Posted on 05/19/2020 8:01:56 AM PDT by rktman
Psychotherapist Dr Hugh Willbourn says lockdown zealots are displaying all the classic signs of cult members by doubling down on their beliefs despite having been proven wrong.
In an article on his website, Willbourn highlights the work of respected social psychologist Leon Festinger, who analyzed the beliefs of a UFO cult in the 1950’s who believed that a flying saucer would rescue them from the apocalypse.
However, after the catastrophic earthquakes and floods they expected to hit the United States never arrived and their beliefs were totally disproved, “the cult members would become not less but more convinced of their beliefs.”
Festinger identified five conditions that needed to be met in order for the cult members to double down on their beliefs and avoid cognitive dissonance.
1. There must be conviction
2. There must be commitment to this conviction
3. The conviction must be amenable to unequivocal disconfirmation
4. Such unequivocal disconfirmation must occur
5. Social support must be available subsequent to the disconfirmation.
(Excerpt) Read more at summit.news ...
No mask, no entry is the motto at all ‘essential businesses’ still under lock down in Maryland. (It’s a County by county decision whether to open in Maryland)
Anti smoking Nazis. Sounds familiar.
Some of them are here, with their daily ‘Wuhan Cooties’ thread.
It has not been proved wrong. Where the recommendations were being followed, they were working.
Now, the outlook is less rosy, as the rebellious spirit of the times has taken over.
This describes Democrats in general. And, I’ve noticed that all the pro-lockdown post on your facebook page are from committed lefties.
The lefties own the social science. They know just how to manipulate the masses.
He is right. Leon Festinger is the father of the term “cognitive dissonance” which is what is at work here. His study on When Prophecy Fails is a classic, and the lesson may well apply.
Given the supportive matrix of a complicit media establishment, and the die hards can hold off the whole world before having to admit they were wrong.
The curves of infection and deaths are very similar no matter the rules or the following of them.
It would be easier if people who felt sick stayed home.
Neither you nor anybody else knows that, because the recommendations were being followed at first and no one knows how the curves would have looked if they hadn’t been followed.
Incredibly, I’ve seen that logic-from-hell argument several times.
An astute observation.
All leftists and most democrats (esp. Dem. Congress critters) behave like cult members.
“The difference, of course, is that Festinger’s UFO cult had a few dozen members, whereas the Covid cult seems to have infected half the world. If Festinger’s right, the bad news is we won’t be able to persuade people to stop social distancing if we prove that the danger posed by COVID-19 has been dramatically overstated. On the contrary, people’s opposition to returning to normal will intensify rather than diminish as the evidence mounts they were wrong.”
Meanwhile, Karens all over the world don’t show any signs of giving up on something that legitimizes their favorite thing in the world; Lecturing other people about their behavior.
Are you trying to suggest you don’t believe Hillary Clinton, John Podesta and Huma were already arrested back in 2017?
Don’t you “Trust Sessions” and “Trust Wray” and understand that “the House is safe” with the midterms for the Republicans.
Hey, being wrong doesn’t mean you have to leave the Qult. There’s plenty of these WindBags right here.
They actually are awaiting the redemption with the arrest of the entire Cabal, with 100,000 indictments and planes circling GITMO where they will be put under military trials with martial law in affect.
I kid you not. They worship a false letter god scammer on the internet and are ready to see the Constitution flushed.
No matter how wrong, they insist the internet scam is true and President Trump is directing this 5D chess. Sessions must be under 100D super cover as President Trump hates his guts and endorsed Tommy Tubervilled for US Senate in Alabama.
Anti gun naught-Zees. Sounds familiar?
Meanwhile, the flu bros and flu bras (interesting mental image) are using the Woodstock-era flu epidemic deaths (~100,000) as the new benchmark for COVID-19 to be taken seriously.* In the meantime, Darwin will continue to cull the frivolous herd to the tune of roughly 0.3 percent or so (my estimate - lots of cases go undiagnosed).
I suppose that if we exceed 100,000 deaths — which we’re approaching, but will hopefully not reach — from COVID-19, they’ll then use the bubonic plague as their next benchmark (sigh).
*Out of roughly 10 million, so in that case, that outbreak, so far, was actually more deadly percentage-wise than COVID, but that still must be balanced against how fast COVID can spread.
As a believer in Jesus Christ, I’ll double down, pack it down, pound it and double down again on this: He will come like a thief in the night!
“Where is this coming he promised...?” the mockers taunt. At a date certain, known only to Father, they will be deeply STUNED.
OTOH, it could be the blanket lockdown was an overreaction. I tend to believe that's the case, too. It looks like a more nuanced approach that would have protected those most vulnerable but left the economy intact would have been better.
I don’t know about that. The only swiftly-reopening state that clearly shows a significant increase in COVID is Texas, as far as I know, and that is at least partly due to ramped-up testing, an idiot mayor in one rural county (Mason?) and some same-old-same-old meatpacking outbreaks.
Defines the basic democrat.
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