Your Government Thinks You're Stupid (and I, for one, know you are not)

YOU are capable of discernment, and holy shit that is going to be more important than ever.

YOU are capable of critical thinking. YOU are capable of sniffing out logical fallacies and propaganda tactics that have kept us divided since the rich fucks said, “Oh shit, they’re noticing things are uneven. QUICK! ENGLAND IS OUR ONLY ENEMY,” and boom = The American Revolution. Necessary? Sure. Sovereignty is sexy.

But why is it that to this day, the jangling keys of “foreign bogeyman” still works on this population? If we really cared about the demographic that caused the most damage, how would that actually land? When has it been ok to punish an entire people for what one of them did?

Why doesn't this apply to every demographic, hmmm? Ok ok, let's back up.

Let’s Talk About Identity

Identity is powerful. It gives us belonging, safety, and that warm feeling of being “on the right team.” When someone says:

• “Real Americans believe…”

• “True patriots stand for…”

• “Good Christians would never…”

• “Real men don’t…”

Those are not arguments, they are instead offering you a tribe. And the human nervous system loves tribe. Belonging feels like survival. Exile feels like death. So when policy gets wrapped in identity, you stop evaluating it logically and process it emotionally.

“Does this keep me in the group?”“Does disagreeing make me an outsider?”

Don't worry, that's not stupidity. In fact, it's the way human brains are wired to stay safe.

But knowing that wiring exists? That’s power.

Let Me Dip Into My Marketing Brain

How do you get people to agree to something they don’t fully understand?

You brand it. You give it a name that sounds obvious and morally superior.

Let’s say I invent something called:

“The Perfect Planet Plan.”

Catchy. Memorable. Rhymes a little. Rolls off the tongue.

Now imagine someone says, “I’m not sure what’s in that plan.”

Instantly the response becomes: “Oh, so you’re against a perfect planet?”“What, you like pollution?”“Why do you hate the Earth?”

Notice what happened?

The debate didn’t stay on:

• The details

• The funding

• The tradeoffs

• The long-term consequences

It shifted to:Are you a good person? That’s branding.That’s framing. That’s persuasion 101. It's what we marketing folks do. (Sorry bout it)

This Is Not a Party Problem

Before anyone tightens up their bungholes, this isn’t about one president. This isn’t about red vs blue.

This is about power. It's about systems of benefit that keep us from all joining the same team.

Governments throughout history have relied on the same levers:

• Fear

• Identity

• Simplification

• Moral framing

• Urgency

• A villain

If the population slows down and starts asking detailed questions, power has to work harder.

So instead, we get:

• A slogan

• A threat

• A hero narrative

• And a time crunch

“Act now.”“Before it’s too late.”“Or THEY win.”

Who is they? I mean, it depends on.......the season......the seasoning, so to speak?

Why the Foreign Bogeyman Still Works

It’s clean.

It’s simple.

It avoids introspection.

If wages stagnate? Blame outsiders. If housing is unaffordable? Blame outsiders. If crime rises? Blame outsiders. If jobs leave? Blame outsiders.

It is much harder to say:

• Our economic incentives reward consolidation.

• Corporate capture influences legislation.

• We built a system that extracts more than it circulates.

• Wealth concentration destabilizes democracies.

Those conversations require nuance.

Bogeymen require none.

Here’s the Part They Hope You Don’t Do

Pause. Ask:

• What is being proposed?

• Who benefits financially?

• What data supports this?

• What data contradicts it?

• What tradeoffs are not being discussed?

• What emotional button is being pushed right now?

If something is being sold to you as morally unquestionable, that’s your curiosity cue. Real policy can withstand scrutiny. Only the most fragile narratives need protection from questions. Ask them!

You Are Not Stupid

You are busy. You are tired. You are bombarded. You are emotionally manipulated daily by billion-dollar communication machines. And they work! That’s not stupidity, its just asymmetry, which pairs really nicely with our brain juices. Yummy!

We can counter asymmetry with awareness. You don’t need to become cynical, or radical, or to pick a different team. You need to slow down, and let chicken little be chicken little. You be a cool ass human. REMEMBER, if something sounds too simple…If something feels too tribal…If disagreement is framed as moral failure…

Maybe you aren't being informed, you're being managed.

And you?

You are far too intelligent to be managed without your consent.

Let's learn. Let's show those in power that we won't keep falling for this.