DOES NOT COMPUTE
You cannot change people’s basic
programming. You simply cannot. Ever try to change your spouse? Good luck, right? Notice your child’s basic behavior
reasserting itself as soon as they leave the nest? Ever try to argue with your boss about doing
the smart thing rather than the corporate thing? Notice Prepping Guru’s advocating something and
nothing else no matter how unrealistic? Now,
we are all guilty of ignoring basic programming, especially myself. How often do I speak of automobile hate or
semi-auto hate? Why do I do this? Nobody changes their mind. I either preach to the choir or be ignored by
the atheists passing by outside.
*
I blather until my poor little pea
picking heart seizes up, trying to talk about the wasted effort of voting or
watching politics, or worshiping Mammon as that false god is in the process of
dying. And no one listens. Because you cannot change someone’s
mind. You can deliver new information
they were not aware of, and they will act upon it, but not if it is contrary to
what they already planned. You can “wake”
some people, but that STILL must be in line with their fundamental beliefs.
*
The two biggest guide posts I look at
are optimism verses pessimism and introverts verses extroverts, because those
two cover so much ground ( at least in survivalism ). It would have been nice to know about “trovertism”
in school. Why couldn’t they cover that
rather than algebra ( never used ) or auto mechanics ( teaching carburetors as
fuel injectors were widespread )? I
could have picked a much better career path.
Well, of course we all know why.
Some extrovert sumbitch designed a system of socializing factory workers
( even as all the factories were moving overseas ). Damn extroverts!
*
Lately, I’m in a fruitless effort
trying to point out that capitalism is no better, or worse, than any other
political system birthed for the Industrial Revolution ( capitalism was
actually born of modern central banks and colonialism, from the Dutch East
Indies model. Adam Smith wasn’t
channeling wisdom from God. As colonial
excess resources gave way to carbon fuel excess, capitalism stayed a great fit
). No one is interested. Probably because they don’t want to accept
that our prosperity is not due to culture or religion or economic philosophy
but resource surplus starting 500 years ago and ending any day now.
*
Which ties into pessimistic outlooks
verses optimistic ones. It is easy to be
born and remain optimistic, when life barely throws any problems at you, except
for First World Problems. If you aren’t
naturally wired pessimistically, you miss all the underlying structural rot and issues. Us pessimists had to fight upstream our whole
lives, as the culture was against us except in a few hollers and hamlets (
nobody beats a dour Scots-Irishman for pessimism. They were born to it and raised in it, culturally. Not that extra whisky helped all that much ),
or swamps, ifin you hail from the old French colonies.
*
Only optimists think surging
populations and shrinking resources work out well for anyone. Only optimists think they can live forever (
or can live forever down in Arizona where the annual rainfall is minus five
inches ). Only optimists can be Fracking
Fags, or Imperial Forever Advocates.
Only optimists think we can vote in change, or die peacefully in their
sleep prior to that nasty collapse. Only
optimists think a few thousand rounds of ammunition can feed their “spray and
pray”, “suppressive fire” and “cover me!” tactics long enough into the
apocalypse.
*
Only optimists think the grass can be
greener on the other side of the fence, for a better job or a better wife. Only optimists think they will hold the last
job in an imploding economy until the very first day of the apocalypse. Only optimists feel the need to be preppers
rather than survivalists, because “nothing THAT bad is going to happen”. I am literally making a career out of
debasing optimism. Hey, you dumb asses
are paying me, as if you’ll always have a paycheck and that ten bucks wasn’t
needed for more wheat J
*
I put it that way, I guess I have to
love that most people are optimists. I’m
kidding. But I certainly don’t think I’m
right and they are wrong. Well,
actually, I do. But I also know it isn’t
a question of being more intelligent. I
would wager a jelly filled donut that most of my readers are actually quite
smarter than I am. I’m better read, and
more paranoid, but I make no claims past that.
I know I have to try to rain on their parade, even if I can’t break
their belief in eternal sunshine.
*
Hell, they probably think I’m the one
with the actual physical brain disorder.
Like I’m a manic depressive or something. How could I be? I actually think I’m not depressed or cynical
enough. I’m actually enjoying the decline. I am easily amused at the process. Laughing at misfortune, even your own, is
healthy. It is a defense mechanism. Then, so is denying the process I suppose. At least to a certain degree. Pessimists rally doom as a comfort, since if
you always assume the worse you are not surprised. Optimists always think things will get better
so always have hope.
*
Both valid coping mechanisms. You really can’t claim pessimism has any
better survival value, looked at in that way.
But of course, no other time in history have we had the surplus that
allowed normal citizens to prepare for disaster as we do today, so I could be
off on that one ( obviously, there are plenty of old school ways of
prepping. Monasteries, immigration,
mountain hermitage on a tribal level, wiping out the herders and taking over
their territory, or the agriculture equivalent ). Extroverts and introverts play a similar
coping mechanism.
*
Introverts make excellent hermits and
extroverts make really good tribe members ( as you revert from civilization to
barbarian tribes ). Both survival
strategies. But here is my basic
point. Be true to your basic programming
and ignore experts of other stripes.
They are only experts insofar as THEIR programming. The calls to Tribe Up are correct. If you are an extrovert. Not so much if you are an introvert. Calls to Go Hermit ONLY work for introverts. An extrovert Survival Guru
will naturally advocate for tribes and agriculture. It is great advice-for other extroverts. Does that fit you? Or not?
*
We need to stop judging if particular
survival advice is sound, and ask who it is sound for. I mean, sure, some advice is stupid no matter
what. But most is really just pandering
to one of two camps. Extroverts or
introverts. And the types of prepping
are not right or wrong in and of themselves.
Optimists don’t deep prep for civilization collapse but rather merely
disruption of their favorite Business As Usual.
Pessimists can ONLY prep in the most extreme fashion. Neither side is right or wrong but rather
true to their programming. Damn weak ass
programmed biologic computers!
( .Y. )
( today's related Amazon link click here )
Please
support Bison by buying through the Amazon links here ( or from http://bisonprepper.com/2.html or www.bisonbulk.blogspot.com ). Or PayPal www.paypal.me/jimd303
*** Unless you are in extreme poverty, spend a buck a month here, by the above donation methods ( I get 4% of the Amazon sale, so you need to buy $25 worth for me to get my $1 ) or mail me some cash/check/money order or buy a book ( web site for free books, Amazon to pay just as a donation vehicle ).
*** My e-mail is: jimd303@reagan.com My address is: James M Dakin, 181 W Bullion Rd #12, Elko NV 89801-4184 ***E-Mail me if you want your name added to the weekly e-newsletter subscriber list.
* By the by, all my writing is copyrighted. For the obtuse out there
Yes Jim, correct analysis again. I always remark "stick with what you know". So there is no path for me to go down laid out by some yuppie unicorn rancher as a must do or must know theory. Not going to take up asparagus farming, basketweaving, 3 percenter tactical operator sheepdog training, etc. I thoroughly enjoy my introvertist ways and will be the last hermitage holdout avoiding as much people contact as possible. Most formed up or cobbled together tribes will fail anyway due to carrying today's stupidity and baggage over into a new era that will punish with no mercy that stupid stuff even more so then. As a parallel analogy, be that bird or animal species that functions independantly self sufficiently, and is not affected by environmental or outside influencing forces. If a minion is functionally on task now regarding the 'prep for surviving' then they don't need any mentoring or influencing into new or special directions, that can be saved for the autistic short bus riders in the prepper community, which there appears to be very many.
ReplyDeleteShort bus riders. Damn, I haven't used that one for awhile :)
DeleteI just found a vintage 1" triangle-shaped pinback with a picture of an almost-drooling boy with the caption "The Retarded Can Be Helped" around the edge. Probably ~1959.
DeleteThe people who want to help are sincere, but they will get us killed by distraction and starvation.
I don't think stupidity can be excused with sincerity.
DeleteI'm pessimistic in that I expect bad stuff to happen. I'm optimistic that I'll be able to cope with or at least endure the bad stuff. I suspect that will serve me well -until the day it doesn't.
ReplyDeleteWell, no matter who we are or what we did, that day will arrive for all of us. Except for the optimists. They will be dead before their brain can register the new reality :)
DeleteHi, Jim. Excellent comparison, not just between the introvert and the extrovert, but between the facilitators of each style. Very strong food for thought. It's nice to have a new thought on an old issue, especially when it is accurate.
ReplyDeleteI tried the tribe thing. I tried clubs, organizations. It just doesn't work, not for me anyway. Most authors I read, the primary most important thing to do is - get involved in your community. For some of us, that just doesn't work.
Thank you for your clarity. Frank
Hey, let's all enjoy it when I have one of my rare moments. :) I'm slow but I eventually figure stuff out.
Delete+1. I try everything a few times while they fail, then try to fail at something different. I'm inside a failing FOE Aerie right now. Almost all Fraternal Organizations are failing due to lack of interest by correct young people. Sure, they'll have a party in the building and spend money (cheap drinks!), but join or become officers? Hell, no. Some will play along with joining to get a better deal on a party, then fail to renew next year after being unavailable for the year. This, plus the old folks (boomers + some VERY OLD) who want nothing to ever change and don't care about the ongoing costs, keep the youngsters out. After enough of this, the building is sold for 210 tiny housing units and 6 microscopic retail booths, and no parking. The City is pleased due to massive tax revenue base increase. Another reason to buy junk land and escape: high taxes and crowding.
Deletepdxr13
Damn extroverts, always wanting to be bunghole to elbow. Druid Dude covered the death of fraternal organizations rather well, I think.
Delete"It would have been nice to know about “trovertism” in school. Why couldn’t they cover that...?"
ReplyDeleteI believe George Carlin has the best answer to that question: "They want obedient workers, obedient workers. People who are just smart enough to run the machines and do the paperwork and just dumb enough to passively accept all these increasingly shittier jobs with the lower pay, the longer hours, the reduced benefits, the end of overtime and the vanishing pension that disappears the minute you go to collect it."
George was a wise man, tru dat homey G.
DeleteYes, and I want to point out that the odds of "converting" somebody increases when you have a grip on the heuristics of anchoring-and-adjustment and cognitive dissonance.
ReplyDeleteA^3 discounts new information and is important for stable belief systems. Without a stable belief system it would be impossible for people to invest in the future.
Cognitive dissonance is a filtering system. Information that is not coherent with our belief system cause us pain and we filter it out. That also promotes a stable belief system.
Stable belief systems are neither good or bad. However, when the environment changes an excessively stable belief system is not optimal.
The way to push through A^3 and cognitive dissonance is to saturate and then overload the cognitive dissonance filter. Don't drip-drip the filter. Hit it with a fire hose. The the pain, the dissonance works in your favor as the belief system will rotate to be in conformance with the tsunami of information.
Ideally the data is from credible sources and is vivid, high-impact data rather than small-font, academic drivel.
In the words of Winston Churchill, "Hit them with your best argument like a hammer. Then hit them again. Then give them another tremendous whack. Give them no rest."
Churchill understood how people process data.
Churchill was a gaping dingus, but yes, he understood all too well. He was also a funny mo-fo, to give him his due.
Delete