is to point at the concept we call "fiction". I'd say the related concepts "fiction" and "abstraction" are the core of the "fatal flaw in human consciousness". The endless lies, fraud, misdirection and manipulation described in the article are made possible by the inability of most humans to recognize the reality or justification for each and every idea and concept their consciousness processes. In other words, humans (and their friends, parents, teachers, "authorities", "celebrities" and endless soundbites) jam random ideas, claims, assertions and statements into their consciousness without any real first-hand observation, validation or even consistency checks. Therefore, when their minds process these mental units (concepts, etc), the result is chaos and confusion, not consistency and clarity.
Usually people make one of two mistakes. They either recognize they are totally confused and accept just about anything as reasonable, plausible or possible... or they learn to attach rigid "true" and "false" to each idea based upon the assertion of some authority they or their parents, friends, teachers, government chose. Those who adopt the "confusion" model are easy for anyone to manipulate. Those who adopt the "authority" model cannot ever actually understand anything because they accept any assertion from their chosen authority or group, and nothing whatsoever from anyone else.
The "fatal flaw in human consciousness" is that humans are programmed by their evolution to take actions based upon the mental content. Any human who ignored his observation of a cliff or predator was quickly removed from the gene pool by "falling off cliff" or "being eaten by predator". When pre-historic humans had no language, this was a perfectly reasonable metaphysics, because in practice it simply meant "believe what you see". However, with the advent of language and abstraction and especially fiction, the content of consciousness was no longer limited to "what an individual can see", but could now contain "whatever any scumbag might assert to any individual".
But the evolved trust in "mental units" was already very firmly adopted and habituated by humans. Which led to the "fatal flaw in human consciousness"... which is "trusting ALL our mental units, not just those attached to our first hand observations".
The only "fix" for that egregious flaw is a self-conscious decision to save the "reality-status" of each mental unit with each mental-unit, and also to always refer-to and consider the "reality-status" of every mental unit when we perform those mental processes we call "consciousness". Unfortunately, this "fix" is not advocated or taught by anyone I am aware of, though I'm sure I can't be the only one on the planet. As far as I can tell, every individual who has identified and understands the "fatal flaw in human consciousness" has figured it out for himself or herself. Almost everyone today has agendas to push, and discourages first-hand observation and independent thought because they threaten their agendas.
How many people even understand what is a fiction?
How many people understand the "federal government of the USSA", and every other organization of any and every kind whatsoever is 100% fiction? This is quite easy to demonstrate, yet nobody but me talks about it as far as I can tell. Instead, people do exactly what the author of this article talks about... they accept and further these mass delusions, and even impose them upon their own mind!
Congrats on an excellent article, CD. If only humans knew what to do with the self-portrait you gave them. I've thought about writing about these problems from my different but complimentary perspective. Maybe someday, when I'm less busy, if that ever happens.