Good thread. I don't think we really reckon enough with the fact -- as supported by the vast bulk of the research -- that "deprogramming" cult members is a labor-intensive, individualized affair. There's just no way to do it at scale.
https://twitter.com/oneunderscore__/status/1350890475323060225
That means we've basically lost a generation of older white Americans, to say nothing of the younger people (especially suburban women) being pulled into this shit today. Some individuals can be saved, but there's no lever we can pull to bring them all back. They're mostly gone.
Two big implications: one, we'll be dealing with these folks & their distorting effects on politics for the rest of our lives. This is not a "solve" thing, it's a "manage" thing. Second, the top imperative must be cutting off the production of new cultists.
The only scalable solution is reducing supply -- preventing people from being exposed to this toxic shit in the first place. And that raises all kinds of difficult questions about free speech, elite gatekeeping, etc. etc. No one really loves thinking about that stuff.
But that's the only route to a scalable solution. Once you create these cultists, you are, for all intents and purposes, stuck with them. </fin>
Addendum: consider this woman. Think about what she gets -- emotionally & socially -- from being the "meme queen" of a tight knit, us-against-the-world community. Then think about what she would get, emotionally & socially, from acknowledging the truth. nytimes.com/2021/01/17/tec…
It just can't be emphasized enough that "you have an obligation to acknowledge empirical truth, no matter its effects on your social or emotional wellbeing" is a profoundly unnatural, modern idea that tacks directly against centuries of evolution.
Believing what your social group believes, echoing & affirming its common binding precepts, is adaptive. It brings social protection, belonging, & status. What does "believing the truth," in & of itself, get you? Nothing. Why would evolution select for it?
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
