Dealing With Delusion...
Sincerely... how do we best handle delusional people? I'm not just talking about those who subscribe to esoteric and sketchy beliefs and viewpoints — like faeries living in their garden or the power of numbers or whatever — but those who have truly fallen off the map.
Like this one friend — who's mostly a pretty cool person — who sometimes comes up with and sends me so-called "news" I can only describe as being "from another dimension," except he's fully invested in the notion that "it is the truth."
This morning's piece of world news: A "report" documenting Hillary Clinton's last hours and final meal before she was hanged, at Guantanamo Bay... in 2021. Being reported right now as news. Along with explanations that the "Hillary" we currently see is actually the 3rd or 4th clone, kept in place by the "Evil World Government" to maintain the illusion of normalcy.
We really do seem to increasingly be living in a fun house mirror version of George Orwell's 1984, complete with the famous mantra "The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command."
Which, it seems, is increasingly what social media is also teaching us, aided by AI.
From where I am sitting, it seems like the best counterpoint to delusion would be to think for yourself and stay informed by gathering many and divergent sources of information to help you arrive at your conclusions.
Sadly, most people aren't actually aware of their own cognitive biases...
I have long wondered why so many people seem to hang their hat on ideas and beliefs that are very obviously not real, speculating on the possibility that maybe they are terrified of _____? being true, so they adhere to fantasy alternate reality.
But we all know something doesn't magically become true just because you want it to be true.
At least... that approach has never worked for me!
but what if they are actually RIGHT?
Well the chances of that are pretty much zero. Much like the idea that you can create infinite power and perpetual motion with magnets... or whatever the story of the week might be.
But they definitely believe they are right!
My friend lives on his farm in Oklahoma and is college educated and overall is employed and functioning in his own life.
Thanks for stopping by, and have a wonderful remainder of your week!
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Created at 2026.01.28 01:06 PST
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