Control vs Influence

I don’t think the human mind is ever easily controlled, but it is very easy to influence.

Influence works better than straightforward control anyway, and the more pervasive the influence, the better. At some point down the line, it becomes almost impossible to find the source of any one influence gripping the human mind. It’s already everywhere, in what we nonchalantly call the ‘mainstream’.

See, mainstream was associated early on with words like ‘common, normal, average, majority’, all of those not hinting at the best, but positive nonetheless. Once the association is firmly created, once a bridge in the mind is built that will invariably link ‘mainstream’ to positive connotations, then the next phase can occur whereby negative, even obscene mores* will be added under the mainstream umbrella... And... Ta-Da! Because the negative or obscene mores are linked to mainstream, it becomes synonymous to ‘common, normal, average, majority’. Though the mores are in no way intrinsically ethical, moral or just in essence, they are believed to be so because the mind falls for the illusion created by that earlier bridge. Think of a really huge garbage can, and how easy it gets once you’ve built that giant lid on top that opens at will to throw x amount of rubbish in. That’s pretty much the state in which the modern human mind is right now.

So, really, who wants control of the mind when you can just influence it? It takes some time, but it’s worth the trouble, because once a trend of influence is let loose, it becomes that rolling snowball that just get bigger and bigger, worse and worse, and nobody knows after a while where exactly it sprung from.

Not so long ago, societies were all about repression. People were held on a moral leash at least in terms of appearance. You had to be religious, or else what would the neighbours say? You could get kicked out of your community if you didn’t at least appear to comply with the moral standards. So you got married and never got caught cheating on your spouse. Religion played a great role in repressing people, telling them what is right and what isn’t, and it was often frustrating because as a person you simply couldn’t give in to every fancy you may have had.

Then came ‘liberation’, along with the era of consumerism spawned by capitalism. Suddenly, we were all equals at least in theory and the sky was the limit. Religion was kicked in the butt because, really, we have a right to do whatever we want and who needs a moral leash anyway?

Right.

Because doing what we want without any moral scale to base our actions on really is way better than complete oppression... At least outright oppression of the mind doesn’t destroy the essence of what makes us who we are as human beings. It triggers rebellion and a drive to set higher goals for ourselves. It makes you less complacent, and want to spend your oppressed life aspiring to something better. Something like, I don't know... true freedom?...

But we already know that physical freedom is impossible as it is linked to the laws of nature and gravity itself. So we would in fact aspire to reach true freedom of the mind while our bodies suffered the consequences of complete oppression.

Right now, it’s the opposite trend. Our physical selves are given as much freedom as humanly possible under the natural laws.
And that’s what we mistake for true freedom?...

Yes. That is exactly what the majority of us think when we speak of freedom. Yet our minds have never been more enslaved and influenced, but it’s okay, we’ll tell ourselves, because our bodies are free enough.

Again. That is not true freedom. That is a lie worse than illusions themselves because we kneel before it as though it were the most precious thing on Earth. We might as well take out our eyeballs with a spoon and look the part fully since we’re already blind within.

* Mores (Lat. Mos) = Traditions, every day habits