The stealth and subtlety of propagandists: Beware the band-wagon or “inevitability” con

Calvin Mulligan, Futurescapes.ca September 3, 2023 rec. Sept 7 2023 (C) All Rights Reserved 

“Now the serpent was more crafty (subtle, skilled in deceit) than any living creature…”  Genesis 3:1

“You need to understand you’re being manipulated, and if you don’t know how you’re being manipulated, you’re never going to be able to fight it.” — Mike Smith, Producer, Into the Light 

The inevitability or “band wagon” con

Mark Twain’s once observed that it’s easier to fool someone than convince the individual that he had been fooled”. The truism reflects our debilitating ignorance regarding the power, pervasiveness and pernicious nature of propaganda. Our dismissiveness in this regard is a measure of our vulnerability to propagandists and their craft. Such naivety leaves the Powers-that-Be (PTB) free to go about their daily business of distortion and deception. In a recent blog, Aussie journalist, Caitlin Johnstone cites a fellow twitter warrior who warns readers that “…the most effective propaganda is the subtlest.” From a distance, the standing rule of propagandists appears to have been go big or go home. Consider such big hits as the “Russia did it” lie, the “Middle Eastern terrorists with box-cutters did it” lie, the “lone gunman” assassin did it, “six million Jews” and the “safe and effective” lie? Logically, the big whale lies are proportionately more likely to attract scrutiny and exposure in the long haul. Conversely, our mind’s watchdogs are less likely to sniff out subtle deceptions. One example in this category of subtle subconscious shapers is the inevitably con. (“Inevitability appeal” or “bandwagon” as per wikipedia)

Our adversaries work hard to create a perception that their agenda for the masses and the plans they intend to implement in the future are inevitable. It’s clever in a diabolical sense, because it leads the victim to conclude that resistance is futile and surrender is the only option. In fact, it’s better than that. Done properly, this tactic actually pre-empts the very idea of resisting. It doesn’t enter our conscious mind, and thus we never critically evaluate it or the alternatives. Rather, we  receive it as “understood,” pre-ordained, God’s will, a foregone conclusion, a given or a done deal. It’s worked well for the most part. Things we perceive as a given bypass our cognitive filters, neutralize the will and secure our compliance without a fight. And at that point, a pliable subconscious begins adapting to the expectation. Thus we surrender without knowing it, becoming on too many occasions, enablers of an unwanted future.  

Stealth and subtlety — trademarks of highly effective propaganda

Psychological warfare is inherently war by stealth manipulation of the mind. Sun Zu understood its pre-emptive potency. In The Art of War, Zu contended that supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy’s resistance without fighting. The inevitability or bandwagon appeal is a way to win battles pre-emptively. The Twitter analyst’s warning should be taken seriously as we’re engaged in a no-holds-barred information war whether we like it or not. And in this context, contrary to the maxim, ignorance doesn’t equate to bliss. It’s more likely to make you a casualty of war. On the the subject of subtle manipulation of the public mind, governments have convinced themselves that creating “nudge” units is an innovation in the public interest. An examination of the vaxx frenzy will demonstrate otherwise. It’s already evident that the behavioural insights team (BIT) influence over the UK’s vaxx policy over-rode basic human rights, public health and medical considerations. If government’s were following any science at all it was human psychology and behavioural science. Goebels would be proud.

The craft of covert manipulation involves, at the granular level, creating pretentious word concoctions, shading word meanings and strategically framing the choices presented to target audiences. This is done in order to predispose thinking and behaviour in the intended direction. The most subtle form of persuasion conveys the message implicitly rather than explicitly. (No, you never said that; you but you implied it.) And implicitly conveying the sense that the latest globalist delusion is inevitable is an effective way of penetrating unguarded minds. Hired-gun PR agencies specialize in manipulation by stealth drawing on their knowledge of human psychology, social psychology and behavioral science.

I’m inclined to add neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) to the list of weaponized sciences employed by propagandists. One example is the strategic use of the word, “eligible” when it came to enticing folks to get vaxxed. Typically, the word “eligible” has positive connotations as in the case where someone is deemed qualified to participate in a competition or placed in the pool of contestants for a prize draw. Individuals who were told they were “eligible” for a Covid injection, actually were being invited to play a version of medical Russian Roulette which, depending on the batch, could leave them sick, impaired or dead. It gives new meaning to the word disingenuous. One can only hope that the same people who were injured as a result of an adverse reaction to the vaxx will also be declared “eligible” for an apology from vaxx proponents and generous compensation by their governments.

When medical fascists were trying to convince us to accept the risky experimental vaxx, they employed language that implied everyone was capitulating to the so-called mandate and accept the vaxx. (and the numbers were exaggerated for good measure.) This was implied in terms like, “the last mile” or “last leg” of the vaxx roll-out. Pro-vaxx MSM articles appearing in MSM would underline the importance of completing the “last mile” or “final leg” of the campaign. The implied message is that the mission would be would be accomplished as a matter of course. This wasn’t a matter of “if”, only “when”, and it would be sooner rather than later. Soon it would be a case mission accomplished. A thick layer of bullshit veneer was applied to give the long-planned eugenicist-inspired project the glossy appeal of a bold moonshot venture.

Oops! Like any good authoritarian wedded to the belief that the end justifies the means, the disingenuous propagandist left out such minor details as viable alternative therapies, natural immunity, a faulty PCR test, medical ethics and the human right to bodily sovereignty. Unquestioning vaxx acceptance by angst-ridden citizens was the only path forward. This intentional exclusion of other considerations and options brings to mind an observation on tyranny from Alan Bloom, author of The Closing of the American Mind (1987). It invites us to consider what the propagandist has strategically omitted versus what is being said.

The most successful tyranny is not the one that uses force to assure uniformity but the one that removes the awareness of other possibilities, that makes it seem inconceivable that other ways are viable, that removes the sense that there is an outside.

The strategic editing of reality 

Consistent with the Bloom observation, “nudge unit” bureaucrats serving propagandizing governments have little difficulty obscuring or editing parts of our reality offering choices beyond their policy objectives. Again, the Covid Propagandemic is illustrative. The globalist bullies had to convince us that Ivermectin, Vitamin D, azythromycin and hydroxychloroquine were ineffective and/or dangerous. (They were suppressed, demonized and banned for good measure.) In Bloom’s terms, the tyrants made those other avenues of prevention and treatment seem inconceivable. Once people accepted that false premise, the job of convincing them that the vaxx was inevitable became much easier. 

It was as if the globalists’ cowboys were contracted to conduct a round-up at “the ranch.” The cowboys cracked their whips (made threats) and shouted (fearful consequences) to startle the herd get feet moving in the right direction. If added carrot shaped enticements like a return to normality and privileges to increase the appeal. Before it realized it, a large segment of the herd was psychologically and emotionally fenced in. Then the cowboys drove their subjects like cattle into the corral and down a narrow chute where they could be systematically injected/and branded/ID’d before being released back into the herd.

The Great Reset or Greater Expectations? 

As we’re bombarded with an increasing volume of toxic propaganda regarding the Great Reset, Central Bank CBDC’s, Smart Cities, (fake) Climate crises, 5G surveillance, ID implants, Russia and more Covid injections, watch for the subtle signs of the inevitability or band wagon con. This covert mind-warping technique is an inherent feature of globalist programming. The corollary of the opening Mike Smith quote is that once you know the magician’s tricks, you need not remain captivated by his sleights of hand.

Transhumanism’s psychopathic hucksters are good at projecting a confidence that belies the reality. Its aspiring high priests like Yuval Noah Harari and Ray Kurzweil, the “Singularity” salesman, exude a presumptive atheistic arrogance. Perhaps it’s linked to an underlying god delusion. If the advocates of totalitarian transhumanism possessed an ounce of humility, they would know that their plans for humanity are far from inevitable. The more likely outcome is that an awakening humanity will reject their not-so-great Great Reset, look up and pursue a decidedly more uplifting vision. Clear-headed liberty-seekers realize there’s nothing subtle about the choices facing us. 

“Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! (Deuteronomy 30:19)

End Notes

It’s not the blatant propaganda that gets you, Caitlin Johnstone, https://caitlinjohnstone.com/2023/07/19/its-not-the-really-blatant-propaganda-that-gets-you/

Nudge Units: Where they come from and what they can do, Zeina Afif, World Bank Blogs, October 25, 2017.

blogs.worldbank.org/developmenttalk/nudge-units-where-they-came-and-what-they-can-do

The ‘Nudge unit’: Ottawa’s Behavioural Science Team investigates how Canadians feel about vaccines, public health and who to trust, Susan Delacourt, Toronto Post, February 21, 2021. https://www.thestar.com/politics/political-opinion/the-nudge-unit-ottawa-s-behavioural-science-team-investigates-how-canadians-feel-about-vaccines-public/article_64d00ec0-cf95-5e8e-ad27-7a9b3046d169.html

Biggest Lie In World History; There never was a pandemic. The database is flawed. The Covid mandate, including the vaccine are invalid, Michael Chossudovsky. Global Research, August 13, 2023. https://www.globalresearch.ca/biggest-lie-in-world-history-the-data-base-is-flawed-there-never-was-a-pandemic-the-covid-mandates-including-the-vaccine-are-invalid/5772008

Kurzweil claims that the singularity will happen by 2045

https://futurism.com/kurzweil-claims-that-the-singularity-will-happen-by-2045

Sun Zu Brainy Quote

https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/sun_tzu_384922

Propaganda techniques, Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propaganda_techniques

The Closing of the American Mind: How higher education has failed democracy and impoverished the souls of today’s students, Alan Bloom, 1987. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Closing_of_the_American_Mind