Sorry to be so blunt, but you only have yourself to blame if you realize something is wrong but allow your cognitive dissonance to kick in. If you are confronted with facts which are reported by reliable sources which are hard to dispute and deny, and you choose to dismiss these as "apostate lies" rather than looking at these from an objective point of view, it's your fault and you deserve the consequences of willful ignorance!
This is for all JW's out there...
by Divergent 27 Replies latest jw friends
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Divergent
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maksutov
I'm not sure it is quite as black-and-white as that. I would agree that it is intellectually dishonest to dismiss evidence just because you don't like what it leads to, but human psychology is such that unless we have some very specific education and strategies in place, we are all susceptible to logical fallacies and manipulation. In order to break free from that, we need to be educated in critical thinking skills, how to spot logical fallacies, and the mechanisms used by manipulators. Sadly, once the manipulation has started, it becomes increasingly difficult for the victim to think rationally - and religious manipulation often starts in childhood. IMHO, critical thinking skills should be a core subject in schools - from primary school level up.
Even when we know about cognitive dissonance though, we are still susceptible to it, and we have to implement strategies to negate the effects of bias. I'd recommend Daniel Kahneman's "Thinking, Fast and Slow" for more insights on that (the author acknowledges that psychologists find themselves falling for the same fallacies that everyone else falls for, even though they are aware of them).
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dubstepped
Couldn't the OP just as easily read:
To all the battered wives out there, if you allow your weak azz to stay in a marriage with a spouse that beats the crap out of you, you get what you deserve. It's your choice to stay so you deserve the consequences of your pathetic choices.
Victim blaming is sooooo cool. Compassion is so overrated. Smdh.
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umbertoecho
Divergent. That is way too harsh. People have much to lose. Entire families and lifetime networks. This is no way to deal with some who are really struggling. What if some curious, doubtful JW reads this? They will be terribly upset and likely afraid.
No. This approach is not good. Are you young, are you just insensitive?
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Divergent
Dubstepped, if you are a battered wife who could seek help but chooses not to do anything about it, wouldn't it be true?
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Divergent
What a person can or cannot do would depend on personal circumstances. My point is that if you are stuck in a unhappy situation, then you should work towards doing something about it instead of blaming othersDivergent. That is way too harsh. People have much to lose. Entire families and lifetime networks. This is no way to deal with some who are really struggling. What if some curious, doubtful JW reads this? They will be terribly upset and likely afraid.
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dubstepped
I could build a house, but I'm lacking certain knowledge and tools. Eventually I might be able to get there, just like any victim of abuse. I battled dissonance for a long time until I was eventually given time to develop the tools to get free. Seeing something wrong and being able to do something about it are two different things. The meme or whatever in the OP is straight up ignorant. -
AFRIKANMAN
Divergent - Respectfully.... your comments betray a lack of understanding of Cognitive Dissonance and the associated Psychology of the mind attached to that and - are without doubt a little too heavy to put it mildly - -
While its true that ultimately only we individually can change our position / situation in life - the person locked in by his CD at any point in time cannot see that otherwise he would not be in the situation he is in.
Please bear in mind that many of us here have been along some difficult paths in life. Some are here to find solace - some bear the scars and wounds of severe trauma in life - eg the loss of their own children etc
Regards.
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Divergent
Agreed, it might seem to be ignorant. But sometimes harshness is good to make people aware of the situation they are in. If you are unhappy in life as a result of having your life being controlled by others or because of other issues, and you come across something direct which forced you to confront reality & tells you that things can be different if you would only empower yourself to do something about it, could it possibly trigger you to think about what you could do to make a change?
This post is direct & straight to the point for a reason - to trigger people to think about their situation in life & hopefully empower them to make a positive change
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dubstepped
Harshness puts people in a defensive position and the outcome is typically the opposite of that which is desired. Blaming and shaming only serves to push people down instead of offering them a hand up. If you shame someone they will feel like a bad person, and bad people don't have the energy to stand up and change their lives. The only thing you'll typically trigger is a depressive response, nothing that empowers anyone.