AI responds with a qualifier to this site’s advocacy for unconditional:
Any common-sense version of love, says Grok (paraphrasing my comments below), will uphold the “rule of law with responsible justice (restraining harm while pursuing rehabilitation and restoration)”. Of course. Unconditional, while presenting the highest reach of mature, heroic humanity (the ultimate ideal), is never advocacy for the abandonment of common-sense.
Unconditional does not, as some minds instinctively conclude, advocate for the embrace of pacifist “suicidal empathy” that does not hold all fully responsible for personal behavior and consequences.
Unconditional functions as humanity’s premier discovery of the best of being human. It points to the highest reach of maturely humane behavior, to heroic response to human failure (e.g. Nelson Mandela). It is something that most people grasp intuitively, from experience in families and with friends, as the best way to treat one another’s failures.
Unconditional is self-validating as the best of human thought and behavior. It needs no affirmation or authorization by religious authority, though the non-religious Historical Jesus presented and illustrated it as few have done.
We can hold the highest of ideals, while at the same time recognizing that the priority responsibility of any government, at any level, is the protection of the freedom and rights of all citizens, and most critically the protection from physical assault, whether by enemies foreign or domestic. That is the foundation of peace and order.
Then to balance the above, why do we lock up nonviolent people in cages? And does not the law even distinguish between those committing one-off incidents of violence but are not repeat offenders? Why are they in for life without parole? And what about “crimes of passion” like the Dr. Tarnower murder by his mistress- Jean Harris, a woman who would never repeat violence?
Contact: wkrossa@shaw.ca
New below, articles on today’s tribal dualism (oppressors/oppressed) and the need for “villains” to fully frame deformed versions of the “Hero’s Quest” and validate the heroes in fighting their evil enemies (applied to New York politics). Also “peacocking” for status in one’s tribe as morally superior. Another term for virtue-signaling. And more…
Shift in perspective and the ultimate human liberation (riffing off the Rogan/Hughes discussion), Wendell Krossa
My springboarding from the Rogan/Hughes discussion: The cognitive therapy view of the Historical Jesus insight on unconditional theology, cognitive therapy at the most fundamental level possible- i.e. transforming the core reality/ideal from threat of exclusion and destruction to universal love, acceptance, forgiveness.
On the Julian Simon point below– That is another huge element in “shift in perspective” as related to cognitive therapy. Simon had accepted the environmental alarmism of his time and consequently was (in his own autobiographical terms) a “clinically depressed man”. He decided to look at the best evidence on the true state of life, and he discovered that life was not becoming worse. Due to human intelligence and creativity, humanity was solving problems and life was actually improving over the long-term. He then stated, that on discovering the true state of life as improving, his depression left him and never returned.
Now apply his research, along with the many who followed and affirmed his basic conclusions with updated evidence (Greg Easterbrook, Bjorn Lomborg, Ronald Bailey, Indur Goklany, Desrochers and Szurmak, etc.), apply this to how prominently environmental alarmism today contributes to contemporary widespread fear, anxiety (major “eco-anxiety” in children), and depression. Fill out your overall personal worldview/narrative with the good evidence from researchers like Simon and this evidence will bolster other elements of healthy “shift in perspective” that despite remaining problems to be solved, overall we (humanity) have been making life and our world better, not worse. Good cognitive therapy.
Simon gave us the best of evidence to contribute to significant “shift in perspective” related to the best of cognitive therapy.
Then add, as this site advocates, the profound transformation of fundamental archetypes that was presented by Historical Jesus. To lift a few quotes from below:
“The historically most profound shift in human perspective was made by Historical Jesus when he presented his breakthrough insight on theology, his “stunning new theology” that was “his greatest contribution to the history of ideas”. With that breakthrough insight he went directly to the core reality, to the ultimate reality that creates all, sustains all in existence…” (See rest below).
Combine “shift in perspective” on material reality (Simon-type research) with the even more profound shift in perspective on metaphysical/spiritual reality and you have the most potent cognitive therapy ever imagined.
Continuing…
More on the Rogan/Hughes discussion linked below, also discussed in section below: (I have added my extra comments scattered among the quoting/paraphrasing of Hughes and Rogan’s comments below):
Chase Hughes is a behavioral expert. Past the 1 hour-mark in their discussion, they talk about the importance of “shift in perspective” as a critical element in “cognitive therapy” treatment for dealing with varied mental/emotional maladies like anxiety, PTSD, depression, etc. They are discussing how psychedelics are now used as therapeutics for healing with such problems and provide quite immediate change and relief (i.e. no longer viewed as just recreational or harmful “drugs”).
“Joe Rogan Experience #2515 – Chase Hughes”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVXli9YkY0o
“AI Overview
“In cognitive behavioral therapy, a shift in perspective involves intentionally challenging negative thought patterns and replacing them with more balanced, objective interpretations. This process— often called cognitive reframing or cognitive restructuring— is based on the idea that how you perceive an event drives your emotional and behavioral reactions.
“Why Perspective Shifts Matter
• Breaking the Negative Loop: Often, mental filters lead us to view situations through a strictly negative lens, which fuels anxiety, depression, and self-limiting beliefs.
• Emotional Regulation: By actively viewing experiences from a different angle, you can reduce the intensity of negative emotions and build long-term resilience to stress.
• Increased Agency: Shifting how you interpret situations helps you regain a sense of control, turning perceived threats into manageable challenges.
“How to Shift Your Perspective
“A classic, step-by-step approach to restructuring thoughts involves four phases:
1. Notice: Identify what you are immediately telling yourself about a stressful situation.
2. Accept: Acknowledge your initial feelings without judgment.
3. Inquire: Ask yourself if there is concrete evidence for your thoughts, or if there are alternative ways to look at the situation.
4. Shift: Intentionally pivot your focus and choose a more constructive narrative going forward.
(End of AI Overview)
The historically most profound shift in human perspective was made by Historical Jesus when he presented his breakthrough insight on theology, his “stunning new theology” that was “his greatest contribution to the history of ideas”. With that breakthrough insight he went directly to the core reality, to the ultimate reality that creates all, sustains all in existence, and has long functioned as humanity’s embodiment of ultimate ideals of good, justice, right, truth, etc. God is that which, more than anything else, informs and defines our impulses to meaning and purpose- i.e. how we should live, as epitomized and modelled by deity (i.e. the “behavior based on belief” coupling).
Deity images or ideas/beliefs have long prominently framed everything else in human thought and narratives. Deity beliefs have dominantly shaped human justice, ethics, relating to others, how to structure our societies and treat one another, etc. Deity is the “mother of all archetypes”.
Historical Jesus presented the single most radical change or transformation in that core reality that has ever been offered to people.
See these sections further below on this site:
“The most consequential revolutions in history have been psychological and theological”
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=15766#more-15766
“Most profound thought to ever emerge in a human mind? Most transformative statement to ever come out of a human mouth?
Posted on May 30, 2026 by Wendell Krossa
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=15870#more-15870
“More probing of the “profundity” (i.e. depth, brilliance, profoundness, etc.) of what was stated two millennia ago and was subsequently buried by Paul’s Christ-ianity.
Posted on May 31, 2026 by Wendell Krossa
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=15883#more-15883
“AI on the most profound thought/statement ever, transforming narratives and shaping freedom in a liberal democracy future
Posted on June 4, 2026 by Wendell Krossa
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=15924#more-15924
“It was death/rebirth, disintegration of the old, reintegration around the entirely new. At the core of reality.
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=15980#more-15980
Jesus’ theological insight was the single most revolutionary transformation or shift in perspective ever proposed. He framed his presentation of a new theology by rejecting the threat theology that had dominated human narratives and consciousness from the beginning with ideas of wrathful, retaliatory, dominating, and violently destroying God. Rejected? How so? By stating that there should be no more eye for eye retaliation (the rejection element in his approach), then stating to the contrary, “Love your enemies” and illustrating that with a statement on God sending sun and rain on good people and enemies. Just as in his first public speech (Luke 4) he refused to read the next sentence in an Isaiah 61 passage that stated, “The day of vengeance of our God” and followed that rejection with illustrations of God showing unconditional love to Israel’s enemies (i.e. the Elijah and Elisha incidents).
He replaced the dominating theology of his era and all previous history with the radically new idea of God as ineffably and indescribably wondrous unconditional love. “Transcendent” as in Campbell’s statement that the term “God” points to the infinitely higher and unknowable God beyond. Beyond the best that can be imagined by human minds.
With his new theology he sought to liberate people from past millennia of darkness and enslavement to fear of threatening deity that had long deformed human personalities and lives. Threat theology had added the unnecessary burden of psychic torment to the already unbearable physical suffering of people across past millennia. Threat theology was the fallacy that people’s physical suffering was punishment from deity for their sins. That mental deformity arose from the myth that deity was behind the natural world and was punishing people through natural disaster, disease, accidents, and predatory cruelty from others.
Jesus radically reoriented human consciousness and narratives to the inexpressible wonder of the ultimate inclusion, love, and security of unconditional deity. That was an unimaginable transformation of the core reality, and core idea or belief, that illuminated minds with a brilliantly liberating light, transforming human consciousness and narratives from the worst of themes that humanity had constructed to the very best that we have ever discovered.
As Hughes adds, this shift in perspective is what “cognitive behavioral therapy” tries to do in order to help people- i.e. to shift their outlook and change how they think.
Historical Jesus aimed his transformation at the archetypal level of the subconscious and meta-narrative level (i.e. transforming core religious themes that deal with the human impulse for meaning and purpose, radically altering the metaphysical or spiritual that shapes human narratives, both religious and secular/ideological/scientific).
The change in perspective that Historical Jesus introduced was change in how we perceive the nature of the core reality and the ultimate ideal- i.e. the nature of the metaphysical or “spiritual”. Whether aware of what he was doing or not, he enacted the most profound cognitive therapy in shifting perspective at the most profound level of human thought, perception, emotion, motivation, and behavioral response. In what he did, he introduced the ultimate stage of human liberation. That is what he meant when he quoted Isaiah 61 to initiate his public mission, “
“The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor”.
That was liberation from the monster God theology that had been the worst from of enslavement and tyranny across past millennia. The impact of that mind-deforming theology was manifest in varied psychosomatic pathologies like “demon possession”. Hence, his healing approach included statements of forgiveness.
“AI Overview
“Jesus frequently linked physical healing with the forgiveness of sins, most notably in the account of the paralyzed man lowered through a roof. By forgiving sins before or after healing, Jesus addressed humanity’s deepest spiritual needs…
“The profound connection Jesus made between healing and forgiveness can be understood through several key themes…
• Prioritizing Spiritual Healing: Jesus taught that spiritual paralysis is fundamentally worse than physical paralysis. Forgiveness mended the separation between humanity and God, which Jesus treated as the ultimate healing.
• Fusing the Physical and Spiritual: Healing and forgiveness are presented as two parts of the same grace. While physical healing was an observable miracle, the forgiveness of sins was an invisible spiritual restoration…
(End of AI Overview)
Other historical inputs:
There is also the shift in perspective on material reality that Julian Simon gave us with his “Ultimate Resource” research that exposed the fallacy of environmental alarmism narratives that distort the true state of life. Simon gathered evidence on all the main indicators of life (i.e. forests, land species, ocean species, agricultural soils, etc.) and found that, while problems still exist everywhere, we- humanity- have learned from our past mistakes and are now taking better care of the natural world while at the same time improving the human condition immensely with our infinitely creative minds and abilities. The evidence of the long-term improvement of life, and the world, affirms that we are “more creators than destroyers.” Fundamental human goodness is being manifested throughout our improvement of life. Far from being “a virus/cancer on the Earth” we are healing the planet (see the final 40 pages of Greg Easterbrook’s “A Moment On The Earth”).
I have summarized the ongoing long-term improvement in the trajectories of all three grand emergences- i.e. cosmos, life, and human civilization in varied lists posted here.
“Three great emergences, three grand trajectories… the exodus to ultimate human liberation (with Grok and Chat evaluations)”
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=14623#more-14623
“From Retaliation to Unconditional love- the story of humanity’s exodus/liberation from animal existence to become human.”
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=9809
The evidence is overwhelming that life is not becoming worse, not declining toward apocalyptic disaster and destruction, but is ever improving toward something better. This evidence on material reality is also critical to our shift in perspective along with the insights on metaphysical or spiritual realities.
Psychedelics as therapeutics
Rogan and Hughes then engage some interesting comment on how “psychedelics” were banned in the 1970s as government elites pushed back against the emerging creativity around that time in varied areas of life- in music, culture, material designs in products, etc. The elites, according to Rogan, feared loss of control over citizens who were no longer submissively cowing to state narratives and saw psychedelics as an element in that emerging freedom.
Elites, suggests Rogan, did not want people to experience, for example, the oneness of all things and oneness of humanity that is common to psychedelic experiences, as that would undermine (my additions to Rogan’s comments on this) the narratives of state elites that depend on elements like tribalism, as in the tribal need to not view opponents as family but to separate from, defeat, and dominate differing others as “enemies”, features in narratives that justify violence and wars to destroy enemies.
State elites depend on narratives that justify their rationale for ongoing wars. Rogan and Hughes are just speculating on these things but that is an interesting point as we have become more aware today of how we are manipulated by state elites using public media, i.e. news media, to push narratives and control populations. Other previous Rogan guests, like Mike Benz, have exposed, for example, the behind-the-scenes “censorship infrastructure” built to push programs that discredit opponent’s opinions and speech as “misinformation, disinformation”, etc. and to control media companies much like what we saw in the “Twitter Files” expose.
Hughes introduces to Rogan a tool that he created to help people detect if and how public messaging through media is actually exhibiting some kind of coordination, as in state “psyop” stuff that has long been exposed (i.e. the “Frank Church Commission” back in the 1970s). Hughes urges people to note how media personnel will begin using similar terms across varied outlets to frame stories, how some news is pushed and other news is ignored, making it obvious that there is manipulation of public information to shape the perceptions of citizens.
“AI Overview
“A “psyop” (psychological operation) is a covert or overt campaign often deployed by states or powerful actors to spread disinformation, exploit grievances, and orchestrate echo chambers. The ultimate goal is to shape public opinion, destabilize democratic governance, and control civilian perception by fragmenting the public sphere.
“Governments and malign actors utilize several targeted mechanisms and channels to execute these operations:
• Algorithmic Polarization: Digital platforms are frequently exploited to feed users content that confirms their biases, creating insular echo chambers.
• State-Sponsored Disinformation: Covert online campaigns, such as the Pentagon’s use of covert campaigns on social media, deploy networks of fake accounts to undermine public confidence in rival institutions, policies, or health mandates.
• Synthetic Media & AI: State-sponsored influence operations leverage AI-generated content and fabricated imagery to make state propaganda blend seamlessly with organic user content.
• Narrative Fragmentation: Rather than pushing a single narrative, operators often promote relativism, conspiracy theories, and identity-based division to erode overall trust in traditional media and government institutions.
“For comprehensive analyses on how psychological operations target the modern information space, refer to the Senate of Canada Brief on Cognitive Warfare or explore academic overviews of psychological warfare on the ResearchGate Study on Social Networks.”
(End of AI Overview)
Hughes says, for illustration, that the goal of both political sides is to find, interview, and quote the craziest outlier people on the other side in order to portray the other side as dangerously crazy/insane people, to then vilify and demonize opponents as threats to the society. That exaggerated demonization also validates your side as the righteous protectors of all that is good and justifies your claims that it is necessary to defeat and eliminate those on the other side of the tribal divide as dangerous and crazy, as threats to the society.
He continues on his “psyop” point, explaining that we are manipulated to feel a certain way about news and things, what Jimmy Dore stated in saying that “we are the most propagandized and lied to people and we don’t know it”. Hence, we need to be skeptical about all that we hear and are told by media and politicians.
Hughes says that we are presented “binary choices without nuance”- i.e. this is righteous/true and that opposite thing is evil/false. We are presented with “either this or that” choices, choices that are framed in terms of the often-extremist positions of our tribal divides. We are propagandized with such exaggerations to incite fear of the differing other, and that then stirs hatred and the felt need to take action to save something posed as under “existential” threat from the others.
H. L. Mencken is always good to quote on these things:
“The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by an endless series of hobgoblins, most of them imaginary”, In Defense of Women.
Its all the repetitious replay of the same old “salvation through destruction of the threatening other”, destruction of other people and their differing policies and approaches.
There is almost no emphasis on human oneness and how many important basic issues of life that all of us actually agree on.
Hughe’s project is to expose and make obvious to others this manipulation from behind-the-scenes state elites/bureaucrats. He wants to make people aware of how we are propagandized, and then to stir healthy skepticism of all we hear, just as Rogan guest Mike Benz and others are also exposing behind-the-scenes manipulation of public information (i.e. the “censorship infrastructure” state elites have constructed to manipulate citizens- framing opponent’s opinions and speech as “disinformation, misinformation, hate speech, etc.”).
This is all more of the age-old elite manipulation and control of commoners, as from the beginning. The arrogance of elites that they possess superior knowledge to that of commoners, that they possess superior qualities and abilities (are even “divinely anointed”) and therefore should rule others. Much like Plato’s “Philosopher Kings” that Paul embraced (i.e. the Hellenism influence on Christology). Paul embedded and epitomized Plato’s archetype of special elites more qualified to rule in his “Lord Christ” ruling all with rod of iron.
The curse on human societies and civilization from the beginning has been elites venting their impulse to dominate, not serving citizens but manipulating and controlling commoners in what Richard Landes termed the “elite/commoner divide”. Both sides of our current political divide are guilty of this.
This is where I suggest that we should develop “personal criteria” to evaluate all that we are presented with in public media. Develop a good understanding of the basic principles, laws, and institutions of liberal democracy that were designed to protect the basic rights and freedoms of all citizens, equally. The liberal democracy approach was constructed to defend common citizens against elite collectivism approaches that subjugate individual freedoms and rights to collectives that are run by elites claiming to rule for the “greater or common good, or on behalf of workers”. That justification is self-delusional framing of what they view as their “righteous” domination and, hence, the need for coercion of the recalcitrant dissenters and “unbelievers” (i.e. “They don’t believe in climate change”).
We now understand the varied other influences also at play in the above, such as “virtue-signaling for status as morally superior” that turns out to be too often infected with “suicidal empathy”. “Suicidal” in that the new fronts for collectivism/socialism, such as contemporary Woke Progressivism, are replicating the same pattern of failure as all previous 24 experiments over the past century or so. All turned out to have been destructive of human societies where tried.
My response to elites pushing for expanded government involvement and control of citizen’s lives with claims of ruling for “the common or greater good”? Kristian Niemietz (“Socialism: The Failed Idea That Never Dies”),
“Socialism in the sense which self-identified democratic socialists define it… a democratized economic planned collectively by ‘the people’, has never been achieved anywhere and could not be achieved. Economic planning can only ever be done in a technocratic, elitist fashion, and it requires an extreme concentration of power in the hands of the state. It cannot ‘empower’ ordinary workers. It can only ever empower bureaucratic elites.”
Another note on embracing useful “personal criteria” to evaluate all that we are told in public media:
I then go to the validating archetypes that are embedded in the human collective subconscious, archetypes that potently influence people to choose the beliefs/ideas that make up their narratives. As Niemietz notes, many people choose their beliefs based on “emotional satisfaction” even against rational evidence. To counter this impulse to choose based on “emotional satisfaction”, then what archetypes best affirm liberal democracy principles and institutions?
Here I touch base with Historical Jesus who dealt most effectively with our inherited impulses and the beliefs that validate the worst of our impulses- i.e. the impulses to tribalism, domination of others, and retaliatory destruction of competing others, the “evil triad”.
For example, he opposed tribalism with the new ultimate ideal of a deity who exhibited universal inclusion of all, equally. How so? By generously giving sun and rain to all without discrimination, to both good people and enemies.
That God of unconditional love was also non-dominating as illustrated in Jesus’ teaching that there should be no lording over others but instead serving others. That was how truly great persons behaved, and don’t we believe that “God is great”?
Further, unconditional love is nonpunitive and will embrace non-destructive “restorative justice” that also holds every individual responsible for personal behavior but then treats incarcerated/restrained offenders humanely.
These were the new archetypes presented by Historical Jesus in his radical transformation of human consciousness, narratives, and life. He presented more humane archetypes to eventually undergird liberal democracy principles and institutions.
Hughes then references some of the recent “psyops” (his term) that we were all subjected to during Covid lockdowns, along with the coerced acceptance of vaccines. The threats and tyranny throughout that hysteria was astounding to watch and experience. Hughes also references past examples the CIA manipulation of populations with LSD experiments that were performed on nonconsenting citizens. Further, he notes the Tuskegee experiment with syphilis on the black community, the San Franscisco MK-Ultra thing, all now exposed, along with exposure of the Russia-gate lie, the Hunter Biden Laptop coverup, etc.
Rogan and Hughes poke fun at the idea presented by state elites that “the government is here to help you”, something Ronald Reagan warned the public about. State elites/bureaucrats appear to struggle with the idea that they and their government departments should exist to serve citizens. The citizenry should be source of sovereignty in a society, the source of legitimacy and power that is temporarily granted to politicians who are elected regularly to represent those same citizens (subject to removal through elections by sovereign citizens as free individuals).
Rogan references a critical turning point in recent history when Elon Musk bought Twitter and the subsequent Twitter Files expose revealed how governing elites pushed media companies to censor opponent’s speech and opinions. These same elites pushed news media to censor true stories on Covid, etc. We all watched the incredible lying in relation to the Hunter Biden laptop, the years of lying about Russia-gate, and so on.
Interesting tidbit from these two that even Walter Cronkite was CIA-controlled, and that was exposed by the Church Commission that revealed all three main media outlets were under CIA control. Rogan further adds that Anderson Cooper of CNN had an interesting relationship with the CIA from his college days, interning there.
Joe notes also that Robert Malone is one of most respected experts on mRNA, with patents on that technology that was used in Covid vaccines. He says that Malone had warned the public of the dangerous side effects from mRNA, having himself suffered a serious reaction. Yet he was vilified and censored for trying to expose the dangers. Rogan adds that pharmaceutical companies pay people on varied media outlets to push information and to lie about vaccines, etc.
End of Rogan/Hughes discussion.
Added note on cognitive therapy:
Jesus effected “cognitive therapy” change at the level of archetypes- i.e. ideas/beliefs that energize our primal impulses. Our subconscious ideals and impulses influence how we choose the ideas and beliefs to structure our personal stories and narratives, our personal belief systems.
Before Historical Jesus, the primary archetypes that had shaped human thinking, emotions, motivations, and behavior were centered around deities that were (1) tribal (favoring true believer followers), (2) dominating lords/kings (demanding subservience from subjects), and (3) punitively destructive (threatening the elimination/extermination of unbelievers/enemies through apocalypse and hell). Those threatening deities energized the worst impulses in followers, impulses to tribalism, defeat and domination of others, and violent destruction of enemies. These archetypes shaped endless historical variants of “salvation through destruction” religious traditions. That framework continued into the modern era in secular/ideological versions like Marxism and environmental alarmism crusades (achieve salvation in some imagined utopian future through destruction of the existence society that is demonized as hopelessly corrupted).
Historical Jesus rejected the dominant archetypes of previous historical religions as noted above and presented an entirely and stunningly new image of deity as non-tribal, non-dominating, and non-punitive, non-destructive. He presented the most profound of all cognitive therapy in changing how people thought about the ultimate reality and ideal of deity.
His message has worked through a process of gradual noncoercive persuasion, orienting people away from the threat theology of the major world religions. It has been potently effective in energizing the better impulses of our human spirit, despite having been almost completely buried under the dominant themes of Paul’s Christ.
Insert: An intro note to this AI summary is that “Kingdom” may not be the best term for what Historical Jesus introduced as that connotes the Lord/King element that Paul built his Christology on, and that distorted entirely the servant theme of Jesus- i.e. there should be no lording over others but instead serve others. That is true greatness. That is the message, along with the themes of unconditional love as non-tribal, nonviolent, non-retaliatory, etc., the message that permeates lives and societies to energize our best human impulses.
AI Overview
Jesus compared the Kingdom of Heaven to yeast. Just as a small amount of yeast permeates a large batch of dough and causes it to rise, the quiet, hidden work of God in the world ultimately transforms and expands believers’ lives.
The “Parable of the Yeast” (or Parable of the Leaven) is found in the Gospels of Matthew (13:33) and Luke (13:20–21). This analogy conveys a few core spiritual lessons:
• Small Beginnings: Though the Kingdom of God started with an obscure carpenter and a small group of followers, its ultimate impact is massive and global.
• Transforming Influence: Yeast works from the inside out. Similarly, God’s truth silently infiltrates human hearts and society, changing lives entirely from the inside.
• Unseen Power: You cannot physically see yeast actively working in the dough while it rises, yet the results are undeniable. God’s kingdom often advances in quiet, unseen ways.
(End of AI Overview)
To get his message clear I would argue that we need to isolate out clearly the actual content of his themes as contrasted with Paul’s entirely opposite themes. These lists may help readers:
“Notable contradictions between Jesus and Paul’s Christ (updated 2025), Wendell Krossa
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=14451
“The Christ myth buried the singularly profound insight of Historical Jesus. The project to recover that insight involves “separating diamonds from dung” (Thomas Jefferson, Leo Tolstoy).
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=8664
“Humanity’s worst ideas, better alternatives (Old story themes, new story alternatives).”
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=9533
“The complex of “bad religious ideas” that have darkened and enslaved human minds from the beginning” (short versions below with Grok’s comments on them)
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=13571#more-13571
Further notes:
Most critical for cognitive therapy “shift in perspective”, be clear on the core theme of “unconditional” and how this central ideal shaped all in Jesus’ teaching, behavior, and life. Unconditional by its essential nature is non-religious. Further, unconditional undermines entirely all religion as conditional reality and institution.
This theme stands in sharp contrast with Paul’s highly conditional Christ myth and religion based on a deity who demands sacrifice/payment, a God who excludes and destroys unbelievers/enemies. That is profoundly “religious” in nature.
Historical Jesus was put to death for his threat to the conditions of religion that constituted the basis of the authority and power of religious leaders to control people.
The unconditional theme and message of Jesus is the most profound cognitive therapy possible for human narratives and minds.
Cognitive therapy- Changing your thinking will change your life and then express out to change societies.
Another:
The real battle against the real enemies and monsters of life takes place at the intensely personal level inside each one of us. The outer societal battles of class against class, or tribe against tribe, are secondary to the real battle of life inside each of us where the real successes and victories in the “Hero’s quest” are won.
Success in the real battle of good against evil takes place inside each of us when we find ways to liberate ourselves from our inheritance of animal impulses to tribalism, domination of others, and retaliatory destruction of differing others. On conquering our personal “evil triad”, we then energize our exodus toward freedom in liberal democracy society.
Another on archetypes:
“AI Overview’s take on “archetypes”
“Archetypes are universal, inherited patterns of thought, imagery, and behavior. Coined by Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung, they reside in the collective unconscious and act as emotional blueprints that translate primal biological drives (like fear, survival, and connection) into conscious meaning and action.
“Exploring these “energies” provides a psychological roadmap that can help uncover deep motivations, heal unresolved patterns, and understand human connections. The core archetypes map out how these primal impulses manifest:
4 Primary Psychological Archetypes
These four act as the foundational building blocks of the human psyche:
• The Self: The unifying, driving center of your psyche; it balances your conscious and unconscious mind into a state of wholeness.
• The Shadow: The repository of your primal instincts, repressed desires, and fears. It holds the rawest energy, which can be destructive or empowering depending on how it is integrated.
• The Persona: The social mask or outward face you put on to adapt to society and meet its expectations.
• The Anima / Animus: The unconscious feminine aspects in males (Anima) and masculine aspects in females (Animus).
Common Archetypal Images
“These specific, everyday character patterns emerge from the primary archetypes, representing distinct drives and behaviors:
• The Hero: Driven by mastery and courage; overcomes obstacles to prove worth.
• The Caregiver: Driven by compassion and protection; provides aid and nurturing to others.
• The Lover: Driven by intimacy and passion; seeks emotional and physical connection.
• The Creator: Driven by innovation and artistic expression; manifests visions into reality.
• The Sage: Driven by truth and knowledge; seeks to understand the world.
• The Explorer: Driven by freedom and autonomy; seeks new experiences and self-discovery.
• The Ruler: Driven by stability and control; leads and creates order.
“To dive deeper into identifying how these ideas shape behavior, consider resources dedicated to depth psychology, such as guides and exercises on Positive Psychology or books regarding sacred contracts and the psyche.”
(End of AI Overview)
This balanced and insightful comment from Barb Kay. Separating between the person and the policies of Republican leaders, just as many Democrats did when Bill Clinton was chasing interns in the White House.
Kay is responding to how progressive women are now excusing Graham Platner’s repulsive comments and treatment of women as “grit” and “real manliness” where they previously damned opponent’s similar behavior and comments as “toxic masculinity” and demanded their disqualification. Ah, partisan tribalism, eh.
She says, “No conservative woman I know ever once interpreted Trump’s lewd, famously taped Access Hollywood “grab them by the pussy” remark as a sign of “grit,” or that he was “the real deal.” Trump’s repulsive personality and character deficits were acknowledged for what they were, with heavy sighs, by all mainstream conservative commentators, but tolerated as unattractive baggage accompanying the only candidate perceived capable of disrupting the pathological cultural trends favoured by increasingly influential Democratic extremists.”
Her article:
“Progressive women embrace Maine’s Nazi-tattooed dude-bro Senate candidate: Despite his history, Graham Platner won 72 per cent of the Democratic Senate primary with strong backing from progressive women”, Barbara Kay, Jun 21, 2026
(End of Kay article)
And this homework from our AI companions…
Grok, would you please analyze, comment on, and summarize the points in the top opening section of http://www.wendellkrossa.com/ titled,
“He ‘defeated the idea’ that has incited/validated endless violence and war. And his ‘stunning alternative’ cost him his life.”
Posted on June 16, 2026 by Wendell Krossa
Grok replied:
Summary of the top opening section (as of the June 16, 2026 post): wendellkrossa.com
The post’s core thesis is that Historical Jesus “defeated the idea” — the primal, threat-based theology of a wrathful, tribal, retaliatory, apocalyptic, and conditionally punishing God — that has long incited and validated humanity’s worst impulses toward tribalism, domination, and violence. His “stunning alternative” (God as unconditional love) cost him his life and was later largely buried by Paul’s Christ myth, creating the oxymoron “Jesus Christ.” wendellkrossa.com
Key points include:
• Distinguishing “Jesus-ianity” vs. “Christ-ianity”: Drawing on Historical Jesus research (Quest for the Historical Jesus, Jesus Seminar, Q Wisdom Sayings), the author contrasts Jesus’ core themes — non-tribal inclusion (sun/rain on good and bad alike), non-dominating service (no lording over others), non-retaliatory enemy-love, and unconditional forgiveness/restoration — with Paul’s opposing Christology: a tribal, dominating Lord/King who brings apocalyptic “salvation through destruction,” vengeance, and conditional salvation. wendellkrossa.com
• “Diamonds from dung” (Jefferson/Tolstoy): Paul’s merger buried Jesus’ profound insight. Continuing undifferentiated Christianity perpetuates cognitive dissonance, where bad (violent, conditional) elements cloak themselves as good/divine (e.g., crucifixion reframed as grace). This has driven historical violence: crusades, inquisitions, religious wars, and later secular echoes in Marxist revolutions, Nazism, and modern environmental apocalypticism.
wendellkrossa.com
• Outcomes and evidence: Jesus’ themes inspired the best of the human spirit and undergird liberal democracy (equal rights, non-domination, humane justice with accountability). Paul’s themes have produced mass suffering. The site is not anti-Christianity but urges proper differentiation to honor Jesus’ non-religious discovery of unconditional love. wendellkrossa.com
• Call to action: Fully reject the old “monster” God (wrathful, punitive) at the core of religious traditions, as Jesus did, and embrace the unconditional alternative. This is the way to “defeat the idea” (echoing General Nagata on ISIS ideology) that fuels fanaticism and war. Psychologists like Harold Ellens and Zenon Lotufo are cited on how bad theology energizes violence; historian Richard Landes on apocalyptic millennialism’s societal risks. wendellkrossa.com
• Contemporary ties: Critiques calls to revive undifferentiated Christianity for meaning (e.g., referencing a Gutfeld/Vance discussion) without addressing its violent history. Touches on DMT/NDE experiences of oneness, virtue-signaling as shame-masking, and the need for better sources of meaning beyond materialism or traditional religion. wendellkrossa.com
The post frames this as root-level “archetypal engineering” or meta-narrative reform — going to the core theology rather than peripheral tinkering. wendellkrossa.com
Analysis and Comments
Krossa’s project is a sustained, passionate critique of how ideas shape behavior, rooted in historical Jesus scholarship and comparative mythology/theology. Strengths include:
• Coherence with evidence: There is a recognizable tension in early Christian sources between the synoptic Gospels’ emphasis on ethical teachings, inclusion, and forgiveness versus Pauline/apocalyptic emphases on judgment, substitutionary atonement, and eschatological wrath. Scholars like James Tabor (mentioned) and others have explored Paul’s distinct contributions. Historians have documented apocalyptic thinking’s role in social upheavals. wendellkrossa.com
• Psychological and societal insight: Bad ideas/beliefs do amplify tribalism and violence when sacralized. Framing the “real cosmic dualism” as internal (better vs. worse impulses and validating archetypes) echoes Solzhenitsyn and avoids simplistic external scapegoating. Linking this to liberal democracy’s principles (inclusion, restrained power, restorative justice) is thoughtful. wendellkrossa.com
• Humanist appeal: Emphasizing unconditional love as liberating and non-religious in essence aligns with universal ethics. The call to separate diamonds from dung encourages critical engagement with tradition rather than wholesale rejection or uncritical defense.
My insert note, challenging Grok’s “Potential critiques or nuances” below (Wendell Krossa):
My emphasizing the ongoing influence of primitive religious themes in modern-era human narratives is not to “underplay other factors” or “overlook… secular developments”. This site tries to focus attention on the “bad ideas” still protected in our major world religions, ideas that continue to validate our worst inherited impulses to bad behavior- i.e. impulses to tribalism, domination of others, and vengeful destruction of differing others.
There is a tendency to avoid confronting bad ideas in religious traditions due to the religious tradition of “cloaking bad as good”, even as divine by projecting bad themes on to deity- i.e. themes like (1) tribalism (true believers favored and included while “unbelievers” are excluded), (2) domination in God as ultimate ideal and model for human relating, and (3) punitive destruction as true “justice”. These themes (and related outcomes) have long been honored and defended as core features of religious deity.
To do as Grok suggests and “balance/qualify” my points in order to avoid “underplaying other factors” is to weaken the points that I am trying to emphasize. “Balancing/qualifying” is not always the best approach for making neglected and historically underplayed points clear. Note again, for example, James Tabor’s arguments on how Paul’s Christology has dominated Western civilization and thereby “buried” the contrasting message and themes of Historical Jesus.
Further, I am not denying the need for “gradual reform” as the generally safer approach to change in liberal democracy societies. I have, in other places here, noted how “gradualism” is much safer as contrasted with the “instantaneous purification” advocated, for example, by Marxist revolutionaries and environmental alarmists due to their framing some world-ending apocalypse as “imminent”. That is a prominent feature in their “salvation through destruction” approaches to societal change (i.e. collectivist urging for the immediate overthrow of “corrupt/evil contemporary liberal democracy” and the immediate installation of their collectivist utopia, versus the “gradualism” of liberal democracy). Arthur Mendel covered this issue of the nature of societal transformation well in his “Vision and Violence”.
My reference to “full death/rebirth” is presented in relation to changing the deity image that we have inherited in our great religious traditions, and replacing that with the “stunning new theology” of Jesus. There is no “safe gradual” way to do this. And the “gradual reform for stability” that Grok defends has produced (i.e. contributed significantly to) two millennia of horrific violence and war as historians like Richard Landes have outlined in their books (i.e. influencing the mass-death of last century’s Marxist revolutions, Nazism, and now influencing the ongoing ruin of societies from environmental alarmism crusades). The endless mass-death and harm from these movements should not be “gradually” ended but stopped, now.
(End of my insert “quibble” with Grok AI. Grok appears, at times, to have been infected by the woke virus, perhaps unavoidable from “learning off all the bullshit on the Internet”- Elon Musk.)
Grok continued- “Potential critiques or nuances”:
• Historical Jesus reconstruction is inherently interpretive and contested. While Q and wisdom-tradition elements highlight ethical teaching, many scholars see apocalyptic elements in Jesus’ own message too (e.g., kingdom of God as imminent judgment). The clean “unconditional vs. conditional” binary may oversimplify complex first-century Judaism and early Christianity.
• Causation vs. correlation: Attributing vast historical violence primarily to Pauline theology risks underplaying other factors (power politics, economics, human nature itself). Conversely, crediting Jesus’ themes heavily for liberal democracy overlooks Enlightenment rationalism, classical liberalism, and secular developments. Many Christians have drawn on the full tradition (including Paul) for abolitionism, civil rights, etc.
• Practicality: A full “death/rebirth” at the theological core is radical. Krossa pushes back against gradual reform for stability (citing 20th-century horrors), but sudden shifts in deeply held beliefs can also destabilize. His site repeatedly engages this tension.
• Tone and scope: The material is repetitive and blog-style (inserts, asides), which reinforces key motifs but can feel polemical. It is explicitly not anti-Christian — it praises moderate believers who emphasize the good — but strongly critiques institutional blending.
Overall, this is an ambitious attempt at “liberating human consciousness” by reframing foundational stories. It resonates with perennial quests to move beyond cycles of retribution toward universal compassion and evidence-based hope. Whether one fully accepts the Jesus/Paul dichotomy, the underlying warning about dangerous ideas (especially apocalyptic ones) and the value of unconditional regard for others is worth engaging. Krossa’s site consistently promotes this as the path to mature humanity and better societies. wendellkrossa.com
For the full text and related posts (including deeper dives on apocalypticism), visit the site directly. It builds on a long-running project with many interconnected essays.
(End of Grok comments)
A kind of “pattern recognition” thing that we do? Wendell Krossa
Look past the terms, definitions, titles that are given to varied contemporary movements that focus on a more superficial level of what any given movement is about. Part of the endless “cloaking of evil as good”? Fresh coats of paint needed as the old coats peel off and expose the true nature of what is underneath?
Look past the surface coats to the core themes that are present in the overall framing of any movement, and you will perceive the same old framework of ideas/beliefs/themes that make up “salvation through destruction” crusades. People are creative in framing new movements but inevitably resort to embracing and advocating the same basic archetypes to shape their new variant. That is Kristian Niemietz’s point in his “Socialism: The Failed Idea That Never Dies”, noting that most people choose their beliefs according to the criterion of “emotional satisfaction” even against rational evidence to the contrary (i.e. evidence of inevitably destructive outcomes).
Salvation through destruction is the framework of themes that is the common structuring of contemporary movements like Marxist collectivism and environmental alarmism.
This holds that there was a better past (original paradise myth), corrupted humans ruined the paradise through their “sins/failures”, and now life is declining toward something worse, toward apocalyptic ending of some sort. Salvation (“save the world”) demands sacrifice (give up the good life) and purging of some evil threat (i.e. demonized enemies, their “existentially” threatening system such as living the good life in liberal democracy). Then salvation will be achieved/attained in some utopian communal future society (a “heavenly kingdom” on earth).
See for example, “Humanity’s worst ideas, better alternatives (Old story themes, new story alternatives).”
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=9533
“The complex of “bad religious ideas” that have darkened and enslaved human minds from the beginning” (short versions below with Grok’s comments on them)
http://www.wendellkrossa.com/?p=13571#more-13571
Look beyond the surface terms used to define some contemporary movement to the actual content of what is stated and then you will understand better what historical Jesus did in going directly to the core idea/belief/ideal that centered the religions of his day, the dominant narratives. He transformed the central belief (i.e. the nature of deity), rejecting traditional theologies of retaliatory (eye for eye) destroying God for a stunning new theology of non-retaliatory (no more eye for eye), unconditionally inclusive, forgiving, and merciful God. That theology had long been central to validating salvation through destruction religions (i.e. The divine promise of salvation based on the divine demand for the violent purging of evil enemies that were corrupting/defiling life or the world and thereby preventing the holy deity from inhabiting the world with his immediate presence. Hence, the God of Eden pulling up his skirts and scampering out of the garden after Adam ate the apple to gain knowledge of good and evil. Sheesh, eh. So petty. Pissed at human curiosity to know the basic difference between bad and good?).
What Jesus did in his radical transformation of human images of deity is how we do a proper “shift in perspective” for potent cognitive therapy that heals minds, emotions, and lives at the deepest levels of being human (thinking, feeling, motivations, that shape responses/behaviors).
We go to the fundamental main root idea or belief in any narrative or movement and transform that as he did and all the rest will then start to fall in line. This is how to properly “defeat the idea”, the root causal factor contributing to human problems like violence and war.
Another:
Varied public commentators note the resurgence of tribalism in our societies today. Numerous articles comment on this, noting its particular manifestation through woke progressivism and resurging socialism, where adherents view societies in terms of two classes- i.e. oppressors and oppressed. And while the old Marxist “capitalists versus workers” is still in the background, moderns have new features that they use as criteria for classification of people in either of the two opposing classes today. Oppressors include whites (i.e. the new discrimination of Woke Racism), Jews (demonization of successful), wealthy (same demonization of success), and overall western liberal democracy in general.
The oppressed today are people of color (i.e. black, brown- Woke Racism again), the young who are dispossessed due to rising housing costs, Palestinians (the Jews versus Islam divide), most all immigrants (not white South Africans, but people of color), and far leftists, etc. Some argue that the new tribal dualism is driven by base envy. Add also, to drivers, the ignorance of the inevitable shift to elite domination- i.e. the tyranny by collectivist elites/bureaucrats who have deluded themselves by claiming superior status as Plato’s “Philosopher Kings”, people who are specially endowed to rule ignorant and unenlightened commoners.
Add further, the widespread ignorance and denial by collectivist elites of the inevitably horrific outcomes of their collectivist tyranny that denies the basic liberal democracy rights and freedoms to individuals. Denial fed by self-deluding images of themselves as righteous heroes fighting evil enemies, i.e. those who disagree with the collectivist authorities, the demonized others who differ. With collectivist experiments there has been the inevitable emergence of intolerance, inequality, tribal exclusion, etc. taken to extremes.
Behind this is the same old impulse to ignore or deny the fundamental oneness of humanity and to instead indulge the inherited tribal impulse of our animal past. Something that religious traditions embraced in their early “true believer versus unbeliever” divides (tribal division as divine demand/requirement, an example of “cloaking evil as good”). Religious archetypes were then passed down in to the modern era to frame secular ideologies.
Add also, the distortion of the hero’s quest (i.e. righteous heroes fighting evil enemies/monsters) that misses the truth that the real battle of life and real enemy in life is inside each of us.
This site advocates the two-pronged response of going after the mental deformities at play in this tribalism. In regard to the religious archetypes: Confront those with the revolution/transformation of archetypes accomplished by Historical Jesus in his rejection of tribal deity and advocacy for a God of universal inclusion of all as equals, along with other elements of ideas for new unconditionally-oriented narratives.
And in response to organizing societies to counter tribalism, confront this impulse with liberal democracy principles, laws, and institutions that include all with equal rights and freedoms. Uphold representative institutions that constrain elite/bureaucratic power and promote the sovereignty of citizens as the real locus of power/control in societies.
These articles are common now and they try to analyze and explain the divisiveness and extreme polarization roiling across western liberal democracies:
“How Israel Became the Biggest Litmus Test in American Politics: Young people see politics as a contest between oppressors and the oppressed. And for countless reasons, they cast the Jewish state as the great enemy in their lives”, Mark Halperin, Free Press
Subscript quote under photo accompanying this article:
“FOR MOST OF THE POSTWAR ERA, SUPPORT FOR ISRAEL WAS ONE OF THE LEAST CONTROVERSIAL POSITIONS IN DEMOCRATIC POLITICS,” WRITES MARK HALPERIN. “THAT CONSENSUS HAS NOT MERELY WEAKENED; IT HAS COLLAPSED.” (GRAEME SLOAN/BLOOMBERG VIA GETTY IMAGES)
https://www.thefp.com/p/israel-litmus-test-american-politics?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
The article also notes the element in tribal dualism of tribal fear and hatred, in that people, while they need heroes, they also need opposing villains to counterbalance with the hero role in their tribal narratives.
Quotes from article:
“Young people see politics as a contest between oppressors and the oppressed…”
“Palestinians are regarded as the weaker and more sympathetic side in the conflict, and Israel as the stronger, malicious one.”
Comments on points raised in the article: “Virtue-signaling” as in “peacocking as morally superior.”
AI Overview
Peacocking
Peacocking is the act of dressing or behaving in an ostentatious, flashy, or exaggerated manner to grab attention and stand out from the crowd. Derived from the mating display of the male peafowl, it is often used as a strategy in dating, social networking, or self-promotion to signal high confidence and status.
Key Characteristics & Examples
• Flashy Fashion: Wearing eccentric clothing, bright colors, loud hats, or bold accessories to act as an icebreaker and draw immediate eyes in a social setting.
• Exaggerated Behavior: Speaking loudly, laughing uproariously, or constantly dominating a conversation with braggadocio.
• Digital Peacocking: Posting overly curated, boastful, or attention-grabbing content across social media platforms.
The Psychology Behind It
• Biological Roots: In evolutionary psychology, peacocking is similar to the animal kingdom’s survival and mating strategies— signaling strong genetic fitness to attract a potential partner.
• The Seduction Community: The term was popularized in modern pop culture by dating coaches and the “pickup artist” community, who advised men to wear one strange or highly noticeable item (like a fedora or bright scarf) to prompt women to approach them or ask questions.
• Insecurities: While often intended to project confidence, psychologists and community forum members note that peacocking can sometimes stem from deep-seated insecurities or a desperate attempt to hide perceived weaknesses by overcompensating.
(End of AI Overview)
Narcissists in deformed hero’s quests must create threatening evil enemies to function as sharp contrasts to their roles as heroes who are validated by defeating and destroying such enemies/monsters. All to affirm their virtue-signaling as righteously heroic. Most of us, informed by the professional psychologists like Jordan Peterson, now understand the psychological need for virtue-signaling for status in one’s tribe, the “peacocking” as morally superior to lesser others.
Add the influence of apocalyptic in these deformed hero’s quests- i.e. the construction of the evil enemy as presenting threat levels that are world-scale or degree. Further add the feature of “imminence” to the threat (with “end of days” dates set as just years or decades ahead) and that then demands immediate action to “save” your world. Clearly then, argue the apocalyptics, democracy is just too slow and messy, so, obviously and logically, the situation demands the violent purging, instantaneous purification that is standard to apocalyptic millennial crusades.
We see these elements in the narrative frameworks that we have inherited from the great religious traditions where they still dominate those traditions, notably in Paul’s apocalyptic millennial salvation gospel. Marxism replicates the New Testament Revelation pattern of salvation through violent destruction of the evil society and group that will not bow the knee (i.e. the recalcitrant unbelievers or dissenters).
The demand to purge evil from the world is a divine prerequisite and has to precede the promise of salvation into one’s utopia, into a heavenly kingdom, a Reich, or a restored communalism paradise of noble savages living the equity lifestyle (apparently still the dominant belief in academia).
These ideas/beliefs/themes/myths are all elements in the construction of our dominant narratives, both religious and secular/ideological.
And all these themes trace back to the mother Archetype of a tribal, dominating, and destroying deity, a God that validates entire complexes of ideas/beliefs in “salvation through violent destruction of evil enemies” narratives or belief systems.
Again, historical Jesus went to the core that is theology, to the God, to defeat that great mental deformity of tribal, dominating, violently destroying deity.
I refer often to him because of his approach that went after the archetypes at the deepest level of human consciousness and the human psyche- i.e. going to root causes to solve mental pathologies that drive bad human behavior. And most critical of all, he went to the ultimate reality, the ultimate ideal/idea and that is how to properly “defeat the idea” that General Nagata stated had to be defeated if we are to solve the problem of what drives violence and war. Historical Jesus understood “It’s the theology, stupid” long before Carville and Clinton.
Also in the article, the outside influence from the major collectivist system today, the Chinese Communist party.
Further quotes from the article:
“Social media and YouTube have done the rest, faster and with even fewer restraints. A generation of influencers, streamers, podcasters, and algorithmically rewarded stars has discovered that anti-Israel certainty performs beautifully. Complexity does not go viral. Layered ambiguity does not build a following. A tragic conflict between two peoples becomes, in the hands of the platforms, a simple morality play: oppressor and oppressed, colonizer and colonized, villain and victim.
“Then there’s the foreign money and foreign influence. Qatar has spent years investing in American institutions, from universities to media to political networks, shaping the atmosphere in which elite opinion is formed. China’s role is different but no less consequential. Beijing does not need to care deeply about the Middle East to understand that TikTok and related information flows can amplify narratives that divide Americans, weaken confidence in Western institutions, and turn young Americans against their own country’s allies.”
(End of article quotes)
So, there it is- “oppressors and the oppressed.” The same old Marxist tribal dualism of opposing classes as ever before. Always disguised as empathy for the poor and oppressed, but it ends in totalitarian tyranny and the impoverishment of all by destroying the business sector that creates jobs and the wealth to sustain our societies. It destroys by taking away private property rights, Marx’s number one evil to eliminate in order to liberate the essential “communalism” spirit of people- i.e. his imaginary “essential true nature” of people that was enslaved by individual property rights. What WEF summarized in its former slogan- “You will own nothing and you will be happy”.
Another from Free Press
“Really about Rage and Revolution”:
The collectivist left is now disclosing their true approach to societal change as just another episode in the endless historical parade of “salvation through destruction” crusades, both religious and secular/ideological.
Salvation through destruction (i.e. apocalyptic millennialism) demands the violent purging of some demonized “evil”, the evil being the existing system that cannot be subjugated by reasoning and persuasion, or through normal liberal democratic processes. It requires coercion, intolerant tyranny to force societal transformation with violent destruction of what exists.
Arthur Herman covered this element of coercive violence in his “The Idea of Decline in Western History”. This is the element in Christian apocalyptic millennialism that demands violent purging of the archetypal variety that is illustrated in Paul’s Christ (see John’s Revelation for graphic portrayal of this violent purging as necessary to introduce or prepare the way for salvation).
So also, Richard Landes detailed the same elements of apocalyptic millennialism, or salvation through destruction (i.e. in “Heaven On Earth”), noting the shift of apocalyptic believers (i.e. Marxists, Nazis, environmentalists) to engage violent extermination of opponents viewed as blocking their revolutions intended to bring utopian “salvation” (i.e. their shift to the stage of “exterminate or be exterminated” in order to preserve and further promote their crusades).
The push for “instantaneous purification” reveals the impatience of apocalyptic millennialists with the slowness of liberal democracy procedures. The demand for immediate violent purging of some evil is argued as necessary to more immediately install the promised salvation in some guaranteed utopia.
Totalitarian tyrants resort to violence to get their way and to shut down dissenters opposing their crusades. And predictably, tyrants frame their violent destruction as “righteous and just heroism against evil enemies that are existential threats to greater good” (some even reaching higher to proclaim their destructive violence as motivated by “noble cause” empathy for oppressed people, what Gad Saad terms “suicidal empathy”). More tribal lunacy.
“‘Freeze the Rent’ Is Really About Rage and Revolution: Thursday’s decision on rent-stabilized apartments in New York City will prove that what is supposed to be a deliberative, analytical process has been hijacked by Mamdani allies”, Matt Miller, Free Press
“A NEW YORK CITY LANDLORD WEIGHS IN ON HOW THE ANNUAL RENT-SETTING PROCESS STOPPED BEING ABOUT RENT. (MICHAEL NAGLE/BLOOMBERG VIA GETTY IMAGES)”