Written By: Michael W. Howell
Senior Writer and Editor at Fighting the Tyranny
Nov 11, 2019
I am sure this is a topic you have encountered many times when discussing the paradigm shift in American politics that is taking place. As the transformation of the Republic starts to take on its new shape, in a “ready-or-not manner”, many are coming to terms with two main issues that have been holding back, both, society and personal growth – Cognitive dissonance and Stockholm syndrome. In many aspects of our lives, the two are what led us to the failed policies and political system we operate under today. To some, the two are blurred and confused into one. Don’t let this happen to you because cognitive dissonance and Stockholm Syndrome are in fact separate cases.
The cognitive dissonance theory is defined as, the mental conflict that occurs when beliefs or assumptions are contradicted by new information. The unease or tension that the conflict arouses in people is relieved by one of several defensive maneuvers: they reject, explain away, or avoid the new information; persuade themselves that no conflict really exists; reconcile the differences; or resort to any other defensive means of preserving stability or order in their conceptions of the world and of themselves. (https://www.britannica.com/science/cognitive-dissonance)
The theory of cognitive dissonance was first studied at length by Leon Festinger who was a Psychologist. Leon would obtain his B.A. in psychology from the City College located in New York in 1939. He went on to acquire his Ph.D. in 1942, from the University of Iowa, while studying with German-born social psychologist, Kurt Lewin. His career would start when Leon Festinger went to work as a statistician for the National Research Council’s Committee on the Selection and Training of Aircraft Pilots, just a year later at the University of Rochester.
“When there’s dissonance, a person will actively avoid situations and information that would probably increase such dissonance in order to try to reduce it.”
– Leon Festinger
In his 1957 book, A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance, Festinger wrote, “Cognitive dissonance can be seen as an antecedent condition which leads to activity oriented toward dissonance reduction just as hunger leads toward activity oriented toward hunger-reduction. It is a very different motivation from what psychologists are used to dealing with but, as we shall see, nonetheless powerful.”
There are several influential factors that come into play with cognitive dissonance. Influential factors determine to what extent and severity that cognitive dissonance affects an individual.
- Cognitions that are more personal, such as beliefs about the self, tend to result in greater dissonance
- The importance of the cognitions; things that involve beliefs that are highly valued typically result in stronger dissonance.
- The ratio between dissonant (clashing) thoughts and consonant (harmonious) thoughts
- The greater the strength of the dissonance, the more pressure there is to relieve the feelings of discomfort.
These influential factors were written in Leon Festinger’s, “A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance”, Stanford University Press, 1962. Leon Festinger did a myriad of studies when it came to cognitive dissonance. However, I do not want this article to be about his test and studies but rather how the ruling elite is using his conclusions to manipulate us towards their goal line – globalism. When it comes to politics and how individuals claim their views versus holding onto their views is when cognitive dissonance becomes clear to observe.
The hot button of the times today is politics. We have been asleep at the wheel of the constitutional Republic for far too long now that a new and mysterious “inside government” has seeped into our day to day lives, almost unnoticed. For generations, the mantra that was understood in order to “keep the peace among friends” was to not talk about such topics as politics. The political system has always had a dark underside that was known to the public, but just how nefarious this dark underside reached was ignored as if a spell had been cast on them. Now, the reality of the dangers that globalism brings is starting to clash with the inner-world they built for themselves throughout their lives. The more light that is brought on the ruling class’s secret world, the more the cognitive dissonance sets in. It is the individual’s choice of how they process the facts as to the level of their denial changing to corrective action(s). To some, the “awakening”, as it is referred to by many, can be startling as they transition from their state-based indoctrination to “full” awareness.
Every election cycle brings new candidates promising the people the latest flavor of the moment policy to make all their wants and needs fulfilled. You can witness this on public display as you see the candidates tip-toeing around the stage dodging questions with the memorized answers that divert the audience away from the issue(s) being asked. Our politicians have mastered the spoken use method of the illusionist’s “sleight of hand misdirection”.
When it comes to political parties I removed myself from the dog and pony show years ago, so I don’t want to come across as being biased or supporting any ideology for a specific party. I use the Bill of Rights as a litmus test, or baseline, as to my approach towards individual liberty and the Constitution as my standard when dissecting policies for the Republic. The only other qualifier I could use is natural law/rights as well. I take these methods of analyzing data to determine my choices in participation within the political system we live in. When the median or standard average begins to perpetually fall outside of those perimeters then it becomes my duty to be a nonparticipant.
Election cycles are a smorgasbord for campaign promises from the corporate chosen candidates that are seeking to be the next spokesman for the War, Inc machine. In fact, the statement I just made will be met with cognitive dissonance from many. I will circle back to that in a moment. I want to stay on the topic of cognitive dissonance in the political spectrum of how politics is played within the American system. Election after election, broken promise after broken promise, we the people collectively continue to get consumed in politics and approach it from a “Soap Opera” style behavior.
It is the fact the two-party system pre-selected candidates are selling “policy-for-profit” promises handed down from the lobbyists of a handful of powerful global corporations owned by the international banking cabal that is guiding the narrative of globalism while we the people remain divided, and largely unaware of its happening. The reason for the division is where the influential factors outlined above take over and the illogic of the manufactured opposition we have brewing in America is perpetuated in the form of cognitive dissonance.
We have seen party-over-party-beliefs during all administrations of our infiltrated history dating back to its founding. Recently, a new term entering into the mainstream crowd, however common term among the “conspiracy” crowd, is the term Deep State. The Deep State can be thought of as an army, operating cloaked and undercover, for the behind-the-curtain shadow government heading the small numbers of seats at the ruling direction and directives of the global agenda. From the live speech given by President George H. W. Bush in 1991, announcing by name the New World Order and America’s allegiance to the charter of the United Nations, we have been under the spell of “two heads of the same snake” political system.
I could pick any administration and this article to turn into a book, a series, or even a never-ending collection of tyranny if we were to list how corrupt our public servants have become. In order to save time and prevent a doomsday, or fear porn based article I will talk about the current and previous modern-day administrations.
When President George W. Bush got into office after the Clinton administration somewhat slowed down the war progression that the elite was making through their banker wars, it was time to amp up the global “policing of the world” on the conquest towards globalism. After the attacks on 9/11, the War on Terrorism was launched in a “Schock and Awe” manner complete with around the clock footage from the battlefield given to us by “embedded reporters”. This course of bringing us the news was a way for the narrative to be passed along like a script handed to the major network writers.
It has been 19 years since the war on terrorism was first announced and since then we have had President George W. Bush declared “mission accomplished” to the efforts made in Iraq. However, even those the lies have been exposed that started the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan we are still engaged and fully committed to continuing our military presence in both countries. An example of cognitive dissonance in this example is how the general public held on the weapons of mass destruction (WMD) storyline to help sustain the longevity of these wars.
With the two wars, Iraq and Afghanistan in full swing, backed by a blank check from Congress to keep the war on terrorism never-ending, the next president would campaign to end these wars. Then-Senator, Barrack Obama, would come from the anti-war left but would continue the “Bush-era” global war on terrorism. In fact, if you look back at the last 60 years even our foreign policy hasn’t changed in terms of free trade and relationships around the world. It has, however, expanded in military weapon sales and manufactured wars. When we use to manufacture weapons for wartime we now manufacture wars for weapon sales. Hence, War, Inc.
Back to the main point and reason for the article is to point out cognitive dissonance in the political aspect of our lives. I could go to a myriad of places here so let’s narrow it down to the political system as a whole. In terms of our country’s perspective of herself, the popular phrase you are certain to hear from both sides is “democracy”. All of the current, and old, rehashed lines, will be brought out at rallies and campaigns across the nation to sway voters to get behind the latest “America needs help and only I can fix it” one person/party solution. Here is where Stockholm syndrome comes into the cognitive equation as well.
When President Obama won his first election there was an energy surrounding his base that the continuation of the wars in the Middle East would come to a close and would conclude with the troops returning home. It wouldn’t take too long before his campaign promises of ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan became the lies we should have all expected. Not only were the wars continued but they were massively expanded on all fronts as well. The anti-war left went into hiding it seemed, as the evidence of another global puppet began to mount.
Now under President Trump the global elite have been able to make advancements on more government intervention in firearm/firearm accessory ownership that goes against the 2nd amendment when his administration passed his bump stock ban. As we saw with the anti-war left under the Obama administration, the same silence from Trump’s core base was seen. While President Trump comes across as a 2nd amendment supporter through his words, his actions tell a different story. It is a fact that nothing is “politics as usual” when it comes to Trump’s outward attitude and perception, however, his policies still tend to lean towards the globalist’s agenda of centralized power. Once the back and forth power struggle is removed and the veil of the rhetorical quotes and slogans are lifted we see that when it comes to policies that govern us the agenda always stays on track.
I sometimes catch backlash from Trump supporters over my views concerning the bump stock ban. The common rebuttal among his base is that the circumstances under a Hillary presidency would be worse or, most often than not, the “what do you need a bump stock for” question. Ironically, in years past, this type of question was enough to send the same group into a frenzy when it came to barrel length and magazine capacity legislation.
President Trump has also made statements concerning both gun ownership and the legal process when we said, “…take the guns first, ….due process later”. The statement alone can have several ways it could be taken when you look at the context surrounding the quote. What is troubling is the statement and demeanor when saying it coupled with his support for Red Flag laws. Here is another example of how cognitive dissonance added with Stockholm syndrome is detrimental to liberty. The Stockholm syndrome or the unwavering blind trust in our political system has left Lady Justice unchecked while the elected inmates ran amuck in the halls of our government institutions.
As it stands today, there are an estimated 22,000 to 30,000 gun laws on the books. Yet, we continue to hear the latest new “law” that is needed in order to “keep us safe” from one another. Everything from more comprehensive background checks to closing the so-called loophole on gun show sales has been stated as being the “next step towards responsible gun ownership”. The truth of the matter is these new ideas and legislation proposals are all part of the higher club’s ideologies as they march forward to global ownership. Just as electricity travels the path of least resistance, so do the ruling elite. Here I am referring to the hidden and unseen shadow government – the real owners.
“They call it the American dream because you have to be asleep to believe in it” – George Carlin
The Stockholm syndrome in this country has been brought on by our natural response over the last few generations of not talking about politics around people. It has lead to a disconnect from many factors including how others hold different, or even poplar opposite views from one another. Over time, when that will to openly talk about issues in society becomes eroded with the notion that we have “elected leaders” in place to handle those matters, the end result will always conclude a massive loss in individual freedoms and the eventual washing away of national sovereignty.
We are at that pivotal moment when we must collectively come together to protect our individual rights and freedoms. The division that we are seeing being played out around the country was put in place with the intent of dividing a united and free-willed people. A large part of taking back our political system and the constitutional ways of the Republic is to not participate in the distractions being thrown at us. Look past the pre-selected candidate’s words and use the Constitution and Bill of Rights as the litmus test for your right to vote. When we continue down the road of “lesser of two evil” or “two wings of the same bird” voting mentality then we will help perpetuate the coming centralized power the elite have been planning for.
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