Transcript
How I shot Santa Claus.
@benjaminjoffe | INCITEment | 2012.12.14
Howdy!
• 12 years abroad across 8 countries
• 9 years self-‐employed
• Work with early-‐stage startups
• Lots of Fme to travel, read and think
Just a regular guy
I started with a fairly restricted field of vision
Then gradually realized a few things were not so true… even my parents did not know everything about everything
From then on it was down the rabbit hole…
Despite the Eiffel tower, Zidane and 200 sorts of cheese, France was not the best country in the world, none was.
Our point of view was just one point of view.
I found out various things I (and people around me) believed was in fact not true, such as who invented the movable type.
I was told at school it was Gutenberg. Everything that maXered was invented in Europe for sure. Turned out it wasn’t.
I moved to Asia and discovered Asia’s fronFers varied depending on who you talked to.
Even “Asia” seen as a conFnent was debatable…
That just took me further down the rabbit hole.
I found out school did not prepare me for work life…
And that companies I worked for did not care much for me…
I also figured I had no guide for relaFonships
Do you know this show?
Karl hates to travel.
They thought it would be hilarious to send him around the world.
It is hilarious.
And he hates it.
Which superpower would you like to have?
Karl wants to be Bullshit Man
Flying in to fight BS hXp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lRIQGU2RRk
Un-‐learning
Having Bullshit Man around would be great. He would avoid us spending inordinate amounts of Fme
UN-‐LEARNING the hogwash we were taught.
Have you heard of this book?
Maybe you heard of these revoluFons.
Both are connected. The book is the manual for the revoluFons.
Do you know where PR comes from? Why women can smoke? All Edward Bernays’ work.
If you watched those movies (NOT “The Social Network”), you know a bit more about the world we live in.
Both were supposed to be dystopias!
If the nature of money, the FED and how banks became what they are interests you, this is the one book to read.
You’ll feel strange aker.
Who controls all this?
One quesFon you might ask. I don’t have a definite answer but I’m working on it. As I think we all should do.
Understanding ManipulaFon
There are also micro-‐levels of manipulaFon and lies.
To understand fortune telling, those are preXy good.
Milgram Experiment
To understand how humans are influenced by authority, this is the reference work.
The shocking results: 65% of subjects go “all the way” (= death) because they are told to and because experimenters
told them they won’t be held responsible.
ManipulaFon or pracFcal modern philosophy?
What I don’t believe in anymore
• Mass media (mostly trivia and lies) • Pop culture (mostly shit) • Money (monkey money) • Current Western elecBon systems (masquerade) • Official history (propaganda) • Most revoluBons (crowd & media manipulaFon)
I am a realist, with some dose of opFmism. Notably, I believe people can wake up, one by one.
The world we live in
We live in a world between “Brave New World” (class society, comfort, sex, soma), 1984 (police state, fake enemy, fake sense of wealth, doublespeak) and “The Iron Heel” (class repression, robber barons)
Peddling NarraFves & Images
• Hollywood • TV • Disney • Porn
We are trained to believe in those by repeFFon.
Primed for Disappointment
• Sets unrealisBc expectaBons
• It’s all visual
• “Live happily ever aker” is the hard part
The resulFng frustraFon/dissaFsfacFon makes us feel inadequate, pushing us to buy stuff
and pop pills to feel beXer.
SemanFc Prisons
• Words constrain our thinking
• Examples – “Patriot” Act? – RevoluFonary vs. Rebel – “Bullshit” – “Awesome” – “Let’s have fun”
This bit is harder to understand. EssenFally, our words limit our thinking to crude forms and prevent us from
grasping the nuance of situaFons and emoFons.
I recommend these two books to understand this.
What I believe about people
• AcBons speak louder than words
• People do their best, but are oken unaware, misguided or weak
• Majority are by-‐standers to the world, a small numbers acFvely good or bad
People are generally well-‐intenFoned (when not scared, then they turn selfish) but too oken misguided and passive
Twilight of the Idols
• Importance of dissent
• DoubFng authoriFes (“idols”)
• Using criFcal thinking – Asking WHY, WHY, WHY, WHY, WHY (Toyota) – MoFves & circumstances behind acFons
The way forward could be to train our criFcal thinking. Applying Toyota’s “Five Why” to all situaFons.
Being brave enough to express concern and dissent from the majority, even alone.
On Work
• Most people are capable but not in the right job for them
• Staying in the wrong work = Opportunity cost
• Skills + Fun + Purpose is what maXers
• It’s the “Startup of You”. Learn, network, create.
On Love
ATTRACTION (lots of people,
many incompa1ble) LIFE COMPATIBILITY (many we are not a6racted to)
COMMITMENT
To end on a different note, here is what I understand of love. The Western-‐style “passion” is the aXracFon part, while the “CompaFbility” part is prevalent in India. Add those two and Commitment, and you might have the winning formula.
We all have it in us! Join Bullshit Man in his fight for truth & freedom!
@benjaminjoffe benjamin@plus8star.com
top related