The fog of war from the Russian invasion of Ukraine takes its hold on the American psyche.
Right now Russia is invading Ukraine with a goal to unseat its president and establish one of their own. The fog of war on the ground feeds confusion here at home.
That is undeniable.
The extent of the battles and the whys and wherefores of the conflict are not only up for debate, but are sufficiently obfuscated by special interests to make any parsing of the international scene next to impossible.
The war at home
Here in America, or the West more broadly, we like our issues to be black and white. We like one side versus the other. We want a story.
Life is seldom, if ever, so accommodating.
This is not necessarily a natural way to view the world, or conflicts in general.
The mind does not think in terms of "off and on." It is capable of an infinity of value assignments between the unobtainable "absolute good" and equally impossible "absolute bad."
One must actually degrade the innate ability to reason somewhat significantly to bring people down to a point of only binary thinking.
In America, and the West more broadly, that is done through a life's term of conditioning.
Media portrays the good versus bad. Our history is entirely taught on the basis of who was wrong and who was right. Even our entertainment is dumbed down to provide a stark contrast between heroes and villains.
Worse, powerful special interests control our main communication channels and relentlessly push such narratives.
The above messaging mixed with the hypnotic effects of alcohol and widely available drugs (most of them pharmaceuticals) brings about this condition with ease.
Therefore, the actual enemy plaguing the West is not some encroaching ideology, but stupidity itself.
Where it comes from
Make no mistake, it are the special interests who insist upon and try to bring about stupidity. Thus, they rely on a lack of awareness. They must therefore cultivate a willingness to dismiss alternate ideas.
"That's fine for politics, but what about the drugs?" Well, Pharma is a special interest, isn't it?
It is only out of this manufactured ignorance that ideological conflict can grow.
The fog of war generates confusion. Confronted by confusion, the ideologically minded cling more firmly to their safe, preconceived opinions.
Their reaction is to be more avid in grabbing any scrap of "evidence" serving to validate already formed and fixed ideas.
Since the field is rife with falsehoods, these are taken hold of and spread around.
This creates more confusion.
That brings about a more fixated adherence to ideological dogma.
Rinse. Repeat.
No matter your "team" in the current conflict, the only certainty is that on the other side of its conclusion is even more rigid partisanship.
And just in time for an election!
Defrost
The white pill is that no matter what "they" tell you, the vast majority of people are unaligned.
The special interests and their drones are just so loud that they appear to be most people, but this is not the case.
The only way out is to rise above a craving for agreement. Dare to be confused. Stay aware. Strive to learn.
Moments like these can strengthen a mind, or weaken one.
Use it to make yours strong.
