“In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart.” -Mahatma Gandhi
Throwback Post: Book Excerpt Of The Week: Part 2- “The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil” By: Philip Zimbardo
Written By: Elsie Law
-
Dec•
23•11
I keep hearing people discussing the spiritual & psychological war that people feel that we are engaged in. This book touches on that topic in a variety of ways. The following excerpt discusses 10 ways that people can be lured into complying with situations that they know are wrong. [Sidebar: In Part 1, I listed the first 5. In Part 2, I list the last 5.] Knowledge is power. To be forewarned is to be forearmed.
“…(6) Starting the path toward the ultimate evil act with a small, seemingly insignificant first step, the easy ‘foot in the door’ that swings open subsequent greater compliance pressures, and leads down a slippery slope. This is also the operative principle in turning good kids into drug addicts, with that first little hit or sniff.
(7) Having successively increasing steps on the pathway that are gradual, so that they are hardly noticeably different from one’s most recent prior action. ‘Just a little bit more.’
(8) Gradually changing the nature of the authority figure from initially ‘just’ and reasonable to ‘unjust’ and demanding, even irrational. This tactic elicits initial compliance and later confusion, since we expect consistency from authorities and friends. Not acknowledging that this transformation has occurred leads to mindless obedience (and it is part of many ‘date rape’ scenarios and a reason why abused women stay with their abusing spouses).
(9) Making the ‘exit costs’ high and making the process of exiting difficult by allowing verbal dissent (which makes people feel better about themselves) while insisting on behavioral compliance.
(10) Offering an ideology, or a big lie, to justify the use of any means to achieve the seemingly desirable, essential goal. In social psychology experiments, this tactic is known as the ‘cover story’ because it is a cover-up for the procedures that follow, which might be challenged because they do not make sense on their own. The real-world equivalent is known as an ‘ideology.’ Most nations rely on an ideology, typically, ‘threats to national security,’ before going to war or to suppress dissident political opposition. When citizens fear that their national security is being threatened, they become willing to surrender their basic freedoms to a government that offers them that exchange. Erich Fromm’s classic analysis in ‘Escape From Freedom’ made us aware of this trade-off, which Hitler and other dictators have long used to gain and maintain power: namely, the claim that they will be able to provide security in exchange for citizens giving up their freedoms, which will give them the ability to control things better.
Such procedures are utilized in varied influence situations where those in authority want others to do their bidding but know that few would engage in the ‘end game’ without first being properly prepared psychologically to do the ‘unthinkable.’ In the future, when you are in a compromising position where your compliance is at stake, thinking back to these stepping-stones to mindless obedience may enable you to step back and not go all the way down the path- their path. A good way to avoid crimes of obedience is to assert one’s personal authority and always take full responsibility for one’s actions.” -From, “The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil” By: Philip Zimbardo
[Originally Posted: 3/21/09]
Throwback Post: Book Excerpt Of The Week: Part 1- “The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil” By: Philip Zimbardo
Written By: Elsie Law
-
Dec•
23•11
I keep hearing people discussing the spiritual & psychological war that people feel that we are engaged in. This book touches on that topic in a variety of ways. The following excerpt discusses 10 ways that people can be lured into complying with situations that they know are wrong. [Sidebar: In Part 1, I list the first 5. I’ll post the last 5, in Part 2.] Knowledge is power. To be forewarned is to be forearmed.
“Lets outline some of the procedures in this research paradigm that seduced many ordinary citizens to engage in apparently harmful behavior. In doing so, I want to draw parallels to compliance strategies used by ‘influence professionals’ in real-world settings, such as salespeople, cult and military recruiters, media advertisers and others. There are ten methods we can extract from [the researcher] Milgram’s [experiment] for this purpose:
(1) Pre-arranging some form of contractual obligation, verbal or written, to control the individual’s behavior in pseudo-legal fashion. (In Milgram’s experiment, this was done by publicly agreeing to accept the tasks and procedures).
(2) Giving participants meaningful roles to play (“teacher,” “learner,” etc.) that carry with them previously learned positive values and automatically activate response scripts.
(3) Presenting basic rules to be followed that seem to make sense before their actual use but can then be used arbitrarily and impersonally to justify mindless compliance. Also, systems control people by making their rules vague and changing them as necessary but insisting that ‘rules are rules’ and this must be followed.
(4) Altering the semantics of the act, the actor, and the action (For example: from ‘hurting the victims’ to ‘helping the experimenter,’ punishing the former for the lofty goal of scientific discovery)- replacing unpleasant reality with desirable rhetoric, gilding the frame so that the real picture is disguised. (We can see the same semantic framing at work in advertising, where, for example, bad-tasting mouth wash is framed as good for you because it kills germs and tastes like medicine is expected to taste).
(5) Creating opportunities for the diffusion of responsibility or abdication of responsibility for negative outcomes; others will be responsible, or the actor won’t be held liable. (In Milgram’s experiment, the authority figure [i.e. The Researcher] said, when questioned by any ‘teacher,’ that he would take responsibility for anything that happened to the ‘learner’).” – From, “The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil” By: Philip Zimbardo
[Originally Posted: 3/20/09]
TODAY IS: BUY BLACK FRIDAY
Written By: Elsie Law
-
Dec•
23•11
PLEASE PASS THIS ON! (EACH ONE TEACH ONE OR TWO!) THIS IS PHASE ONE ON HOW WE CAN HELP TO STRENGTHEN & EMPOWER OUR COMMUNITY:
The 2008 not guilty verdict in the Sean Bell case evoked outrage, emotion, and debate. It is not an anomaly that the police officers involved in the Sean Bell slaying were acquitted of all charges on all counts in State Supreme Court. I could run out of ink printing the names of people who have been victimized by the inaptly named justice system.
The American justice system has been especially terroristic towards the African American community. Many community members can cite historic and personal accounts to prove this. Therefore, it would be foolhardy (at the least) to turn to a system that has methodically oppressed us, and request that they free us. We can only free ourselves through extreme discipline and intelligent planning.
As a community we have been too compliant with leaders who organize ineffective, delayed reactions. The only strategy that can save us in this last hour is one that calls for a collective code of conduct that will be conducive to improving the conditions of our community, and shifting the paradigm of how we are treated by outside entities. The first step of this code of conduct should be based on economics.
The old adage of “money talks,” still reigns true in the new millennium. Any political scientist worth his or her library card will tell you that: “Economic powerlessness equals political powerlessness,” and conversely “economic power equals political power.” This means that if we continue to allow our wealth to be extracted from our community, we will remain impotent.
The power of the collective “Black Dollar” is often discussed. However, that power has been left unchanneled. Today is the day to change that. A one-time boycott is not going to bring long-term change and respect to our community. Our community has launched boycotts before. Our success and ascension will be based on what we consistently do. For this reason, we should initiate “BUY BLACK FRIDAYS.”
BUY BLACK FRIDAYS is a small step towards our community acquiring power via controlling our economics. Every Friday, people who acknowledge the injustice and oppression that the African American community has been consistently subjected to should do one of the following:
Option #1: Spend $0 on Friday
Option #2: Spend no more than $10 on Friday
Option #3: Only Shop at Black Businesses on Friday
[PLEASE NOTE THAT THE ABOVE OPTIONS CAN & SHOULD BE EXERCISED ON A DAILY BASIS. However, we can all at the very least focus on Fridays. This way we can take a collective stand and build our collective discipline. Please remember that this is only Phase 1!].
To the people who are tempted to label “BUY BLACK FRIDAYS” as racist, I say this: In the big scheme of things, this is about right & wrong, justice & injustice. The African American community is a strong, proud community that has endured the brunt of America’s iron fist. We must stop the pounding. I feel that any fair-minded individual will concur, and join in.
ANY business that is privileged to enjoy the support of the African American community MUST return that support.
I thank you in advance for your effort and dedication.
-Elsie Law AKA Starface
Quote Of The Day
Written By: Elsie Law
-
Dec•
23•11
“Words may show a man’s wit, but actions his meaning.” -Benjamin Franklin
Video Of The Week: Paul Mooney
Written By: Elsie Law
-
Dec•
22•11
Paul Mooney speaks on: The danger of drugs, opening for Marvin Gaye, Black people and the movie industry, and more.
Quote Of The Day
Written By: Elsie Law
-
Dec•
22•11
“You have to understand that people have to pay a price for peace. If you dare to struggle, you dare to win, if you dare not struggle…you don’t deserve to win. Let me say peace to you if you’re willing to fight for it.” -Fred Hampton
Emmett Till, Rosa Parks’s Inspiration
Written By: Elsie Law
-
Dec•
17•11
[SIDEBAR: I normally wouldn’t post such a graphic picture. However, it was Emmett Till’s mother’s wish for the world to see what racism and hate did to her son.]
“When she learned of Emmett’s murder, Mamie Till demanded that her son’s body be returned to Chicago. She defied the explicit orders of the Mississippi authorities, who had sealed his casket, and ordered that it be opened. Her son’s mutilated face displayed to the entire world what Southern racism had done. Thousands of Chicagoans walked by the open casket in 1955 at the Rayner Funeral Home, aghast at what they saw. Years later, Rosa Parks Told Mamie Till that the photograph of Emmett’s disfigured face in the casket was set in her mind when she refused to give up her seat on the Montgomery bus.” -From, “The Assassination of Fred Hampton” By: Jeffrey Haas
Quote Of The Day
Written By: Elsie Law
-
Dec•
17•11
“Gratitude is riches. Complaint is poverty.” -Doris Day
TODAY IS: BUY BLACK FRIDAY
Written By: Elsie Law
-
Dec•
16•11
PLEASE PASS THIS ON! (EACH ONE TEACH ONE OR TWO!) THIS IS PHASE ONE ON HOW WE CAN HELP TO STRENGTHEN & EMPOWER OUR COMMUNITY:
The 2008 not guilty verdict in the Sean Bell case evoked outrage, emotion, and debate. It is not an anomaly that the police officers involved in the Sean Bell slaying were acquitted of all charges on all counts in State Supreme Court. I could run out of ink printing the names of people who have been victimized by the inaptly named justice system.
The American justice system has been especially terroristic towards the African American community. Many community members can cite historic and personal accounts to prove this. Therefore, it would be foolhardy (at the least) to turn to a system that has methodically oppressed us, and request that they free us. We can only free ourselves through extreme discipline and intelligent planning.
As a community we have been too compliant with leaders who organize ineffective, delayed reactions. The only strategy that can save us in this last hour is one that calls for a collective code of conduct that will be conducive to improving the conditions of our community, and shifting the paradigm of how we are treated by outside entities. The first step of this code of conduct should be based on economics.
The old adage of “money talks,” still reigns true in the new millennium. Any political scientist worth his or her library card will tell you that: “Economic powerlessness equals political powerlessness,” and conversely “economic power equals political power.” This means that if we continue to allow our wealth to be extracted from our community, we will remain impotent.
The power of the collective “Black Dollar” is often discussed. However, that power has been left unchanneled. Today is the day to change that. A one-time boycott is not going to bring long-term change and respect to our community. Our community has launched boycotts before. Our success and ascension will be based on what we consistently do. For this reason, we should initiate “BUY BLACK FRIDAYS.”
BUY BLACK FRIDAYS is a small step towards our community acquiring power via controlling our economics. Every Friday, people who acknowledge the injustice and oppression that the African American community has been consistently subjected to should do one of the following:
Option #1: Spend $0 on Friday
Option #2: Spend no more than $10 on Friday
Option #3: Only Shop at Black Businesses on Friday
[PLEASE NOTE THAT THE ABOVE OPTIONS CAN & SHOULD BE EXERCISED ON A DAILY BASIS. However, we can all at the very least focus on Fridays. This way we can take a collective stand and build our collective discipline. Please remember that this is only Phase 1!].
To the people who are tempted to label “BUY BLACK FRIDAYS” as racist, I say this: In the big scheme of things, this is about right & wrong, justice & injustice. The African American community is a strong, proud community that has endured the brunt of America’s iron fist. We must stop the pounding. I feel that any fair-minded individual will concur, and join in.
ANY business that is privileged to enjoy the support of the African American community MUST return that support.
I thank you in advance for your effort and dedication.
-Elsie Law AKA Starface
