5 Signs the Government's
Biggest War is for Your Mind
By Carey Wedler
March
21, 2015 "ICH"
-When
most people think of destructive government
wars, images of drone strike wreckage and
murdered civilians come to mind.
But while organized, physical violence is a
repulsive form of oppression, the state
employs a variety of tactics to wage war on
its own citizens. They are more subtle than
batons and guns but far more effective than
violence alone. They seek to conquer not
bodies, but minds.
1) Over-Medication and the Drug War -
Whether out of rabid greed or calculated
malice, the federal government continually
approves corporate medications that cloud
free thought. Painkillers and
anti-depressants leave users
zombie-like, causing further
depression and often,
addiction. Children are routinely
over-diagnosed and medicated and are often
forced to take anti-psychotics that they
testify makes them groggy.
Pesticides and chemicals like
aspartame also inhibit brain function.
The problem of “legal” brain cell killers is
compounded by the fundamental philosophy of
the Drug War. Aside from the
police state the program has fostered,
it makes the bold claim that non-violent
individuals are not free to choose what they
put in their bodies. When the government
exercises violence to regulate these
choices, it asserts power over not just the
body, but the free will and minds of its
citizens.
2) The War on Children’s Minds - In
addition to over-medicating children, the
education system forces a strict regimen
intended to foster obedience at the expense
of consciousness. Students around the
country have been disciplined for everything
from
wearing yoga pants to
sharing food with hungry friends. The
reasoning behind it is not to help others,
but to instill the power of authority
(always in the name of morality and safety).
Other violations students are routinely
punished for? Using the restroom without
permission. Refusing to pledge allegiance to
an inanimate object. Sitting outside of an
assigned seat.
Daring to upset school police officers,
whose
presence in public schools has exploded
and led to multiple
instances of violence. This furthers a
mentality of conformity and compliance that
intersects with the inherently uniform
nature of lesson plans and standardized
testing.
3) The Rise of Islamophobia - Without
public support for war, the meddling hands
of government are tied. One of the ways to
placate opposition to military intervention,
however, is to dehumanize those the
government will inevitably kill. Doing that
requires collectivization, which the United
States government has successfully promoted.
Thanks to constant fear-mongering by
politicians and the media, massive portions
of Americans are
terrified of and hateful toward Muslims.
In Texas earlier this year,
protesters aggressively surrounded a
peaceful gathering of Muslim-Americans
who tried to share intentions of peace and
solidarity with other citizens. Americans
walked out of American Sniper (a film
undoubtedly guided by the Pentagon)
calling for the murder of all Muslims. The
dehumanization of an entire demographic of
people is a terrifying tool used by the
elites to manipulate public opinion (it was
used by the United States government against
Germans and the
Japanese, and of course, by other states
craving war).
4) The Radicalization of Peace and
Protest - The government has made a
habit of designating otherwise peaceful
actions as terrorism. The Department of
Homeland Security has taken a particularly
active role in this process. DHS gave money
to the NYPD with the intention of
policing protests with machine guns (the
plan failed) and implementing
“counter-terrorism” policies. DHS has
helped militarize the police forces that
surround peaceful demonstrations around the
country. Missoula, Montana police, who
wanted to
tear down a commune of hippies who call for
peace and love, asked the DHS for funds.
They were deemed “extremists.”
“Anti-government extremists” have also
been labeled a terrorist threat,
demonstrating that anyone who offers
opposition to state policy is “dangerous.”
Even a boy who brought a Lord of the
Rings ring to school and acted out a
scene from the film was
reprimanded for terrorist tendencies.
When innocent and often admirable actions
and views are considered a threat to the
state, it is clear that that state is out to
suppress dissent and independent thought.
5) Universal Surveillance - The
government has long been eager to capitalize
on technology to garner control. Take the
FBI’s powerful
new facial recognition system or the
DEA’s nifty tools that
spy on drivers in their cars. The
president recently
issued an executive order to continue
government spying. A
recent Pew study found that over ⅓ of
Americans have taken steps to shield
themselves from spying. Many Americans are
using social media less often and avoiding
using certain words and forms of
communication. 57% polled said it is
unacceptable for the government to monitor
Americans’ data. The
study has been criticized, but
regardless, denotes a disturbing climate for
privacy (the criticism suggests people are
even more disturbed by the spying programs
than reported). The government’s
overzealous, watchful eye has created an
environment where people are not free to be
themselves or freely engage in their
interests.
Though these methods of oppression seem less
threatening than typical government
violence, taken together they paint a
disturbing portrait of disappearing
freedoms. When minds are clouded with drugs,
authority, hate and fear, a dangerous vacuum
of government control and manipulation
forms, it allows the government to wield
physical violence with much more ease and
apathy. It is imperative that those who are
aware of these tactics remain observant,
fearless, and free to draw attention to
them.
As Albert Camus said, “The only way to deal
with an unfree world is to become so
absolutely free that your very existence is
an act of rebellion.”
Carey
Wedler writes for
TheAntiMedia.org.