Speech Pressure and Peer Pressure
Speech is to express thoughts and ideas as opinions through language, and to argue and discuss. People think differently. People change their minds depending on the situation, scene, time of day, season, age, etc. For some people, watching TV, reading the newspaper, or going to a seminar somewhere can change the way they think. Some people say extremely selfish opinions carelessly, while others say thoughtful opinions after careful consideration of their surroundings.
When someone says something to you, there are times when you want to obediently follow their opinion, and there are times when you want to refute it. Even if you think that the opinion is wrong, it is difficult to refute it if it is said by a celebrity you like, a great professor you respect, or a famous teacher. On the other hand, even if someone you don't like says the right thing to you, you'll get annoyed and want to argue back. Whether or not you refute other people's opinions has a lot to do with how you feel about them.
Rulers want to control speech and suppress speech that is disadvantageous to them. Rulers control and oppress speech in order to facilitate control.
Speech control and oppression by rulers is carried out in a variety of ways. There are ways to directly suppress objectionable speech, ban the publication of books, or suppress groups that support that speech. But these days, such direct methods of control and oppression may be rare.
There is a way to use people's emotions to steer speech in favor of rulers. For example, there is a method of inciting people to label a particular person or group as an "enemy of the people" and to attack that "enemy of the people." There is a way to brandish the term “free speech” and flood the media with offensive rhetoric. There is also a way to make free speech difficult by pressure to conform with authority and majority. There is also a way to deprive people of the ability to think deeply by exposing only low-level speech to the media.
Perhaps our speech is unknowingly controlled and oppressed by rulers. If the level of speech flowing through the media is low and offensive articles about foreign countries stand out, it may be proof that the press is being suppressed.
Control means assigning tasks to people, directing them, teaching them to obey, and monitoring and policing them. If you are given a job, directed, monitored, or policed, then you are being controlled by someone else. In society, if there are obvious dominance relationships, there are also invisible dominance relationships. In some cases, people are unknowingly embedded in control structures, monitored, guided, directed, and policed by others.
Conflicts arise in the blink of an eye. Even if the trigger itself is not that big, it can turn into a big conflict when dissatisfaction and hatred explode all at once. Dissatisfaction and hatred are amplified by media propaganda and agitation by thinkers and others. In some cases, certain forces use the media and thinkers to induce people into conflict. And in some cases, people may get into unwanted conflicts with those who rule. Conversely, conflict may be intentionally created as an outlet for people's grievances and hatred.
Authority is the coercive power to subjugate people, and it is the person who is thought to be very good at it. There are those who believe that authority figures are always right and that the general public must follow them. A person who is prone to believe in such authority is a person who is easily ruled. In order not to be dominated, it is important not to be easily swayed by someone else's opinion, not to believe or act as it is, nor to spread that opinion. In other words, don't rely too much on authority.
Ideology is a notion or thought, or a political ideal or idea. Ideology is what people think. Because people have more or less prejudices and preconceptions, the ideologies they come up with have more or less flaws and problems. However, there are people in the world who consider the ideology they follow to be correct, superior, and in some cases absolute, and attack those who support other ideologies, or use their own ideology to undermine others. They try to brainwash you, and in some cases try to control the world. By treating ideology as an absolute, they becomes unforgivable that the real world does not value it.
History teaches us many lessons. Learning history is an effective way to develop thinking skills that are not bound by prejudice and are difficult to control. To study history is to know not only the great men of the past, but also the mistakes of the past. It is said that history is written by the victors. If the times change and the winners are replaced, history will be rewritten. It is not uncommon for the history written in school textbooks to be inconsistent with the history examined by experts. Also, the same historical fact can be interpreted completely differently depending on the interpretation of historians. It is important to study history broadly and deeply in order to understand diverse ideas without being bound by prejudices.
Folly policies and cover-ups are often used by rulers as a maneuver to control people. Sometimes it is desirable for rulers that their ruled people be less intelligent. Above all, it is not interesting to see people sniffing around in places that are inconvenient for rulers. First of all, rulers educate people so that they should not doubt being ruled, and guide them to take an interest in areas that are not related to political rule, such as national defense and sports. Concealing inconvenient things and at the same time keeping people averted and not letting them think much about those makes it easier to control.
Rulers are sensitive to speech. It is not a good thing for rulers to spread the word that criticizes and condemns the current situation. If possible, the ruler thinks that convenient speech will spread and that inconvenient speech will disappear. Therefore, speech that is inconvenient for rulers is often suppressed by rulers. Such speech is condemned, attacked, or those who try to propagate it are crushed. Speech suppression takes many forms to facilitate control. In a society with a dominant structure, speech is always subject to some form of control and pressure. In some cases, not only do the rulers press, but the ruled majority also presses the minority to conform.
When people feel anxious, fearful, or have feelings of hatred, they sometimes act in ways that are unthinkable and foolish. Anxiety, fear, or hatred can shake people's emotions and make them feel helpless. It is said that it is effective to make people feel uneasiness, fear, or hatred in order to move people conveniently. Agitation is an effective means of influencing and controlling people's minds. Rulers cleverly use the incitement of anxiety, fear, or hatred to stir people's minds. By doing so, he tries to sway people's emotions and make them act in the favor of the ruler.
The ruler fears that the ruled will form a group, form a clique, and band together to oppose the ruler. In order to continue to rule effectively, it is necessary to distribute the forces of the ruled. For that reason, it is effective to guide the ruled people so that "Infighting" occurs as much as possible. We try to keep people from uniting as much as possible, so that even if they form cliques, infighting will soon occur, and we will guide them to prolong the wobbling. The longer the infighting continues, the easier it is to control people without increasing their power.
In order to continue to rule, a ruler must deftly deflect the resentment and hatred of those ruled. If the resentment and hatred of the ruled people is left as it is, it may someday be amplified and cause rebellion and the collapse of the ruling structure. One of the most clever ways to divert the resentment and hatred of the dominated is to create a "moderate enemy." By creating a "moderate enemy", you can change the direction of the resentment and hatred of those who are ruled. Both enemies can also attack each other to vent their grievances and divert attacks against their rulers.
In order to continue to rule stably, the ruler must prevent the ruled side from rebelling. To keep the ruled from rebelling, it is important to make them think of themselves as small beings. In addition to education and propaganda, it is possible to realize stable rule by demonstrating the power of the ruler, such as displaying military force and demonstrating execution, while making the ruled feel helpless. Propagating a powerful image of the ruler and instilling a sense of powerlessness in the ruled is crucial to sustaining control.
Let's study not to be dominated. In order not to be easily swayed by the opinions of others or the guidance of rulers, let's continue to learn widely and deeply. If you learn well and become smart, you can prevent yourself from being easily dominated. Acquiring knowledge will be a lifelong asset. Times change. The world is changing. What was once common sense is now insane, and it is not uncommon for knowledge that was once useful to become completely useless today. However, there is wisdom that remains useful even in changing times. By studying, you can become aware of whether you are being controlled. And you will be able to find the wisdom to not be easily dominated.
Always think strategically. Get into the habit of thinking before you speak or act. Those who try to control people almost always lead them to stop thinking. Because people who speak and act without thinking are easier to rule. People who take what they hear and talk and spread it, and people who get emotional and act quickly are easily manipulated. People who are wise and thoughtful, unobtrusive, non-emotional, and always thinking strategically are difficult to manipulate.
Those who try to dominate will set up an ideological war in one way or another. The purpose of ideological warfare is to make it easier to control people. In order to make it easier to rule, they lose hostility and fighting spirit against those who want to rule, confuse them, or create other enemies and provoke them to attack you. If you don't realize that you're being attacked by an ideological warfare and remain defenseless, you may end up being manipulated as you wish. In conflicting countries, each country may set up an ideological battle with each other.
Try to escape from addiction. Aim for independence as much as possible. People are more or less dependent on something. You can't completely get rid of your dependence on something. However, it is dangerous to rely heavily on any one thing. When you have to depend, it's better to distribute the dependencies. If you rely too much on one thing, you will have to listen to those in power. It is directly or indirectly governed by dependence. If you have to depend, let's become a necessary existence for the other person and become a mutually dependent relationship.
Sharpen your intuition. Let's create a sensitivity that sees through the truth in an instant. Don't be misled by other people's opinions, rumors, and media information, and have an intuition to see the truth. Cherish the sensations you receive in nature and the ideas that come to mind. Become aware of unnatural movements and minor anomalies. In order not to be dominated or manipulated by someone else, let's value the intuition within ourselves and always continue to refine it.
Don't let your emotions drive you. Always remain calm and observe yourself and your surroundings. Even if you get emotional, try to calm down quickly and take a good look at yourself. Emotionally driven people are easily provoked and controlled. It is not a good idea to become emotional when speaking or acting when you hear news or gossip. Maybe the news or gossip was deliberately spread to make people emotional and manipulative.
