A thought for discussion....

[Mark Latimour]

I heard an interview with Henry Rollins the other day and he said something interesting (paraphrased):

"The enemy that they tell you about doesn't exist. However, because they tell you he exists, you will see him in your brother, your neighbor, the guy in the store and the guy in the other country. You will try and find him."

I think it rings fairly true. What sayeth the sages of TB OT?

[cassanova]

I agree. It's creepy what a bit of force fed paranoia can do to people.

[crockpot2001]

This is North Korea.

[Relic]

There are enemies who in fact, do exist and there are those who don't. The trick is deciding which is which.
It's everyone's own personal choice as to whether they want to live life paranoid or not.

[Jim Nazium]

Originally Posted by Mark Latimour

"The enemy that they tell you about doesn't exist. However, because they tell you he exists, you will see him in your brother, your neighbor, the guy in the store and the guy in the other country. You will try and find him."

Who are "they"? I think "they" don't exist, but because Henry Rollins says "they" do, you will look for "them" in the government, the media, and the business community.

[Mark Latimour]

Originally Posted by Jim Nazium

Who are "they"? I think "they" don't exist, but because Henry Rollins says "they" do, you will look for "them" in the government, the media, and the business community.

They are anyone who tells you who your enemy is. I didn't think that was particularly difficult to work out. YMMV.

[emor]

This is the FNC business plan.

[Unrepresented]

Originally Posted by Mark Latimour

I heard an interview with Henry Rollins the other day and he said something interesting (paraphrased):

"The enemy that they tell you about doesn't exist. However, because they tell you he exists, you will see him in your brother, your neighbor, the guy in the store and the guy in the other country. You will try and find him."

I think it rings fairly true. What sayeth the sages of TB OT?

I've been warned about troublemakers like you.

I'm a strong believer in the influence of the narrative on the human mind. People really like a story, a spin, a worldview, whatever. Once you've given it to them they'll hold onto that filter until viciously and repeatedly corrected.

[duff beer]

Some people will always believe in things that don't exist. That's why in this day and age newspapers still print horoscopes and biodexes. No one who has any sense of reason would waste their time on them, but there is a percentage of the population that reads them every day.

[FL Knifemaker]

Originally Posted by emor

This is the FNC business plan.

Yes, and it's obviously working

[MakiSupaStar]

The enemy is terror and drugs and satan. Duh.

This kind of reminds me of an essay topic I gave my students last week.

'How do you know which side of war is 'right'?'

[i_got_a_mohawk]

de-humanising any enemy of the state is pretty standard, no?

(not talking just about in the US here)

[nutdog]

I guess if it weren't for "they" we'd all just be one big happy family.

"They" are the enemy.

edit: Does that mean I'm "they"?

[bassrique]

[anonymous122511]

Originally Posted by duff beer

Some people will always believe in things that don't exist. That's why in this day and age newspapers still print horoscopes and biodexes. No one who has any sense of reason would waste their time on them, but there is a percentage of the population that reads them every day.

You believe the reality you are presented with.
I just started reading Carroll Quigley's Tragedy and Hope: A History of the World in Our Time. What he presents in it is very different from what we're being sold in school and the corporate mass media.

[Ziltoid]

Self-fulfilling prophecy much?

False definition of the situation that becomes true in it's consequences...

Sounds bout right to me.

[LiquidMidnight]

Originally Posted by Unrepresented

I'm a strong believer in the influence of the narrative on the human mind. People really like a story, a spin, a worldview, whatever. Once you've given it to them they'll hold onto that filter until viciously and repeatedly corrected.

+1

The more I'm alive, the more I get post-modernist tendencies creeping up in how I intepret the world (both Unrepresented and Henry's arguments, with which I both agree, have a post-modernist spin to them).

...I don't know how much I like being a post-modernist.

[Relic]

Originally Posted by MakiSupaStar

The enemy is terror and drugs and satan. Duh.

This kind of reminds me of an essay topic I gave my students last week.

'How do you know which side of war is 'right'?'

I am so glad that you are doing something like that.
No bs, but I've been doing that with my kids since they first started to learn about history. At first they would just regurgitate the typical "black/white" explanations but after a while they would really start digging into it and realizing just how "gray" the world and history in general really are and that to take a side, you really need to know the WHOLE story behind a given situation.

[Skitch it!]

Originally Posted by Relic

I am so glad that you are doing something like that.
No bs, but I've been doing that with my kids since they first started to learn about history. At first they would just regurgitate the typical "black/white" explanations but after a while they would really start digging into it and realizing just how "gray" the world and history in general really are and that to take a side, you really need to know the WHOLE story behind a given situation.

+1 This.

[anonymous122511]

Originally Posted by Relic

you really need to know the WHOLE story behind a given situation.

Where does one find the information that tells the whole story? I've been trying to gather a picture for years now and rather than having found many answers I've found more questions.