CSotD: Setting The National Mindset
Skip to comments
For the 40th anniversary of his murder in police custody, Dr. Jack & Curtis remember Steve Biko with a quote that, as they say, remains sadly relevant today, and certainly not just in South Africa.
One of the "nice" things about the struggle against apartheid was that, particularly with the death of Biko and some other flagrant abuses of that moment, it was out there where everyone could see it and nobody could deny it.
Well, almost nobody, for a time.
South Africa experienced a brief, shining moment of clarity, in which it moved forward.
It appears to have stalled now, hence the cartoon.
And if it makes you feel smart to be cynical, then of course it went that way because it always does and four legs good, two legs better.
But it only happens that way because new oppressors rise to control the minds of the oppressed, which fits Biko's point.
And whether you see the solution to be reform, resistance or revolution, you get nowhere as long as people insist on believing lies that allow them to glide on their accustomed pathways.
The saying about how a lie is halfway around the world while truth is still lacing up its shoes contains one of the great truths of politics and society, and we're seeing a fresh example in the Russian Facebook intrusion.
As Jim Morin points out, it was an assault on democracy to have troll factories and paid disruptors posting lies and hate on Facebook. We don't know the extent to which they changed anyone's mind or inspired haters to vote, but, if they failed, then all advertising is wasted, and I don't think that's true.
They were clearly persuasive to the extent that a Russian imposter could post a hateful, deceptive, racist meme and have it liked and shared and circulated by thousands of real users in this country.
Maybe those haters were Trump voters to begin with, but, again, if their approval and sharing persuaded nobody, then there's no point in political conversations at all. And we know that is not true.
Another troubling side of this issue is that, however much the election itself might have been swayed, dialogue within the progressive community was poisoned by the abusive anti-Clinton postings from the troll factories.
That toxicity remains active, because the revelation that the vast bulk of it was a purposeful, divisive Russian fraud is not sinking in.
You could write a book about it, or, at least, a chapter.
Let me be clear: This is not unusual. It's not the province of one particular group, or the outcome of one particular event.
This is how propaganda works.
It doesn't matter what context is supplied later; it doesn't matter how completely the lies are refuted after the fact.
Lies are like an invasive species, and once a lie has been established, it's more likely to spread than to be eradicated.
People still believe Al Gore lied about his involvement in developing the Internet and that John Kerry lied about his service in Vietnam and that a snowstorm is proof that global warming is a myth and that thousands of Sanders supporters turned to Trump and that Dan Quayle thought potato was spelled with an "e" on the end.
And a lie that offers people a chance to relax and do nothing is the hardest to refute.
It doesn't even have to be an actual lie about anything or anyone in particular.
It can simply be a system in which a mood of indolent acceptance is established.
We had an active shooter at our medical center two days ago, and, in attempting to find out what was going on, I flipped on our CBS affiliate, assuming they would cut into their schedule for coverage.
They had not, and what I saw instead was straight out of "Fahrenheit 451:" A group of women were sitting around a table talking as if they were leaning over the fence at home. It was one more example of a type of programming foreseen in Bradbury's novel, in which TV provides imaginary friendships for a lonely, isolated audience.
As does Ellen. As does Oprah. As does Steve Harvey.
There's nothing inherently wrong with chat shows.
People Magazine deserves to exist as much as The Atlantic, and reading mysteries doesn't mean you can't also read Jane Austen or Tolstoy, and choosing between quinoa and a Whopper is still permitted.
But Guy Montag wasn't demanding that his wife get rid of their interactive television. He just wanted her to shut it off long enough to talk to him, to think about their lives, maybe even to break the law and read one of the forbidden books he had rescued from the fire.
In Fahrenheit 451, that was asking too much, of her, of anybody.
In Biko's case, a racist, exploitive government directed the subversion of the national mind.
In ours, it's the sellers of soap and the people who want to rob you of your structured settlement and Marie, who lost 50 pounds of stubborn belly fat.
Doesn't matter.
Because, as Darrin Bell warns, there will be a concerted effort to keep control of the nation's indolent, unquestioning, incurious minds.
Whether that's the inspiration of politicians or done at the behest of lobbyists doesn't matter.
Still, knowing this doesn't make its outcome inevitable.
When Steve Biko died, his death stiffened anti-apartheid resistance, and, judging by the number and quality of co-sponsors to this initiative, the abject failure of the 2016 elections may have brought fresh energy and purpose to reform here.
If nothing else, it's a roster of those willing to pick up the torch despite the risk of getting burnt.
We'll see what the national mind wants to believe next.
Now here's your moment of persistence and hope
Asimbonanga Asimbonang 'umfowethu thina (we have not seen our brother)
Laph'ekhona (in the place where he is)
Laph'wafela khona (in the place where he died)
Mike Peterson has posted his "Comic Strip of the Day" column every day since 2010. His opinions are his own, but we welcome comments either agreeing or in opposition.
Comments 5