Elements to Controlling a Group of People

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This is only my personal opinion, read and decide for yourself! ##############################

Throughout history, you will always see two general groups of people. Those in power, and those who are not. Generally the powerful stay in power and seek to become more powerful, while keeping the other people out of power. How does one group of people stay in power for so long? Psychological control of those out of power.

Methods of this control can usually be divided into two categories: Fear and Ignorance. If you keep someone in fear, you can persuade them to do what you want in order to make them think that they will be safer. If you keep someone ignorant, you can persuade them to do what you want simply because they don't know any better. These have been effectively used for a long time to control people and keep them out of power.

How is this fear and ignorance effectively used against people? One good common method is often seen in the media and advertising. This is propaganda. Propaganda doesn't always fall under fear or ignorance. It is a simple concept...people's faith in the media leads them to believe that what they print is the truth, and information is published in order to change your general opinion of the topic. You can easily spot an article written as propaganda, as instead of simply providing hard facts, it usually will contain opinionated statements, assumptions, or other information that is designed to persuade you based on inconclusive information. The government controls the media very well. At the beginning of our current war, radio stations were given a list of songs not to play, simply because they were considered anti-war, and the government wanted everyone pumped up to go to war. What are some other ways to invoke fear, or use ignorance against the people? One common practice seen in the media a lot is using an element of fear to play on the people's ignorance, and to distract from other events. Often if the government is experiencing problems with a war, economic problems, or some scandal that the media is not supposed to print (based on current events such as a war, where anti-government media is almost forbidden), you will see the media with these stories designed to make you forgot about our country's problems and be afraid of something else. Some examples could be shark attacks, SARS, west nile virus, killer bee attacks, and so on. How many people actually died of these things? A lot less than the number of people dying all the time because of more well known problems such as smoking, drunk driving, or even taking tylenol. These things are supposed to make you afraid, and make you forget about other problems that will shift your opinion against that of the governments--and that would give them less control, which equals less power.

It is very easy to see how well these methods worked in the past, specifically against blacks. Slaves were controlled in a similar way, through psychological conditioning, fear, and ignorance. Look at Fredrick Douglas who secretly taught himself to read and become a black revolutionary after he became free. After the civil war, those in power didn't want blacks to have equal rights because they lost power. So what did they do? Formed the KKK and started lynching blacks (and poor whites) in order to scare them from voting.

These days you can see these methods being used to a great effect. Rich people in power such as Bush want to keep us out of power and under control, so they can do as they please. With the current war, ignorance as well as fear will be used a lot to keep us happy about our government, and in support of the war. Ignorance, in that we don't know what is going on over there or why. Fear, we are being told with propaganda (and is completely unproven as of yet) that the country we are attacking possesses weapons of mass destruction. This of course scares the general public, and gives us a good reason to attack them, giving support for the war. Not to mention, since september 11 the government has been quick to label anyone they please as a "terrorist" in order to gain the support of the people for whatever it is they are doing.

The first step to "taking the power back" is to recognize propaganda for what it is, and learning as much as we can. After this, we simply have to spread the knowledge, and teach others to start thinking for themselves.

I feel religion is the best tool to rule the masses...It has worked so well so far

There is an assumption here and that is that everyone wants to run the world and be part of the dictatorial system. Many people simply 'opt out' of the game period. They choose not to play it, it is not a matter of not being able to win or take over, it is a moral issue and one not to their liking.

The people at the top of course often with their big egos which drove them in the first place, want to believe they are where they are because they won' or they are superior. That is not always the case and in fact is rarely the case if you consider that the system is not fair and there is intervention on many levels for many reasons by many others.

The only constant is consistent effort to succeed. That quality I would allow the successful but often it manifests more in a psychotic condition than a state of superiority that they would want to believe in.

I am of the belief that anyone has the capability to become part of the power elite or be successful if that is ALL THEY WANT AND THEY ARE WILLING TO PAY THE PRICE for it. The only exceptions being the horribly afflicted or maladapted or gifted amongst us.

Trust me when I say that many successful types I have met rarely impress me in one way or other. Even when I meet someone of high skill level it also can be explained due to many years of DOING THE SAME THING. Anyone would be good at something if they did it for 20 years IMHO.

Anyways those are my observations and not the gospel. The point I am trying to make is that the condition you describe here I better equate to morality for the most part. Then again there are those that play the system too, both to win in it and to take advantage of it also.

A good deal has been asserted by many individuals about the political, social, economic and banking "conspiracies". Many of these reports accurately reflect factual observations and should be considered a significant cause for concern. Moreover, thinking people should attempt to "course correct" the wayward road our democracies have been traveling as special interests continue to dominate political outcomes at all levels. Democracies have deteriorated in many respects as a result of apathy coupled with power interest's domination of the machinery of political systems - special interest politics. This article is written to offer an alternative approach to the agenda of fear which has become the predominate symptom, and the outgrowth, of conspiratorial awareness.


The difficulty in most of what has been written about the "conspiracy" is it is based on facts which are colored by fear. The stories generally begin with some observation on the part of the writer that brings one to the conclusion that we are being sold out, manipulated or played like a good violin by some unknown virtuoso. After the initial observation, the writer pursues a line of research which leads to the uncovering of more details leading to a stronger conviction that there is a "unseen hand" plotting to slap us all around a bit. The conclusion that all of these observations, in the smallest detail, are the result of some infinitely detailed conspiracy is difficult for many to swallow.

Change Agents And Reality Creation

Once the problem is recognized and confirmed by research, the response becomes one of fear and frenzy to inform the world. In so doing, all the world sees is a raving glassy eyed fanatic who is a brick short of a full load. Fear is the clue we are moving in the wrong direction. The discovery that we have been deceived is disheartening, at a minimum. Today's deceit discovered becomes tomorrow's conspiracy disclosed. Fear motivated course corrections cause problems for all concerned with these issues.

Smirkley,

makes sense and I agree.

but you cannot legislate morality and goodwill and expect everyone to get it.'

I see a future where there is a great schism in the world amongst its people and the population is divided with each part going their own way.

I think that is the only way it can work.

Originally posted by smirkley
A good deal has been asserted by many individuals about the political, social, economic and banking "conspiracies".

Well I'm not saying there is any kind of conspiracy, just some simple observations of our media and government relating to controlling the public's general opinion of current events, and not questioning what we are told. Has been going on for years, no conspiracy that I am aware of.

Yes... but isn't it also the Stick and Carrot?

I'm your leader because I'm rich and powerful. I'm rich and powerful because I'm your leader.

I've got enough carrots and beatings for everyone. Would you like the carrot or the stick?

If you help make me more powerful, you MIGHT be like me one day...(NOT!) ...plus you get carrots!!!

The secret is that I can't be beaten by anyone taking the carrots I offer. Only those that accept the beatings. When there are more people being beaten than eating carrots....I will fail, and a new Carrot master will emerge.

The other secret is there are many names for many different forms of carrot distribution, but there is no difference in the result.

Rabbit season? Duck season? Doesn't matter. With an army of Elmer Fudd's like you.

Answer to topic, abridged form.

1. Find the neurotic leader.
2. Make him more 'neurotic'. Give and do not receive ulcers.
3. Feed the egos of surrounding people who are core to your mission.
4. Reward loyalty until it no longer serves you, and if there is any instability when the mission is accomplished just divide and conquer again. And again.

That works, use it if you need to. It is about control (the topic) and has no leadership elements.

Originally posted by MaskedAvatar
Answer to topic, abridged form.

1. Find the neurotic leader.
2. Make him more 'neurotic'. Give and do not receive ulcers.
3. Feed the egos of surrounding people who are core to your mission.
4. Reward loyalty until it no longer serves you, and if there is any instability when the mission is accomplished just divide and conquer again. And again.

That works, use it if you need to. It is about control (the topic) and has no leadership elements.

Sounds like ATS MA

*looks at his points level*

Originally posted by Nerdling

Originally posted by MaskedAvatar
Answer to topic, abridged form.

That works, use it if you need to. It is about control (the topic) and has no leadership elements.

Sounds like ATS MA

*looks at his points level*

Hmmmmm.

I didn't mean to make it sound that way.

And I've never used it myself, I just know it works in a depersonalized dehumanized world of incompetents.

Originally posted by MaskedAvatar
And I've never used it myself, I just know it works in a depersonalized dehumanized world of incompetents.

Sounds like 70% of ATS too!

Originally posted by MaskedAvatar
Answer to topic, abridged form.

1. Find the neurotic leader.
2. Make him more 'neurotic'. Give and do not receive ulcers.
3. Feed the egos of surrounding people who are core to your mission.
4. Reward loyalty until it no longer serves you, and if there is any instability when the mission is accomplished just divide and conquer again. And again.

That works, use it if you need to. It is about control (the topic) and has no leadership elements.

That's an excellent dilution of all my Corporate experiences.... from like a middle mgt point of view. Made me think of George Costanza's relationship with Steinbrener on Seinfeld.

Where middle mgt often fails (for good or bad) is in NOT squashing uppity underlings. You can 'reward' yourself right out of a job these days. If I could do it all over, I'd fire more people.

Originally posted by MaskedAvatar
(...)
1. Find the neurotic leader.
(...)

Wrong.
I have personal theory and I will post more comprehensive explanation soon. In short the most important problem with people trying to have and having power is doctrine (religious, corporate etc.) they must to follow. Even if they trying to follow logical way of progress they have to preserve doctrine first what cause kind of internal spin, vortex. It means every people having power in that civilization must to become mad in some sense.