General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Some background on the latest hero, blogger Michele Catalano, [View all]freshwest
(53,661 posts)The one I'm most familiar with is the Infowars reality road show. I know the dog whistles. The passion and fear generated with these slick productions have metastasized the electorate, been cited by GOP candidates, governors, mayors, etc. Take a peek to see how it all lines up:
Welcome to US Police State by Info Wars (OpEd)
That Marshall Law (sic) that is always just around the corner but doesn't seem to stay for long if ever.
The Obama = Bush meme, and more, free on Youtube, really terrifying stuff.
Once you have gone down that rabbit hole, all roads lead back to it, unless you are willing to burn the bridges after seeing it for the entertainment show it really is, with a rather nasty. Koch funded agenda behind it. Every piece of information, no matter how groundless it is, will be seized to validate that underlying belief system that was put in place subconsciously or subliminally.
I went the journey a few years ago for researching. I could talk the talk with the Paulites, the Baggers, etc. But they've gotten so much worse post-2008, more of a cult that demand instant, enthusiastic validation of their faith, that I don't bother any more. They are more hardened in their views than ever before.
It's addictive and gins up that stomach gnawing fear to put the mind in a state that is suggestible. That's what Fox News does, keeps a low level anxiety to freeze up the person's attention. The information bypasses the frontal lobe and goes straight into the permanent record of the subconscious, where it never leaves.
I go back to check where some stuff I see posted is coming from, usually the un-sourced 'cries for help' appeals, searching for kindred spirits. Which we all do, however.
If one doesn't respond to the dog whistle they call you a 'sheeple.' More often than not, checking out key words show they are the latest Infowars radio show program topic.
I'm immune after riding the wave, realizing its addictive power and that is one thing I hate, being mindless in that way. It's consuming something and repeating it, without a lot of mental reflection:
I don't find fault with people who go with it, as media and the internet are now the educators, even if it's woo. What can you say to those souls looking for safety in numbers without them saying you are victimizing them, just like any other cult?
There is no looking ahead to what this particular form of nihilism results in. Few people seem to know basic civics, act like everything that happens is created by some unseen force or alleviated by some mood online or in the media. The real truth of life, not The Truth©, is tedious and aggravating. In that sense, the GOP is more reality based. They do that work consistently.
No wonder so many go with 'false flag' stories and 'outrage' on a regular basis. One of the Infowars theme songs is abouit how 'it's all rigged.' So why would they think it's worth their time to do grunt work on the precinct level?
Give up and promote the Paul Revolution. They learned what to be outraged about from the rantings put out there daily. It's sad they don't see real things hurting people they could help, instead follow only what media provides. It is more entertaining and satisfying.
They don't see beyond their feelings, as media consumers it is not pragmatic or based in real life reality. Politics is just another TV show to them. Just a feeling to experience. I see so many memes taken straight from the mouth of Alex Jones.
'It's all a lie and they are out to get you!' is what half this stuff is and it really does get people going. I read a piece on the Infowars syndrome. The persistance is akin to self-medicating.
The person is in that reality after hours of exposure to media. And now they have a predisposition to resist all facts to the contrary. The CT reality has truths, myths, history, science fiction, the battle of good and evil, arch villains and heroes all mixed together. Fascinating, exciting even.
The person so afflicted is not aware of it, but they are given enough repetition to make them sense a crisis over thing that are out of their control, or so it's presented to them that way, that is going to cause them grave harm. That keeps them listening, it's instinctive to pay close attention in matters of survival. One might call it Cold War propaganda for a new generation, but this time it's about destroying the government for freedom and liberty. Never mind those Koch brothers pulling the strings.
The writer said this process creates a steady cascade of brain chemicals from arousal to fatigue, with the adrenaline depleting over the course of a day that is programmed by Infowars, Beck or Fox.
It's like getting depressed over and over again. To regain that sense of heightened arousal to the stimulus, that feeling that one is hyper aware and alive, the person must return to the CT water hole without fail. Or else be forced to face a boring, mundane world that seems grey and unreal in its place.
People love joining groups. They found an subculture that gives meaning to lives that would otherwise be boring. JMHO.
Hope the graphics don't offend, I'll remove them if they bug you, but I post them in order to show how much information can be shot to the part of the brain that isn't buffered by things liberals value, like facts. That's why rebuttals with facts are ignored. I find that is why some things are as they are.