media

We Can Be Heroes and Probably Shouldn’t

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We’re awash in heroes today. Funny, it doesn’t seem like we’re any better off.

I’ve had an interest in conspiracy theories and their impact since the late 80s, at first in extremist groups, then the further out beliefs. I came to realize over time that many figures in the Conspiracy Sphere were so-called heroes. The radio personalities, the pamphleteers, the shaky-handed writers of only-vaguely concealed bigotries declared themselves Heroes. They were always being attacked by The Conspiracy, they were anointed by God, or whatever. Every Big Name was also The Big Good Guy.

That’s not surprising. When you make it to the top, people want a story. When you manage to publish a book, you better have a story of why you have to read it. A lot of Conspiracy Stuff is grift, and grifters gotta market, and no one is going to trust Divorced Guy WIth A Medium Sized Library of Bullshit to explain the world.

As I contemplated this and was jotting down thoughts of heroism, I realized how the idea of the Heroic Conspiracist had evolved in the Internet Age. It had become democratized – everyone was a hero.

People regularly posted to message boards, supposedly giving insider information – which is indeed how we got the “Q” debacle. They could be heroes, even if they made it up – and maybe in time they believed it. You’re only a few posts from being declared a Crusader for Truth.

The social disaster of “Q” created many personalities decoding “Q drops” and lending their own theories to a burgeoning katamari of dangerous nonsense. If you worked at it, social media would let you build a following and yes-and your way to fame, if not fortune. Also sometimes there was fortune.

I detected an uptick in the UFO community of heroic stories, often around the Secret Space Programs where people were mindjacked into other lives by aliens. There were plenty of stories of space heroism, echoing tales of past lives from previous New Age communities. You no longer had to be yet another reincarnation of a famous occultist, you could be your own Spiritial Cosmic Fighter!

Anyone could invent themselves as a hero and ride the conspiracy theories to fame and recognition and feeling special. I’ve seen it called Main Character Syndrome, Protagonist Syndrome, etc. We certainly need a name for it.

Now this isn’t exactly new. Our media is awash in “heroes” you can pretend to be like. American Christianity tells people they’re in a great Crusade – and is also media fueled – but other religious trends have declared people part of some Great Heroic Effort as well. It’s just I think this got amped up in the Internet age to the point where we’re all supposedly heroes.

Social media would be glad to reinforce it for you if you had a good pitch and persistence. Believers didn’t just believe, they backed each other up, creating a web of confirming the heroism of each other. You could always find an audience to confirm your stories of heroism against aliens or the Illuminati or whatever. You can even make money at it.


It’s heroes all the way down. Sure some people jockey to be the Big Names, but you can get a little reinforcement here and there.

Of course it’s not heroism. It’s grifting. It’s loneliness. It’s people who need therapy not social media. But everyone gets to be a hero, even though none of them are heroic. Heroism has been hollowed out, lined with mirrors, and turned into a self-reflective room for personal aggrandizement.

Now I wonder how a world deals with so many false heroes – and how the would be heroes themselves cope. How do you step back from a lie and accept humanity? How do you deal with the problems of the world that need more of us just getting their hands dirty?

I don’t have an answer to that, except maybe some kind of psychological or spiritual or media trend at self-reflecting. A simpler, more involved, life. I don’t have any answers beyond vague speculation

I’m not hero I’m just a guy and I’m not sure yet what a world of fallen heroes will mean.

(Special thanks to the podcast Knowledge Fight, who’s further examination of Bill Cooper’s insanely plagiarized work helped me solidify this idea).

-Xenofact

The Flaws of Virtue

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The Flaws of Virtue

“Great Virtue Seems Flawed” is a quote from the Tao Te Ching Chapter 41. Lately I’ve been thinking about that between a mix of readings and watching today’s supposedly virtuous people. The former makes me think, the later makes me outraged THEN I think. I suppose it all goes to the same place – people with deep morals and principles, grounded ones, are NOT going to look perfect to people.

Because looking perfect is a great way to not actually focus on important issues and your own personal integrity.

Think of how much of “morality” we’re taught is just posturing. Say the right thing. Smile at the right time. Invoke some religious platitudes. I mean how many times do you see someone held up as a moral paragon who violates everything their religion and principles supposedly stand for?

In a media age it’s even worse. I’m often stunned – me, who’s had plenty of time to become cynical – how often supposed moralists are clearly not following what they say. They are lying to people’s faces, posing, posturing.

A person who has deep values, who has connected values, doesn’t place performative actions on a pedestal. They’re not here to sell you themselves, they’re not here to grift you. They have certain principles and act on them. Often that will conflict with the performative morality of others.

This also means that people who are interested in what is right and what values run deep is going to clash with the times. By definition someone who is contemplating what’s important is going to be at odds with flaws in society at the time. They will make waves, they will not be what we expect – and a smart society has “space” for wave makers (which lets you find out who has good ideas and who is just a jackass).

Finally, some ideas of what proper, moral behavior is really fall away when people take a look at deep issues and principles. Deep morality will seem flawed as people realize some things they were taught are, at best, useless, and worse harmful. Look at the history of people protesting injustice against people for skin color, sexual preference – at their time, they looked very flawed, but in retrospect we see their virtue (even if some want to deny it).

So yes, great virtue does seem flawed. It comes from a deeper source, from contemplation, from trying to get the big picture. We should always expect some moral friction in the world because we’re always re-evaluating things.

I would note, as a warning, that there is “being flawed” and “being performatively transgressive.” A person who’s deep morals come first and just happen to appear as flawed is one thing. Someone going around breaking things and putting on a show is clearly not coming from a deeper place.

And ironically, the performative faux moralist is probably performing “acceptable rebellion” so they’re conforming anyway . . .

-Xenofact

Madness Isn’t The Measure

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It seems that there’s always some book or movie or secret that people tease will “drive you mad.” There are mystical tomes that will supposedly melt your mind – as of this writing I’ve seen this applied to Enochian lately. I’ve witnessed people claiming that there’s secret footage of dark practices that will drive you mad – for some reason, this usually involves Hillary Clinton. I suppose if I wrote a book called “The Enochian Secrets of Hillary Clinton” I’d reach a lucrative audience I’d never want to meet.

“It will drive you mad,” is a strange way to promote something. No advertiser will approve ad copy that reads “This Macaroni and Cheese will give you anxiety!” I’ve never had a commercial tell me “Now you can get the socks that will cause depression.” Mental breakdowns are a peculiar way to get someone’s interest.

I know of course that the “pitch” here is that these secrets someone can reveal (usually at a price) are so reality shattering that your weak little mind will break. Off the bat, doesn’t that feel like the secret-holder hints that they’re stronger than the rest of us. Oh it might not be intentional, but it’s there, an annoying sense of bragging should lead to mistrust immediately.

Also, someone tells you that this book or film will drive you mad, doesn’t that also mean that whoever wishes to share the mystery is bad at it? Look, if you’re really desperate to reveal great secrets from under the skin of reality, maybe do it in a way we can handle it? Sure if the knowledge has already driven you around the bend, maybe you have an excuse to create spirit-shattering books and plays. Otherwise, take a communications course or something, mister or missus Holder Of Hidden Knowledge.

All of the above, of course, is me being sarcastically charitable that people claiming madness-inducing knowledge actually know anything.

You don’t need to reveal Shattering Truths to drive people insane – you can use complete and utter bullshit. Many, many people go down absolute rabbit holes of conspiracy theories or fake occult texts, or con games and lose their minds. You can create little worlds of words and images and insinuations that people will happily become trapped in to the detriment of their sanity. You can even do this by accident, as I’m sure we’ve all witnessed courtesy of social media.

People don’t need revelations to go mad, just something to obsess over and some points to connect. When someone claims ruinous knowledge, you can guess what I assume it is.

So no, telling me something “can lead to madness” doesn’t impress me. Yes, it is a warning, it’s just not a warning about threats to my mental health. It’s a warning of arrogance, of bullshit, of a scam, and at best something that’s just an elaborate puzzle with no solution.

Warning “this secret will drive you mad” is a warning about bullshit. Which may make me mad, but more in the pissed off way than the mental breakdown way.

– Xenofact