Just because a lot of them are assholes looking for justification for their bigotry doesn’t mean that every one is that.
My (now atheist and progressive) partner grew up in the Jehovah’s Witnesses and Republicanism. A couple decades after she managed to break free, she’s STILL shunned by most of her family and has a strained relationship with the rest.
To pretend that it’s just assholes being assholes together for no other reason than their own free will might be comforting to you, but it ignores key causes and thus makes it harder to combat the cult.
Terry Goodkind is a terrible author and even worse human being, but his “First Rule” was pretty accurate. To wit: “people will believe anything if they want it to be true, or if they’re afraid of it being true.”
There’s a reason a lot of propaganda is either saying how great things are under a group (even when they clearly aren’t), or fear-mongering about their opponents.
People fall for propaganda because they want to - they’re not stupid, they’re playing along because they like it.
A lot of them, sure, but far from everyone.
Just because a lot of them are assholes looking for justification for their bigotry doesn’t mean that every one is that.
My (now atheist and progressive) partner grew up in the Jehovah’s Witnesses and Republicanism. A couple decades after she managed to break free, she’s STILL shunned by most of her family and has a strained relationship with the rest.
To pretend that it’s just assholes being assholes together for no other reason than their own free will might be comforting to you, but it ignores key causes and thus makes it harder to combat the cult.
People fall for lies that they want to believe, not because they’re simply assholes, but because the truth is hard and painful.
That’s why social support and deprogramming is necessary, because you need to ease people into a very difficult reality.
They’d rather just play along because it’s easier, safer, and more comfortable. They like it.
Terry Goodkind is a terrible author and even worse human being, but his “First Rule” was pretty accurate. To wit: “people will believe anything if they want it to be true, or if they’re afraid of it being true.”
There’s a reason a lot of propaganda is either saying how great things are under a group (even when they clearly aren’t), or fear-mongering about their opponents.