This reminds me of those who say they want to end CP, but then the only ones who spread it around my social streams are those who claim they want to end it. They will say things like, “Can you believe this?” Yeah, it is gross and discussing. It is evil and horrifying. You are victimizing these children over and over again by sharing it.
If your Wife cheated on you with (pick someone who you would be most scandalized by) and you and I both agree that this is morally wrong and extremely painful. And then I go, “Hey, hey, watch this video of your Wife cheating on you! I can’t believe she did this!” Not quite the same thing, but trying to illustrate a point.
I’m not saying you can’t watch this stuff, because that would only make a lot of people want to watch it more. Like when Nick Berg was beheaded by terrorist and politicians said that I could not watch it. So I went and found the footage and watched it! It was more than disturbing. I wish that I had not watched it. I was numb for about a week. I would not have watched it had they told me I couldn’t.
If you really want individuals to watch your smut film, then tell people they can’t watch it. Demand government ban all videos of abortions. I can guarantee more people would want to watch it (and then regret having watched it).
Some videos are meant to motivate individuals to respond or to get active. I see it from both the Left and the Right. It is a form of manipulation. Just as banning something could be used as a tool of manipulation.
What happens when one pushes against something? The other embraces it and glorifies it? They make it their identity. We see this often in politics. Teenagers do this too. You think I’m a _______, I’ll show you _______. And they embrace the very thing you accused them of. It is almost predictable and if someone wanted to use psychology to manipulate the masses, it would not be hard to do.
Show videos that get the outraged to act and then the response to the action grows the reaction. Sometimes to the point where the sides switch entirely.
The way to beat the manipulation is to ask yourself, Is this the outrage of the day? And if it is, then don’t bite.
Everyone these days (especially young people) have to have a cause to feel important. I’m seeing individuals who used to say they were anti-War putting flags in their bio (choosing a side and calling for the funding of war). How did this happen? Easy. Their opponent claimed to not be for the war, then they are labeled as supporters of the opposition and then these individuals embrace the accusation and put a different flag in their bio and the cycle continues.
We have made abortion a political issue instead of a moral truth and half the country has made abortion a cause, something to be celebrated and “a right” to be protected. This is sick, but not surprising. It is predictable behavior. Want to change the behavior, unplug from the system. Turn off the outrage-porŋ and stop spreading it around.