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| Psychological Warfare | Started by: Slevin_Kelevra on Nov 21, '07 05:33 |
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*Slevin lights up a cigarette, shakes out the match, and flicks it into the gutter. Taking a short drag, he blows the smoke out of his nose, and taps the ash onto the floor.* "It's a funny thing, war. I've often wondered, how many wars in the past were started by actual physical aggression, you know, someone shooting someone else, or the likes, and how many have just started on nothing more than a war of words. Coffeeshop rumours, misinterpreted comments, family members mouthing off to each other, you know the likes." *Leaning back onto the wall, Slevin slides his left hand through his hair, while holding his cigarette to his mouth with the right.* "It makes me wonder about the people who stir things between two parties too, and the psychological warfare they employ to get other people to argue. I mean, everyone knows the stirrers exist, but they always seem to manage to cause rifts, plant little seeds of doubt in people's minds. And we all know, little seeds of doubt grow into huge trees of contempt, just a few little words can develop down the line into something that gets two guys drawing their guns on each other, which then puts two families in direct conflict." *Taking a long drag of his cigarette, he lets the smoke fall slowly from his lips as he watches a Policeman walking the beat on the other side of the street. As he disappears from sight, he continues.* "I've started to wonder, in my own cynical way, if people can even distinguish real issues from those that people just make up to stir shit. How many wars do you think have been started just by someone trying their luck and seeing what they can stir up?" |
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| I fear a lot of this has to do with the chinese whispers that tend to circulate faster than you can say 'bullshit'. When the only information we have is spread by mouth, one bad apple in the bunch can transform what was previously a harmless statement into a time bomb of animosity and contempt. What makes those situations difficult to deal with is the fact that many of the arguments boil down to trust. He said she said can only go far, it's confirming the facts in the statements that is troublesome. In a business where trust isn't easy to come by, stuff like this doesn't go down well. Many will assume what they hear is truth because it comes from a friendly source. | |
| Reply by: Alfieri at Nov 21, '07 06:34 | |
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| It's easy to side-step this deception and manipulation when you have my kind of approach. I really don't care about anything. Don't let things get to you... and don't let emotion get involved. Keep the temper cool and let the front of the brain do all the work. | |
| Reply by: Sal_Giaquinto at Nov 21, '07 13:14 | |
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Our words can be our weapons just as easily as they can promote peace. We all know this to be truth. To listen to idle gossip that panders to ones ego has been the ruin of many a good man. The rumours, the innuendo, they will always be prevalent in our society. The disinformation campaigns are nothing new. We all have to look in our hearts and seek the truth. The ability to communicate is one of our biggest assets. It takes literally all of a single minute to talk to someone. Using reasoning and communicative skills can assess the extent of these rumours and their validity. To act out of ignorance and anger and blindly strike out at ones imagined enemies serves no purpose. Violence only propagates more violence. |
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| Reply by: Cthulhu at Nov 21, '07 14:05 | |
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Indeed. And such, paranoia propagates more paranoia. Insecurity propagates more insecurity. Today, many people would like to believe that these is something lurking in the shadows... a scary monster in the closest. For this reason, I don't have closest. ;) The realist says, I don't think there is something in the shadows. But is this illusion beneficial? Could such an illusion motivate us to work JUST as hard... JUST as fast. A catalyst in This Thing of Ours... maybe... maybe. |
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| Reply by: Sal_Giaquinto at Nov 21, '07 14:11 | |
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*Slevin smiles, and nods along.* "Cthulhu's parting quote reminds me of one of my own favourites... 'For what can war, but endless war, still breed?', I guess that's one to ponder on." |
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| Reply by: Slevin_Kelevra at Nov 21, '07 16:39 | |
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If you're dealing in politics, you're at war. Simple as that. A good politician is a general, and never off his game. He uses ideas and words in place of guns and knives. I've seen slaughters without so much as a raised hand. Even when in agreement, politicians will be looking for a leg-up on one another. It never ends. It's the basic human desire to be right. War, in the physical sense, is always political at it's core, and therefore psychological. The two are not separate ideas. Psychological warfare is always the basis for physical warfare, without exception, as psychological warfare is constant. Even seemingly random acts of violence aren't without their psychological undertones. |
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| Reply by: RonMexico at Nov 21, '07 19:49 | |
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| "I agree, and I know there are many levels of warfare, each as necessary and as potent as the next, I'm just choosing to focus on this particular one. Makes for a bit of a confusing discussion if we're talking about them all, I reckon." | |
| Reply by: Slevin_Kelevra at Nov 21, '07 22:34 | |
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I've not heard everything that's been said, so I speak at the risk of repeating others, if that's the case then I apologise. I feel that, in this world of ours, "propagation" can be applied to nearly everything. Success propagates success, as and failure propagates failure; we run our business in a vicious circle from which we cannot escape. Perpetual is the key word, but I digress. Are not all wars instigated with physical aggression? True, words may trigger that initial aggression but it's the physical aggression where it stops becoming a dispute and starts becoming a war, no? Equally though, you could argue that no wars start because of physical aggression. Aside from rogues, I can think of literally no instances across our colourful history in which a war was undertaken for no reason, there is always a motive via the way of words. Whether it be tongue in cheek comments taken the wrong way, 'recorded' coffeeshop transcripts, or any number of other ways. I wouldn't, however, get psychological warfare mixed up with wars started, and ended, because of a few ill chosen words and so on. There is a definite line between deliberate 'shit stirring' propaganda and wars started over perceptions, allegations and interpretations. At least that's what I think, but what do I know? I'm just a thug. |
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| Reply by: Draize at Nov 22, '07 17:37 | |
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