In the maze of thoughts ... The terrifying ease of mind-control
This is something that's been lingering on my mind for quite a while. So often we hear people screaming at one another “You're being controlled! They're brainwashing you! DO YOUR RESEARCH, !” I'm utterly allergic to the last one in particular for obvious reasons.
But where does it come from? How did we get into the state where things that were usually attributed to lunatics are now mainstream? The possibly and not completely outlandish answer is: “You're being mind-controlled.” Wait, what? Did I just say this? Did I seriously say the exact thought that I've been mildly mocking just seconds ago? Well, yes, I did. And you read Soatok's post on being under influence, you're probably starting to get an idea where I'm about to go with this. I'm not going to delve into the ins and outs of the field because our resident dhole has already done so. What I'd like to point at is how terrifyingly easy it has been to mind-control entire droves through a seemingly innocent technical feat and the general laziness of people. So, grab a snack, your favourite beverage of choice and let's dive in.
What's the first thing that comes to your mind when someone says “mind-control”? Maybe it's some sophisticated machine, implanted in one's body which discretely controls one's actions and decisions. The subject to such treatment is often completely unaware and impossible to convince. Or maybe it's something more esoteric, say a powerful wizard enchanting their unwilling servants, turning them into their thralls. Ok, maybe that's a bit too fantastical but there's something more realistic from the worlds of magic and alchemy. How about dangerous substances? Vapours, potions or various edible treats, weakening one's mind to a state that's suceptible to suggestion. Sounds familiar? Drugs, alcohol, that sort of thing? Things that are very familiar in our day to day lives. Or maybe something more crude, like literally beating the desired thoughts into you through physical and/or mental abuse. Everyone has a breaking point and eventually submits to the abuser just to make the pain end. What follows, depends on one's luck. In the better case (yes, that is the better fate), they'll be removed as an example. Otherwise, one will be left to rot in a miserable state of existence, only to possibly end it by themselves.
Scary, how easy it is to break one's will and them to other's bidding, don't you think? Read the question again; “break one's will”. This is the key to controlling someone. One needs to be brought to a point, where it's more convenient to act against their own interests and motivations. Think about it. Why would someone do such thing willingly? There needs to be an underlying factor to make one act against themselves. Some do so out of fear. What kind of fear? Anything. Fear of abandonment, fear of losing their life; anything that threatens one's security. Other times, it's convenience and comfort. Wait, what? How can it be convenient to act against oneself out of comfort? Oh my dear reader, way easier than you think. And you have very likely fallen victim to such convenience trap multiple times without even acknowledging you did so and now you probably want to fight me tooth and nail about this. But think about it. How many “conveniences” you have in your life that actively hurt you (most likely indirectly) or someone else but you don't care because it's convenient?
You can probably already guess what I'm alluding to. That I'm kind of tip-toeing around a certain technology that has made mind-control so terrifyingly easy and seemingly innocent until it's far too late. That's right, the ever-present algorithms. Specifically “recommendation” algorithms. Admit it, how many times did you get something because it was recommended to you without even stopping and asking yourself whether it's a right choice? How many times did you fall into the hole of watching whatever YouTube has thrown at you because it was just close to your interests, leading your hand further and further down the path designed for you? See what I did here? It was designed for you. Designed by whom? Yourself? Someone else? Nobody? The last is definitely not true since someone had to implement the code. But who is that someone? You? Really? Did you really sit down and coded the program which tracks your habits and tailored it to what YOU like and what YOU want? I don't think so because such thing isn't exactly a job for one person over the course of one afternoon. Things like this require tons and tons of research data and many people far smarter than my measly self, both in academic and sadly the insidious sense, to create such a beast of a “machine”. And yet, the concept is strangely simple. You consume whatever you like, the machine takes the statistics, evaluates them and based on the output, it provides more based on the resulting correlation. And it's the evaluation where the devil sits. Because who evaluates the data? You? Oh sweet summer child, you do no such thing. In fact, you have off-loaded this extremely critical step to someone else. You, who holds all the delicious data (yes, your preferences is “the” data) and should be the one to use them, have willingly given up part of your personality to someone. Congratulations, you've just been mindcontrolled! Collars are right there, feel free to pick whichever you fancy. Oh, and don't forget the leash so you can be easily pulled around (yes, I know some of you are probably into that but believe me, this is not the pleasant kind of pull).
So what to do about it? Well, you have learn to do things “the hard way” again. And by hard way I mean actually utilising the connections manually. This of course means rebuilding the social fabric yet again. I'm not even remotely going to suggest it's an easy task. I know from experience it's not, being a rather reclusive lone wolf. But believe me when I tell you it's very liberating, reclaiming your personal tastes without subjecting them to a heartless machine, probably controlled by some deranged sociopath who'd happily turn you into an equivalent of soylent green at the first moment.
“But ... how do I know what I like?” That's the thing. You have to figure it out yourself. Remember, be curious. Try things on your own. Leave the machine behind and build your own corner of the world. Delegating personal tastes to someone else is a terrifyingly easy way to control you and destroy your life and sense of self. That's the goal of algorithms. They remove what makes you “you”, turning you into a product. A thing to sell. A thing to market. A number in statistics. A slave to the system (sorry, couldn't resist). Not an ounce of humanity will be left. Only a product of social pressure and grey, monochrome, boring imitation of life. That's how easy it is to control one's mind and drain them of individuality until there's nothing left. Not through “brute force” but through apathy and convenience where you give everything you are willingly.
Don't want to do it? Take a first step and limit your exposure to algorithms. Maybe introduce a little bit of inconvenience into your life. My most recent venture? I got rid of my almost decade old Spotify. Why? Because
It doesn't really recommend me anything useful
They're absolute arsehats towards creators. (Highest payouts? Yeah, eat shit. There are plenty of stats that prove the exact opposite)
Why does a music company need to invest into defence? Like, if one does it as their individual thing, it's still morally questionable at best although given present day's fucked up political climate one can see why. Doesn't of course mean it should endorsed in any way, shape or form.
What about YouTube which has become ubiquitous? Nobody forces you to use the official client. I've been on alternatives for quite a while already and it's a far better experience than being constantly exposed to the virtual Goebbels megaphone. Sure, “recommendations” still pop from time to time and it makes me want to exsanguinate whoever “tailored” the algorithm but the exposure is much lower and thus easier to break out of. Social networks? Mastodon has no algorithm at all and BlueSky keeps feeds chronological unless explicitly stated otherwise so me delving into the “depths of the abyss” is merely my choice and mine alone. How bad? Depends.
In the end, algorithms don't exist to make your experience better. Instead, they're tailored to strip you of your individuality, moulding you into whatever is demanded. They attack your need “to belong” by removing anything interesting that could give you such status in the first place. Sounds weird? Let me leave you with a question for thought at the end:
If everyone is the same, how can you check whether you belong? How do you find out, when there's nothing to compare to?
R.R.A.