Re:Malaysian Grandfather Is Facing Death for Weed
by eternalban on Friday February 26, 2021 @03:08PM
(#26279284)
Oh, of course, but the distinction (not being pedantic, it is important) is that they control "behavior" not "consciousness".
Many people obey some mass idiocy promoted by some organized entity precisely because of their intelligence, appreciation of the situation, and their take on the equation of benefitial social behavior. It's not heroic but it is not unintelligent. And this social calculus may actually be happening inside the heads of the majority of the population. We simply do not know.
Many governments are participating in different kinds of censorship as well as organized disinformation campaigns. You may agree with certain policies ("drugs are bad" or "citizens are simply better off not knowing certain aspects of reality"), but the "control over consciousness" is a fact.