From the White-PillBox: Part 58
Advocates of freedom have a good understanding of facts and principles. We have room, as well, to be understanding of others…as victims.
There is a particular potential inside of us, as freedom lovers. We are probably not aware of it, because we tend to focus on the academic details of issues. But it’s there nonetheless.
Understanding
It has to do with understanding.
We understand how freedom relates to the betterment of man. We understand self-ownership, property rights, free markets, and how they all relate to peace, prosperity and general good will.
We even understand statism’s hold on peoples’ minds. We know the reason people put up with the State: they are trained to accept it as an unquestioned “given”. We understand this.
When it comes to the truth of statism, we “get it”, and the majority does not. It’s obvious to us…so why isn’t it obvious to them? We become impatient or frustrated with the majority.
Understanding the need for empathy
Our frustration undermines our goals.
It hurts the chances for others to be persuaded, when we act impatient and condescending.
And it hurts us, by making us poor communicators of the liberty message.
So others don’t benefit from our frustration, and neither do we. If no one benefits, that frustration gets us nowhere.
This is where being understanding comes in. In particular, understanding the majority’s true relationship to the State.
Namely, the status of a victim…a victim who supports his abuser.
The steps of understanding
The simple first lesson to understanding the majority is this: they didn’t make up statism. They may tacitly support it, but they didn’t think it up. We can certainly begin by acknowledging this.
We can then try to understand that the majority are genuine psychological victims. Victims of psychological abuse.
A quadruple whammy
There are three extreme examples of human psychological abuse and manipulation. By rolling all of these abuses into one, statism manages to unceasingly victimize the majority.
Slavery: manipulating people into believing that others have authority over their body and their labor. The chattel slave is trained to accept that he is rightfully owned by a master. The victim of statism is trained to accept a ruling class has the moral right to govern his life.
Cultism: manipulating others into worshiping an authority on blind faith, while suspending critical thinking about that authority. The typical cult, as well as the government-as-cult, do exactly the same thing: manipulate the minds of people, inspiring blind devotion and near total compliance.
Domestic abuse: manipulating the familial or domestic psychology of others. The domestic abuser uses the feelings of his victims to fulfill his particular needs. The government-as-abuser manipulates the public into feeling a personal and necessary relationship to the State 1. This keeps them feeling emotionally connected and protective of the State.
Why is it a quadruple whammy?
Because statism takes all three forms of abuse and starts the victimization and manipulation in childhood, when we are most innocent, vulnerable and defenseless.
The potential for this understanding
Understanding the condition of a person who is psychologically abused inspires empathy. This is how we should look upon the uninitiated majority: as abused almost from birth. They are indoctrinated by virtually all of society into cult-like worship of the State. They are taught relentlessly that it is virtuous to be obedient and compliant to a ruling class; to happily pay tribute to them. To shun all those who criticize them. To salute them. To pledge their allegiance to them. To hate the people ruled by foreign governments, when so instructed. To put their own lives on the line when the State starts wars with foreign ruling classes.
This level of abuse should be obvious to us. We, as advocates of freedom, have the potential to feel a special empathy for the abused majority, because the abused majority was taught not to see the abuse at all.
The White Pill
We already understand the academic details of freedom. This suggests we can likewise understand and empathize with the plight of the majority, as true victims of heartbreaking, lifelong psychological abuse.
Empathy naturally improves our ability to communicate our ideas. We have more patience to explain, to listen, and to wait for the ideas to bear fruit in the minds of others.
Conclusion
White Pills are genuine reasons to be hopeful. But this particular White Pill is rather unique. We can choose to be a ray of hope - a White Pill - by choosing to be empathetic. It most certainly improves ourselves, and it improves our chances to influence the progress toward a stateless world.
As examples: the common phrases “our government”, “my country”, “our governor/congressman, president”, etc.; the honored history lessons; the pledging of allegiance; the grand anthems and parades; the stories of wartime sacrifice. All meant to circumvent clear thinking, and replace it with tearful loyalty.