To expand on your point, if I may, this is ultimately the existential question of who we as humans are becoming in this age of technology, and how we must fully utilize critical thought processes (or maybe just think and act in a practical way) in order to understand and evaluate disinformation tactics.
'Heuristic' is the psychological term for a mental shortcut to make decisions and take action quickly and energetically efficiently. The brain is an expensive piece of machinery to operate. It consumes around 20% of the body's energy and is the champion 'energy hog' of all our organs. Our brains evolved to operate as efficiently as possible to ensure survival.
We naturally create rules of thumb and beliefs to filter out and ignore non-essential information and focus on a quick decision. As you mention, cognitive dissonance - having to deal with mentally opposing beliefs creates anxiety causing hyperactivity in the brain and increased energy consumption.
While short-term stimulation can be invigorating, constant over-stimulation results in fatigue and ultimately depression and despair. Sadly, our caveman's brains were not designed to deal with the constant overwhelm and dissonance of "disruptive technology" occurring at breakneck speed. We are pushing ourselves beyond our biological limits and it is little wonder that "diseases of despair" - drugs and suicide - are epidemic. Perhaps addiction is not a "disease" but another heuristic devised to numb ourselves and conserve our energy reserves.
By cranking up our anxiety we lose our energetic reserves to tolerate cognitive dissonance. Blind-grasping conspiracy theories and unsubstantiated lies help relieve our anxieties and existential fear. It is a simple physics formula that Trump instinctively senses to manipulate. We just want relief and if the Kool-Aid promised solutions are poisonous lies, they are a promise of an escape from the hell of eternal burning anxiety. It is little wonder MAGA has become the drug of choice.
Thank you! You have deftly articulated something I've wondered about, this idea that conspiracy theories have taken hold of so many more people over the last ~15 years because in this digital world we are so constantly overwhelmed by so much stuff and information that is too difficult to make sense of. No wonder conspiracy theories that tie everything up into a convenient, pretty little bow are therefore very appealing (if not downright seductive).
Spot on! Thank you for adding this comment to an excellent blog. Blogs and comments like these are “whole picture” thinking, something in short supply these days.
I am acutely aware of how modern media is an overwhelming anxiety producing machine. I have to carefully control my intake of it because of how stressed being informed makes me feel.
Reading this morning's (here in NZ) discussion of the "dance of dissonance' (nicely put!) I was reminded of the salutatory stories I read as a child...namely, "The Emperor Who had No Clothes", and "Chicken Licken Crying The Sky is Falling"...
Perhaps I'm too cynical, but I'm reluctant to ascribe a virtuous motive to Mr Ducy. Perhaps his momentary nod to something closer to reality was more about establishing his narrative, i.e., religious nationalism, in opposition to the broligarchy narrative, who have no love for religion or nationalism but intends to destroy both. This smoldering power struggle in the halls of the White House is being fought with innuendo and subtle put-downs (see the fight between Rubio and Musk as another example) since Trump put a squelch on it.
To expand on your point, if I may, this is ultimately the existential question of who we as humans are becoming in this age of technology, and how we must fully utilize critical thought processes (or maybe just think and act in a practical way) in order to understand and evaluate disinformation tactics.
'Heuristic' is the psychological term for a mental shortcut to make decisions and take action quickly and energetically efficiently. The brain is an expensive piece of machinery to operate. It consumes around 20% of the body's energy and is the champion 'energy hog' of all our organs. Our brains evolved to operate as efficiently as possible to ensure survival.
We naturally create rules of thumb and beliefs to filter out and ignore non-essential information and focus on a quick decision. As you mention, cognitive dissonance - having to deal with mentally opposing beliefs creates anxiety causing hyperactivity in the brain and increased energy consumption.
While short-term stimulation can be invigorating, constant over-stimulation results in fatigue and ultimately depression and despair. Sadly, our caveman's brains were not designed to deal with the constant overwhelm and dissonance of "disruptive technology" occurring at breakneck speed. We are pushing ourselves beyond our biological limits and it is little wonder that "diseases of despair" - drugs and suicide - are epidemic. Perhaps addiction is not a "disease" but another heuristic devised to numb ourselves and conserve our energy reserves.
By cranking up our anxiety we lose our energetic reserves to tolerate cognitive dissonance. Blind-grasping conspiracy theories and unsubstantiated lies help relieve our anxieties and existential fear. It is a simple physics formula that Trump instinctively senses to manipulate. We just want relief and if the Kool-Aid promised solutions are poisonous lies, they are a promise of an escape from the hell of eternal burning anxiety. It is little wonder MAGA has become the drug of choice.
Thank you! You have deftly articulated something I've wondered about, this idea that conspiracy theories have taken hold of so many more people over the last ~15 years because in this digital world we are so constantly overwhelmed by so much stuff and information that is too difficult to make sense of. No wonder conspiracy theories that tie everything up into a convenient, pretty little bow are therefore very appealing (if not downright seductive).
Yes, addictive might also apply.
Spot on! Thank you for adding this comment to an excellent blog. Blogs and comments like these are “whole picture” thinking, something in short supply these days.
I am acutely aware of how modern media is an overwhelming anxiety producing machine. I have to carefully control my intake of it because of how stressed being informed makes me feel.
Reading this morning's (here in NZ) discussion of the "dance of dissonance' (nicely put!) I was reminded of the salutatory stories I read as a child...namely, "The Emperor Who had No Clothes", and "Chicken Licken Crying The Sky is Falling"...
Perhaps I'm too cynical, but I'm reluctant to ascribe a virtuous motive to Mr Ducy. Perhaps his momentary nod to something closer to reality was more about establishing his narrative, i.e., religious nationalism, in opposition to the broligarchy narrative, who have no love for religion or nationalism but intends to destroy both. This smoldering power struggle in the halls of the White House is being fought with innuendo and subtle put-downs (see the fight between Rubio and Musk as another example) since Trump put a squelch on it.