writing Creating a Monopoly on Thought

[The Girl with the Books 57]

Hey guys, this is the first one of my works that I'm going to upload here on the forums. I wrote this over the last week or so for a class I'm taking. It's not perfect, and it really is meant to be a bit of a joke, so be sure to keep that in mind while reading it!

 

~Have fun!

 

 

So you are a wealthy individual, government force, string-pulling company, or another ambitious person and/or persons whose notions of a better future do not appeal to that of those of those pesky consumers that make up the lower economical classes. Well, I am here to tell you that whether or not you are going about the proceedings legally or illegitimately, honestly or surreptitiously, you are undoubtable going to be foiled by the unfortunate variable known as “free-will.” The control of this philosophical entity has long been a mystery to those powerful and imaginative enough to wish for authority over the ruffians under them. Civil wars, evasion of laws, rebellions, revolutions, and refusal to pay taxes are all the work of restless plebeians who do not/did not understand the brilliance of their ruler’s (rulers’) actions; and all of these scenarios are exhibits of free-will.

 

In this guide, you will find a detailed explanation on how to crush the will of those who wish to oppose you by destroying their need, want, and reliance on change in the world around them by creating a norm in which questioning the said norm is frowned upon. If established correctly, the populace will quash their own revolts and disobedience with social acceptance (or perhaps more accurately, the lack of social acceptance towards those going against this norm).

 

For this guide it will be assumed that you have already achieved a relatively powerful position in the world (whether this is through relationships or your own situation), that being whatever you find the most appropriate for you to realize your final goal(s). If you have not reached a position that allows you to do this, I suggest that you refer to my previous work, “Becoming the Most Powerful Man in the World: A Future Leader’s Guide on How to Rise to Power”.

 

Before we begin, it is important that you hold you work to certain standards. For example, you will need to remain as anonymous as possible in order to keep the working classes out of your way. Even if the fools are lacking a proper education, it is not likely they will consent to losing their rights/freedoms (assuming they even know what they are). Also, you do not want any self-righteous politicians trying to play hero at your expense. You should camouflage your political business behind a generally unexciting, uninteresting, uneventful facade. By sneaking clauses into an unrelated, insipid bill (usually in the small print), you may find that you can grant yourself individual and unique powers (or for that fact, take some away from another/others in a/those position/positions that threatens your own) for later helping you realize your goal.

 

Now, the easiest way to police the people is by using the people. Local officials and those in a community who have positions of power are often separated from the commoners in the minds of both parties (this, more than likely, will include yourself). This impersonal relationship will only make attempted governing strained, forced, and increasing difficult as time passes. While you will want these minor administrators to exist (mainly for your own peace of mind and to give you viable scapegoats when needed) it is important that you do not “put all your eggs in one basket” as they say, and rely solely on their authority over the people. It is recommended that you actively replace the official(s) in said position(s) to assert your own power and dominance over them. A consequence of failing to do so could be a fate similar to that of the Zhou dynasty of ancient China. As previously mentioned you will want to have the people control the people.

 

To start with the process of creating a self-policing public you will need to get them to truly believe no good can come from being and smarter, any different, and better in any way from the average person. Just who is the average person? Why, it’s the person you want all of your subordinate humans to be like. In other words, a fiction character that, while respectable and admirable, quite okay with the world around them, uninterested in change, and unexciting by new things. You should constantly remind the people of this “average person” through radio, television, the internet, whatever mediums you have available.

 

Teach children in their sleep. Not only will it provide them with more free-time in the day (which in a normal situation would be a bad thing, but in one where the children have forms of entertainment available at every interval of the day, they will spend the time having fun the way you want them to, instead of the way that could breed a generation of thinkers and observers) but it will also discourage the asking of questions. In a teacher-student environment, the student has the opportunity to inquiry, to investigate, to dig deeper into things you don’t want them digging in. If the teacher is a voice they hear in their dreams, teaching what to think instead of how to think, they will come to accept what they learn as indisputable and final.

 

To keep the lower class plebeians occupied and content with their own being you will need to minimize their active thought and involvement in the outside world. To do this, you will need to make life easier for them (to the point where they don’t have to worry about their well being , keep them lazy with little to no desire to achieve anything greater than what they already have, and keep them mindlessly busy with tediously unenjoyable work.

 

Happy people with stable lives are less likely to object to the regulations and/or laws that encourage a “simpler” way of life. Discourage hard work by providing the people with what they need. Furthermore, jobs and positions should be assigned rather than earned. To prevent the feel of a totalitarian government, you will want to allow the people to still freely earn and spend money, so as to make them feel as if they are in control of their economic lives.

 

Appeal to peoples’ desire for creature comforts by creating entertainment centers such as amusement parks that are easily accessed and very affordable. Also spas, movie theaters (with a strictly enforced showing list, void of any and all intellectually demanding or thought inspiring movies), arcades (again be sure they are lacking in thought provoking/intelligence challenging titles), and restaurants (a good idea may be to have identical menus at all restaurants as to stop the want for creative/unique dishes) are all good examples of entertainment facilities that will distract the attendees from thought. These amenities will contrast the boring life and work they will be living with.

 

Award people with prizes simply for participation in contests, regardless at the quality of their attempt/entry/etc. (it is suggested that all those competing in the contest receive identical prizes). Have employers deliver equal pay raises to all workers, regardless of the quality/quantity of the work they turn out. Provide them with unmatchable “role models”; people they can spend their time chasing (only figuratively of course) and mimicking, in an attempt to gain superficial wealth, status, etc. This “role models” will of course not be the “average person” previously mentioned as the “role models” will be inspiring monetary advancement rather than social or intellectual advancement. This will keep the working class working simply due to the influences of human greed, jealousy, and pride.

 

By doing the above steps you will catalyze the currently hardworking people into a lazy and dependent mass, with little drive to apply themselves seeing as all attempts are rewarded equally or should I say, a people void of any and all will to be better, to explore, or to question. This will ultimately train them into one uniform way of thinking, that being quite similar to the mentality of lightening, to take the path of least resistance. In other words, the path pre-paved and provided by from the government (in any case, the road you choose for them). Free-will is a tricky thing to control, virtually impossible in many scenarios, however, the will to achieve and to change is easily manipulated, and do so can provide results that prove just as rewarding as those of quashing all free-will.

 

Edited October 12, 2012 by Pyro_Chick 451

[Crispy 5,563]

Ha, I get the joke.

 

 

An apt description of America.

 

 

Pretty good read, could use more allegory instead of being as straight up as it is, but good.

[The Girl with the Books 57]

 

Glad you liked it! I would have liked to be a bit more cryptic about the joke/reference/whatever, but I couldn't manage to do that and keep the paper as informative as it needed to be for the assignment.

[NeverPony 274]

I always enjoy such tongue-in-cheek humor as this. Reminds a bit of another satirical piece I love: the great A Modest Proposal.

[Evilshy 5,090]

Regardless of humor, allegorical nature, and whatnot, most of this is still true. It reminds me of several things, first and foremost, my 7th grade English and History teacher. Since it was a block class, he combined the more interesting aspects of the two subjects and we explored such topics as human nature, whether knowledge or money is more powerful, utopias, the definition of normality, and whether or not reality exists. Pretty much the best class I've ever had in any school ever.

A memorable quote:

"Other English classes you might learn grammar. In History, you learn about the Constitution. But In my class, you learn how to take over the world without lifting a finger yourself."

Guy was an awesome teacher. He's a divorce lawyer now, though, so I count myself lucky to have been part of his teaching career, and sad for all the kids who go to that otherwise total shit school

 

 

I always enjoy such tongue-in-cheek humor as this. Reminds a bit of another satirical piece I love: the great A Modest Proposal.

 

I remember the first time I read Modest Proposal. I couldn't keep the grin off my face. And it was in the above class, actually. We read tons of agreeably dark stuff in that class. Lord of the Flies, Frankenstein, The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Most Dangerous Game, Hamlet... God that was an awesome class

Edited November 8, 2012 by Evilshy