The opportunity of our time: Reversing Demoralization

A free cyberspace needs people willing to take action and learn from mistakes. Demoralization robs people not only of their capacity for action, but also their very spirit. Making the best of our future requires us to directly oppose the mass-demoralization that paralyzes people in despair and complacency.

To take part in a better digital future, we are obligated to wrestle with the real human problems that will be with us no matter what tools we use. The social dynamics of our society aren’t things we can out-engineer, nor should we want to try. It is of utmost importance that those of us interested in better tools for a brighter tomorrow need to contend with the real difficulties people are actually facing. If we do not work to “win hearts, and change minds” on important issues like privacy, security, and digital autonomy; nobody will have any sympathy for our concerns.

How many times have freedom-minded people heard:

“It’s hopeless.”

“It’s too late.”

“We won’t make a difference!”

“What’s the point in trying?”

“They won’t let it happen!”

There is a dire need to recognize and reverse the most insidious force working against people’s lives and liberty. It is so oppressive and omnipresent that many feel it is not merely immovable, but a fundamental structure of our reality. The vast majority of things needed to make our digital (and actual) lives better aren’t technological engineering challenges, but rather sophisticated collective action problems. This means that the path to success isn’t dependent on novel breakthroughs in technology but rather in preserving and repairing a frayed social fabric. It is tempting to blame those who wallow in despair, but it is always far more important to ask ourselves why so many are trapped within it.

“Despair is an op[eration], and it’s world wide.”
Catherine Austin Fitts

The most potent weapon of our time is not merely fear, but the calculated mass application of it. When governments and corporations are the most desperate to maintain their stranglehold over the public, we can expect ever increasing resources to be deployed into never-ending mass demoralization. This is because a demoralized individual is compliant, dependent, and unwilling to consider alternatives. The demoralized person is a very profitable mark because they are vulnerable to advertising campaigns and emotionally charged scams. A demoralized public will be entirely unable to push for accountability, justice, or even simple truth, by design. It is vital to understand that rage is not evidence of resisting demoralization, because rage can be directed. If anything, rage is a weakness that leads many to a path of fruitless self-destruction.

Recognizing demoralization

It’s relatively easy to identify demoralization in those who are different than us, but so much harder to find it in our peers and ourselves. When we understand the harms of both targeted and mass demoralization, it is crucial for us to recognize it in our midst. At its root, demoralization is learned helplessness. The constant mutterings of the demoralized is that “it doesn’t matter”. Details, or even the truth itself are irrelevant when one learns that their own contributions to society, or even their own life make no difference. Robbed of dignity and self-determination, people individually and as a whole begin to adapt to their captivity.

These adaptations drive the individual to lose perspective of their situation. Over time it becomes difficult to even remember what life was like before they had to adapt to a countless array of impositions and threats. In losing touch with their own life circumstances, it becomes almost impossible to understand others, especially those who are different. While it is certainly possible for an individual to rise above these challenges, it is a whole other matter to reverse the tide society wide.

Why are people demoralized?

The easily accessible answers are far too oversimplified. While it’s undoubtedly true that modern entertainment technologies and convenient services have taken face-to-face time away from people, “digital disconnects” are only a partial and temporary measure. It is more difficult to wrestle with the idea that mass demoralization of the public is an intended policy outcome for its stabilizing effects. It’s so much easier for corrupt schemes to go along nicely when people are unable to react and respond. Over time, the consequences of this kind of abuse create conditions that perpetuate these circumstances.

Very often, the subjects of demoralization are themselves blamed for their condition. In a world where everyone can recognize omnipresent negative messaging and polarization, this seems to be an uncharitable stretch. Viewed from a far, it is so much easier to identify demoralized people because the problems they are adapting to seem abstract or at least distant. Whereas when we look at ourselves and those around us we are intimately aware of the circumstances that constrain our agency and power. This mismatch is precisely responsible for much of the polarization we see today; different groups of people are demoralized by different but similar circumstances, leading to anger and confusion.

As times get harder, bitterness and resentment settle in. These feelings make it harder to trust and cooperate. This directly attacks people’s ability to work together to achieve things that matter. As people begin to forget that people actually can work together to make a difference, eventually the entire idea begins to sound crazy and impossible. All this creates a suffocating atmosphere of futility and despair. Living in those conditions is no simple thing, one necessarily must cope however they can. Truly recognizing demoralization in oneself and others is often far too terrifying to contemplate.

We’re not exempt

Demoralization isn’t about what you know, or what you have. It’s about what you’re doing. Given the overall depressing atmosphere of the modern digital landscape, it is no surprise that almost everyone shows some signs of demoralization. It’s easy to arrogantly dismiss that we have been corrupted by hopelessness in one way or another simply because we want to believe we’re above it all. What makes despair and apathy corrosive is that they weave themselves into the very social fabric that means no single person can fight it alone, no matter how well-equipped. Do not fall into the trap of assessing yourself as having everything figured out and others being a herd of dull and demoralized masses. In truth, almost all of us are closer than we care to admit.

Yuri bezminov was (hopefully) wrong

While he didn’t invent the term, people often associate the word demoralization with Yuri Bezminov’s lectures. He makes a couple of very strong claims that are entirely counter-productive to overcoming mass demoralization:

Claim: Demoralized people can’t be reasoned with

With the benefit of hindsight, this seems to be a great mindset to isolate oneself from others. This ironically creates more demoralization in the long run. It would be more productive to consider that one has to take more care when trying to persuade others. Any good sales person knows the most important skill on their part is to listen. One has to understand a person’s perspective to begin to change their mind. It’s entirely possible (and quite likely) that those you can’t persuade have concerns and risks you don’t comprehend.

Claim: Demoralization is irreversible

The fundamental point of this piece is that we can and should work to bring others from the brink. It is worth striving to refine our skills, knowledge, and language to build a digital future people want to be a part of. Things are hard, and many people are absolutely struggling with a lot, but there is so much that can be done to make real tangible change. Not immediately, not all at once, and definitely not easily, but it’s absolutely achievable.

Learning to overcome demoralization

Just because it’s outright impossible to single-handedly and unilaterally transform society, this doesn’t mean we can’t make a meaningful difference. With people growing more and more frustrated with our existing digital experience, building gradual improvements seems like a lower and lower bar every day. The most important step is to remind others and ourselves that we don’t need to accept things as they are. We are entitled to a better digital future and we can work together to make it happen. Resisting digital totalitarianism requires a lot of hope, and all the imagination we can come across. It is perfectly within our reach to work to build, and share a culture of good stewardship over our digital lives. We must recognize the opportunity in inspiring ourselves and others to take first steps. With clarity, focused effort, and willingness to cooperate, there is so much that can be accomplished.

No, Humanity Doesn’t Have to Zombie Walk Into a Dystopic Nightmare Future

Growth mindset

The thing holding most people back the most is the understandable desire to change everything all at once. That’s far too impractical for many, so embracing gradual change is a practical necessity. A dozen different projects starting small can avalanche into massive changes over time. Odds are most people can think of a few things they would want changed in their digital life, even the simpler fixes can be quite meaningful.

It’s a lot more important to be willing to learn than to have everything figured out. Nobody is going to change everything all at once, odds are people are going to want different options. Being able to withstand setbacks and experiment can really unlock better opportunities and insights. Building the capacity for people to take risks to try new things out itself is a worthwhile goal.

Embracing win/win cooperation will be the biggest game-changer when it comes to transforming our digital lives. It’s entirely likely that people with radically different visions for a better cyberspace can still share insights, progress, and opportunities. By focusing on shared objectives we can set aside petty fights that derail meaningful improvements.

Learning lessons

Optimism doesn’t mean refusing to admit difficulties. It is natural, and absolutely vital to spend time recognizing the limits and drawbacks of particular techniques and tools. A willingness to take criticism is far more valuable than avoiding it entirely. By being able to maintain honest and open communication, so many embarrassing problems can be avoided. Facing the bleakness of how difficult things are isn’t about diminishing hope, but about refining and informing it. Making strategic decisions can be the difference between playing around and gaining serious ground. It’s almost certain that many techniques have been tried in the past, and that there is useful information to glean from previous attempts. Despite how shiny and new our tools can seem, almost nothing is truly new under the sun.

Share goodwill

There’s no extra credit for working alone. Surround yourself with people willing to do what they can. Teamwork makes the dream work as they say. Becoming comfortable working with others to build new things is very much its own reward. Finding ways to share joy despite bleak circumstances is often what will make or break long-term success. Spending time to recharge and celebrate the small wins is critical in maintaining morale and momentum. Appreciating and supporting creative works can go a long way to make things less of a slog. Songs, memes, and silly cartoons are all things that can help get the word out and share perspective.

A better digital future has to be explicitly pro-human and pro-fun. We have a unique opportunity in our time to make things that are truly transformative but also have real soul and care put into them. There are so many ways in which we can revitalize our digital experience with play and creativity rather than tyranny and profit. It has never been easier to make a bigger impact on the future of cyberspace, it is high time we embrace it. There are all kinds of ways one can get involved, but it starts with helping others break free from the worst of it.

Remind yourself that your enemies aren’t those with different technological choices, but rather those who seek to impose theirs on others. Willingness to accept differences and make compromises can absolutely yield promising results with proper boundaries. Even relatively small projects can do a lot of good. A simple forum, small online community, or even a simple tool can be part of a bigger picture to help people gain a much better digital experience. Instead of surrendering cyberspace to bots and Big Tech, we can proactively create our own things that demonstrate that we can all ask for better.

If the Internet never forgets, how do you want to be remembered?

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