Liberal Forum

1/ Most people would rather be in the majority, than be right.

2/ At least 20% of the population has strong authoritarian tendencies, which will emerge under the right conditions.

3/ Fear of death is only rivalled by the fear of social disapproval. The latter could be stronger.

4/ Propaganda is just as effective in the modern day as it was 100 years ago. Access to limitless information has not made the average person any wiser.

5/ Anything and everything can and will be politicised by the media, government, and those who trust them.

6/ Many politicians and large corporations will gladly sacrifice human lives if it is conducive to their political and financial aspirations.

7/ Most people believe the government acts in the best interests of the people. Even many who are vocal critics of the government.

8/ Once they have made up their mind, most people would rather to commit to being wrong, than admit they were wrong.

9/ Humans can be trained and conditioned quickly and relatively easily to significantly alter their behaviours - for better or worse.

10/ When sufficiently frightened, most people will not only accept authoritarianism, but demand it.

11/ People who are dismissed as 'conspiracy theorists' are often well researched and simply ahead of the mainstream narrative.

12/ Most people value safety and security more than freedom and liberty, even if said 'safety' is merely an illusion.

13/ Hedonic adaptation occurs in both directions, and once inertia sets in, it is difficult to get people back to 'normal'.

14/ A significant % of people thoroughly enjoy being subjugated.

15/ 'The Science' has evolved into a secular pseudo-religion for millions of people in the West. This religion has little to do with science itself.

16/ Most people care more about looking like they are doing the right thing, rather than actually doing the right thing.

17/ Politics, the media, science, and the healthcare industries are all corrupt, to varying degrees. Scientists and doctors can be bought as easily as politicians.

18/ If you make people comfortable enough, they will not revolt. You can keep millions docile as you strip their rights, by giving them money, food, and entertainment.

19/ Modern people are overly complacent and lack vigilance when it comes to defending their own freedoms from government overreach.

20/ It's easier to fool a person than to convince them that they have been fooled.

Bonus thought:

21/ Most people are fairly compassionate and have good intentions (this is good)

As a result, most people deeply struggle to understand that some people, including our 'leaders', CAN have malicious or perverse intentions (this is bad).

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