# Mind Control **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [January 10, 2011, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102 "2011-01-10T15:53:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![fuzzypickles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9d8465/32.png) [@fuzzypickles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fuzzypickles)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/1 "2011-01-10T15:53:53Z")
Simple question (inspired by last weekend’s events): Does the government use mind control techniques to control the populace? Resolved: Yes, absolutely. Why wouldn’t they? Because, most people’s minds are _easy_ to control. There’s no secret about that – in fact, one can discover how to use mind control techniques in a limited fashion, if you’re able to sift through the “woo” garbage and discover the science and the facts. For example: Advertising. NOT subliminal messages (that’s been thoroughly debunked, despite what Nevada vs. Judas Priest attempted to prove); instead, it’s a process of [superliminal advertising](http://advertisingindustrynewswire.com/2007/03/17/255_231937.php) – the controls techniques are right in the open, hiding in plain sight, and very few consumers ever notice them. Primary colors, key word phrases, etc. are all there on the glossy magazine page, or Google’s adbots; and if you’ve ever worked on Madison Avenue, you already know this is SOP. 🆒 Heck, even New Age followers already know about [mind control, ESP, telepathy](http://www.newagedirectory.com/esp/esp.htm), etc. Irrespective of our own skeptical consensus, many people _do_ believe in them, and sometimes they do work – although it’s mostly the psychic class instructors themselves who are skimming money from ignorant people’s wallets. 😉 As for extreme tin-foil hat conspiracies (the NSA using GPS satellites to read your primal thoughts, etc.); well, maybe by 2387 we’ll obtain that kind of technology. Conclusion: If the federal government actually uses “mind control” as part of their playbook, they probably don’t have to resort to those controls very often. They don’t need to – most run-of-the-mill citizens _want_ their minds to be controlled. Most individuals wish to believe in a fluffy, puppy-dog world where real terror does not exist. Okay, discuss. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![fuzzypickles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9d8465/32.png) [@fuzzypickles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fuzzypickles)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/2 "2011-01-10T16:01:05Z")
TLTE: Apologies for the “woo-ish” links, but when you Google terms like “mind control”, “subliminal advertising”, etc…well, you know. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/3 "2011-01-10T16:05:15Z")
> [@fuzzypickles](#): > > TLTE: Apologies for the “woo-ish” links, but when you Google terms like “mind control”, “subliminal advertising”, etc…well, you know. There’s a reason for that. ---
**Author:** ![Walmarticus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Walmarticus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walmarticus)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/4 "2011-01-10T16:07:47Z")
Does Pepsi use mind control? Yes, absolutely. (you need to work on your definition of mind control) ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/5 "2011-01-10T16:08:20Z")
> [@fuzzypickles](#): > > Simple question (inspired by last weekend’s events): Does the government use mind control techniques to control the populace? > > Resolved: Yes, absolutely. Why wouldn’t they? Because, most people’s minds are _easy_ to control. There’s no secret about that – in fact, one can discover how to use mind control techniques in a limited fashion, if you’re able to sift through the “woo” garbage and discover the science and the facts. > > For example: Advertising. NOT subliminal messages (that’s been thoroughly debunked, despite what Nevada vs. Judas Priest attempted to prove); instead, it’s a process of [superliminal advertising](http://advertisingindustrynewswire.com/2007/03/17/255_231937.php) – the controls techniques are right in the open, hiding in plain sight, and very few consumers ever notice them. Primary colors, key word phrases, etc. are all there on the glossy magazine page, or Google’s adbots; and if you’ve ever worked on Madison Avenue, you already know this is SOP. 🆒 > > Heck, even New Age followers already know about [mind control, ESP, telepathy](http://www.newagedirectory.com/esp/esp.htm), etc. Irrespective of our own skeptical consensus, many people _do_ believe in them, and sometimes they do work – although it’s mostly the psychic class instructors themselves who are skimming money from ignorant people’s wallets. 😉 > > As for extreme tin-foil hat conspiracies (the NSA using GPS satellites to read your primal thoughts, etc.); well, maybe by 2387 we’ll obtain that kind of technology. > > Conclusion: If the federal government actually uses “mind control” as part of their playbook, they probably don’t have to resort to those controls very often. They don’t need to – most run-of-the-mill citizens _want_ their minds to be controlled. Most individuals wish to believe in a fluffy, puppy-dog world where real terror does not exist. > > Okay, discuss. 🙂 Do you really think this was your own idea? The Illuminati work in subtle ways, often by hiding their smoke and mirrors in plain sight. This distracts the proles from looking behind the curtain – they all believe they know how the trick is done already. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/6 "2011-01-10T16:47:39Z")
I think it is more along the lines of [Psychohistory](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychohistory_%28fictional%29) as formulated in the Foundation series by Issac Asimov. In that it deals with predicting the future…in a manner of speaking. No one can predict what an individual will do but it is possible to predict what people will do as a group. Similarly you cannot mind control an individual but you can sway a society. Seems counter-intuitive I know but history is filled with examples. Take Japan circa WWII for instance. The populace was so brainwashed that they’d commit suicide rather than be captured (in many cases). I think our government has gotten very good at controlling the message they want pushed. See Bush in his run up to war in Iraq. May not seem easy and yes there were counter arguments out there yet even today a huge number of Americans think Saddam had WMD and was responsible for 9/11. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/7 "2011-01-10T16:49:26Z")
Public schools is mind control to a very large extent. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/8 "2011-01-10T16:50:54Z")
But not grammar control. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/9 "2011-01-10T16:56:26Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > But not grammar control. Control the language and you can control the ability to communicate. You can effectively cripple personal communication but not having words or grammar that allows free flow of the message you are conveying. The rules set up in school, along with people who like to use proper grammar are actually hindering free flow of communication. Use of txt messaging, and now in emails, with numerous ways of conveying messages using emoticons and different spellings and grammers is a great way to break the mind control imposed over language IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/10 "2011-01-10T16:59:09Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > Use of txt messaging, and now in emails, with numerous ways of conveying messages using emoticons and different spellings and grammers is a great way to break the mind control imposed over language IMHO. I really hope that is a joke. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/11 "2011-01-10T16:59:26Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > You can effectively cripple personal communication but not having words or grammar that allows free flow of the message you are conveying. This sentence is nonsense. So is your idea. The OP isn’t much better, but at least he’s only redefining words. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/12 "2011-01-10T17:05:07Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > I really hope that is a joke. One of the biggest hurts you can impose on a child and later society as that child enters the productive part of their life is to destroy their creativity. Children have wonderful ways of communicating beyond what adults do because they are not bound by our rules on language. As rules are imposed and enforced by threat of punishment (such as bad grades) the children lose their ability to think freely, and the wonders they could have brought into society is blocked by that wall of fear. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/13 "2011-01-10T17:11:05Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > One of the biggest hurts you can impose on a child and later society as that child enters the productive part of their life is to destroy their creativity. Children have wonderful ways of communicating beyond what adults do because they are not bound by our rules on language. > > As rules are imposed and enforced by threat of punishment (such as bad grades) the children lose their ability to think freely, and the wonders they could have brought into society is blocked by that wall of fear. This might be a hijack but I’d say understanding and following the rules of language aids in communication. Look at some of our best writers throughout history. They had a masterful command of the language and because of that were able to communicate profound ideas with wonderful clarity (read something like the Gettysburg Address for an example…stunning piece of writing). Internet/texting shorthand is not an aid to clear communication. I cannot imagine the Gettysburg Address would have been improved if Lincoln used emoticons. _“If you cannot say what you mean you cannot mean what you say.”_ (Forgot where I heard that to give proper credit) ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/14 "2011-01-10T17:13:32Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > This might be a hijack but I’d say understanding and following the rules of language aids in communication. Indeed it is. At the risk of stifling everybody’s creativity, I’ll point out this isn’t the topic the OP is interested in, so it should be in a different thread. ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/15 "2011-01-10T17:21:11Z")
Only if you define “mind control” as “anything that communicates with you”. Otherwise, no, no one uses mind control. Hah! Suckers. I just mind-controlled you with this post…just like advertising! ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/16 "2011-01-10T17:34:32Z")
Influence, yes. Control, not so much. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/17 "2011-01-10T17:36:59Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Indeed it is. At the risk of stifling everybody’s creativity, I’ll point out this isn’t the topic the OP is interested in, so it should be in a different thread. Fair enough and done: [Would the Gettysburg Address have been improved if Lincoln used emoticons? - Great Debates - Straight Dope Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=592490) ---
**Author:** ![fuzzypickles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9d8465/32.png) [@fuzzypickles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fuzzypickles)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/18 "2011-01-10T17:37:38Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > IAt the risk of stifling everybody’s creativity, I’ll point out this isn’t the topic the OP is interested in, so it should be in a different thread. Actually, **kanicbird** was disturbingly on target, as per how his “grammar control” comment relates to this: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHoaZaLbqB4](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHoaZaLbqB4) (And my apologies to everyone for accidentally summoning **k.b.**..that was unintentional.) ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/19 "2011-01-10T18:40:57Z")
> [@fuzzypickles](#): > > Actually, **kanicbird** was disturbingly on target, as per how his “grammar control” comment relates to this: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHoaZaLbqB4](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHoaZaLbqB4) I can’t watch that video from work. Care to give a synopsis? But anyway: > [@kanicbird](#): > > Control the language and you can control the ability to communicate. Even if true (it’s not), no one controls the language. No linguist would ever agree that that’s possible. It goes against all empirical evidence we have about language and the way it evolves. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102/20 "2011-01-10T18:59:08Z")
Newspeak. Kanicbird doubleplusgood duckspeaker. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mind-control/567102.md?page=2)