NTGNTP (6th Draft): CAUSE AND CONSEQUENCE Part 1.10.1

10. Blatant totalitarianism has been discarded in the developed world. Dictatorial governing systems tend not to be self-sustaining once the central figures have died or been eliminated. More advanced and stable systems have accomplished the task, often with a kinder, gentler touch. The Soviet state was the first such successful attempt.[26] After Stalin's death it survived. Its failure was attributable to outside pressure affecting the internal. Stronger competing economic systems improved upon those techniques within their own sphere. Propaganda was tied with market concerns in the mass media. Therefore capitalistic agitation and stabilizing propaganda may be performed more efficiently. Dissent may even be allowed, provided it goes nowhere. Occasional mass movements, such as for civil rights and anti-Vietnam war, may enjoy limited concessions. However, these wane once specific issues have been addressed and co-opted by the system. Hence, the supporters believe their own strength and willingly maintain its mechanisms. Instability is alleviated through these means. Ripples exist, rather than waves. Mass media increasingly moves at a faster pace, thereby reducing the attention span of the decadent. Focus is directed toward the moment, thus erasing past and future. The herd has forgotten all that glitters is not gold. Rebellion has been reduced to a hallow shell, easily exploited and drained. Capitalistic mechanisms have again been used for maximum advantage. Reduction to the status of mere commodities trivializes expressive outlets. Only a chump would believe a rock star preaching anarchy from a limousine. The great marketplace tragedy is created by the lowest common denominator embraced by the herd. Class division may be easily maintained by pitting the haves against the have-nots. Issues become blurred and deflected toward product identification. The money spent could be used for better things, thus blunting social stagnation. Submission defines the pecking order, or the opposite through backlash resentment. Reference points have become malleable. Individual perception becomes confused through these mechanisms, and easily manipulated for opportunistic purposes. The field has been tilled. Almost anything may take root. Clarity may be only a matter of refusing to believe. The herd will not even bother, mollified by comfort and security, to achieve clarity. Brains do not imply wisdom. Penned sheep shit all over each other. Constraints do not need to be accepted. Human cultural evolution will stagnate, unless we believe this system is not the pinnacle of the possible. Efficiency, masqueraded as progress, is simply no substitute for real advancement.

[26] The United States began adopting these characteristics after World War II, although the framework had been laid earlier.