Stranger Danger

Lots of comments on yesterday’s post. Seems a lot of people are getting tired of seeing posts to the effect that Dr. Fauci and Barack Obama have teamed up with a group in Iran to spread a false narrative about there being a virus in America.

Are people really that misguided?

Yes.

How does it happen? I read once that the reason we see images in clouds is that our brains are programmed to form images from visual data. Maybe it’s the same with other mental data. Are we programmed to form conspiracies, with a little urging from TV personalities, that satisfy some genetic trigger? They say we even have a trigger that warns us when we feel safe that danger may lurk behind any door or tree. That was probably helpful on the savanna where a creature that felt safe was most likely the next meal. Maybe if we could figure a way to keep people in permanent fear, we could control their behavior. Say we could generate a constant stream of made-up dangers. We might even present genuine concern over real danger as a danger itself.

Imagine Olog telling Snork to pay no attention to that lioness coming their way. “It’s just an image created by the Samboolie Tribe’s medicine man wanting us to give up this territory that the Turtle God gave us. Relax. All is well. Obey our leader. Stay put and fight. The Samboolies wait in ambush. To flee would pose great danger.”

Keep them scared of their neighbors and not the lioness. If only there were a way.

Anyway, it was nice to go ahead and pull the trigger yesterday. Sorry for the firearms imagery. I meant that I hit the “unfriend” button. This action occurred from a post by someone I guess I knew in high school. Mostly, this person posts religious homilies about loving the Savior sprinkled with memes suggesting that Dr. Fauci is at best a Muslim or worse and more likely a minion of The Dark One himself.

Anyway, the meme suggested that worldwide outrage had erupted because Hillary Clinton had called the armed thugs who have been invading state capitols “terrorists.” I prefer thugs myself, but in this case, I simply commented “What would you call them?” Then I hit the button.

Boy, did it feel good. I’m going to do it again today.