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It’s a sad fact that people today seem to be addicted to disbelief. So much of what we see and what we’re told leads us to believe that things are difficult, if not impossible, and we become so used to that idea that we actually begin to perpetuate it in our own minds and lives. People are also addicted to the media. Whatever it tells you, you believe, which leaves you feeling low and powerless.
It sounds like a conspiracy theory, but something clicked in my brain the other day that makes total sense. The reason the world is changing so slowly is because we’re all addicts. Not the drug kind (That’s a topic for another time.), but we’re addicted to the media and to disbelief. We have no real faith anymore, and the media is constantly pumping negativity and misinformation into our brains. We’re turned into junkies at a very young age, and by the time we’re old enough to have a clue what’s going on, we’re too addicted to even see reality.
Think about it for a minute. The media feeds us mindless garbage, turns our natural instincts upside down, telling us to want plastic people, instant gratification, less intelligence and more stuff. It tells us who we’re supposed to be and what’s supposed to make us happy. It encourages everyone to just follow along, and treats free thinking like a crime or a disease. Just like a mind-altering drug, the media makes you forget who you really are and what you’re really supposed to be doing. You become mentally pliable and weak. You’re controlled by the addiction. As extreme and outlandish as it sounds, that’s actually what’s happening.
And that’s why those of us who are trying to become better people and help others have such a hard time. Imagine how hard it is for a drug-dependent person to go clean after a few decades of addiction. They’re so used to living with the drug in them, with the way that it makes them feel, they don’t know anything else, and the thought of being without it is frightening. Unlike a drug user, who can get away from the bad influences, we can’t get away from the media as easily. The media is the drug dealer, and there’s one everywhere you turn. They make it almost impossible to get straight, because it’s better for them if you stay hooked.
Just like a drug user going clean, there’s withdrawal and side-effects when you try breaking free of the media addiction. It’s always there, and that part of you that’s been told you’ll be abnormal and unwanted and boring if you get clean wants to go back to being a junkie. And then comes that disbelief, where we’ve been taught to think that change is hard and even bad, so don’t bother. Just follow along and you’ll be happy! You’ll never change yourself or the world, so why try? Yeah, that’s the addiction talking.
And I know, this analogy might scare some of you. If you compare becoming a good person who thinks for themselves to overcoming a long drug addiction, it sounds painful and horrible. Here’s the thing though: Just like kicking a drug addiction, kicking the habit of being a media sheep is good for your health, your mind, your relationships and even your wallet. Your whole life gets better. And just like kicking a drug addiction, it’s hard at first, then it gets better, and the whole world is like new to you. You get to be your own person living your own life, no longer being controlled by some other force. The hardship of kicking the habit is temporary but the benefits last a lifetime.
We all need to kick our addiction to the media and “the way things are”. We need to do what they don’t want us to do, which is become better people who think for themselves and who care about others. As we break free from their control, we start to think reasonably and critically and make change for the better. That’s bad for the media and corporations, but good for people. We have to stop being junkies. We need to kick the habit and get ourselves right. We can’t let ourselves be controlled any more.
Eric Peacock
Changing the world might be hard, but it CAN be done.
Briana Blair
Of course it can, people just need to believe in it enough to start doing it. Though honestly, even if people didn’t care about the world, I wish they’d care about themselves. even if people only focused on making themselves better, it would benefit the world as a side-effect.