Hope those of you in Portland can make it. The discussion is bound to be lively.
UPCOMING EVENT: Reading and discussion from The Water Factor on March 13th. For information, go to https://annieblooms.com/event/2025-03-13/reading-marilynne-eichinger-water-factor.
Weaponizing Information
Disinformation or propaganda has been used as a weapon for over 2,500 years. The Chinese military strategist and philosopher Sun Tse considered it a good way to destabilize a population and disable a country. Weaponized information affects the recipient’s perception of a person or action that’s not warranted. It intends to harm by bringing about a change in beliefs and attitudes. Another way to think of it is as cognitive or brain hacking.
Spreading intentional falsehoods is a tactic most often used by politicians. It’s social engineering skillfully crafted to interfere with critical thinking. According to Sophia Ingatidou, an AI researcher at Chatham House, disinformation is the first stage used to subvert democracy, confuse rival states, and control public opinion. Despite fact-checking initiatives, disinformation is not abating.
Some companies use disinformation to undermine public trust in authority. There is a growing distrust of traditional media sources, spread through cyber hacking, cyber trolls, and other propaganda outlets. In a Brookings article, Thomas Hill warned how Russia was subverting democracies through the tactical deployment of “weaponized information.” He suggested that the United States and its allies adopt an offensive strategy to protect their populations from foreign interference and that the United Nations develop rules governing weaponized information.
Donald Trump has repeatedly promised to weaponize the federal government and use the Attorney General’s office to pursue revenge, retaliation, and retribution against his political enemies. Because many of his threats are carried on Truth Social, Trump’s personal network, his comments often fly below the radar. In 2023, he wrote, “If you go after me, I’m coming after you.!” He says he will authorize FBI raids, investigations, indictments, and jail time for anyone who disagrees with him. Republicans and Democrats alike shake in their boots, afraid to share their true feelings. Senators, judges, members of Biden’s family, Liz Cheney, Michelle Obama, and non-governmental organizations are targets of his rage.
To control a potential misuse of power, Congress must ensure that the military and federal law agencies aren’t weaponized to carry out Trump’s threats. Will they do this before it’s too late?
The court’s five conservative Supreme Court justices dealt a devastating blow by weaponizing the First Amendment by unleashing judges to intervene in economic and regulatory policy. At one time, the amendment was a defense of the powerless. Today, it’s become a weapon of the powerful, shielding racists, misogynists, pornographers, authoritarian leaders, corporations buying elections, Klansmen, Christian Nationalists, and insurrectionists. When the court ruled that unlimited campaign spending by corporations is protected and that the government has no business regulating political speech, it upended years of protection for the middle class. It is difficult to compete against men like Elon Musk, who, according to CBS News, spent 277 million dollars to back Trump and Republican candidates. What a waste. Think of the homeless people who could have been housed with that money.
I, like many of my fellow Americans, are fearful of demigods. We’ve created an aristocracy over the past quarter century and lost control over elected rulers. In 1776, our people revolted against a greedy British monarchy, as did the French in 1999. People fought to end the inequalities and the corruption of officials benefiting from widespread hardships inflicted on the working class. World War II was to fight Fascist regimes in Germany and Italy supported by wealthy oligarchs. The Civil War, 1861 to 1865, ended slavery, strengthening the federal government’s power. “A house divided cannot stand,” said Abraham Lincoln. These words are valid today.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 aimed to create a more equitable society by abolishing racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement against minority groups. The Women’s Rights movement of the 1970s gave women equal rights, opportunities, and personal freedom, including control over their bodies. When the Soviet Union dissolved https://www.eichingerfineart.com/blog/198835/weaponize-it into component republics in 1991, it ended the Cold War and a series of brutal dictatorships.
Were these fights by patriots futile? Why CEO pay has skyrocketed by 1322% since 1970 while the average worker’s pay has increased by 61% is a question to explore. Have we forgotten the hardships dictators inflict on ordinary people? It is so easy to slip into apathy, to hope the government or our family will take care of us, to blame immigrants for taking jobs our citizens won’t do. Are you willing to pick cotton or install a new roof in ninety-degree heat? We have to be careful and not get trapped by misinformation. Always ask yourself who benefits when a politician talks. Is it essential or a puffed-up emotional distraction meant to keep your attention from powerful oligarchs eliminating your rights?
I look forward to your comments.
Searching for Truth is an 18” by 25” acrylic painting on a wide canvas, available for $395. Shipping is included in continental U.S. Purchase online at https://www.eichingerfineart.com/workszoom/2876635/searching-for-truth#/
If you have a question, contact me at marilynne@eichingerfineart.com
Resources
Weaponizing of Information.European Center for Populism. Retrieve from https://www.populismstudies.org/Vocabulary/weaponization-of-information
Hill, T. (2017) Is the U.S. serious about countering Russia’s information war on democracies? Brookings Institute. Retrieved from https://www.brookings.edu/articles/is-the-u-s-serious-about-countering-russias-information-war-on-democracies/
Jacobs, R. (2024). Trump has threatened dozens of times to use the government to target political enemies. CREW.. Retrieved from https://www.citizensforethics.org/reports-investigations/crew-investigations/trump-has-threatened-dozens-of-times-to-use-the-government-to-target-political-enemies/
Liptak, Adam (2018)How Conservatives Weaponized the First Amendment. Zebra. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/30/us/politics/first-amendment-conservatives-supreme-court.html
