You and I, probably not. We ask too many questions and read too many differing views for that; and I for one always try to consider what I am not told as much as what I am.
Brainwashing normally needs the victim isolated as far as possible from any opposing information and opinions, while flooded with those intended. It's probably more effective face-to-face anyway, than by remote control or invitation - as those tiresome door-to-door evangelists know and exploit.
To be brainwashed by anything on the Internet needs the will to be taken in, or the lack of will to question and reject; but people do fall prey to insidious web-sites or social-network posts aimed at the weak or disaffected. ISIS and other extreme political and religious groups or cults use this technique assiduously to draw recruits to their causes; but I think the brain-washed one needs to be susceptible in the first place.
However, it appears recognised now that a good many take as face value, what they imagine to be accurate news and analysis merely because many people copy the same "information" - the users of the social websites on which this happens tend to be gregarious only with those of similar views and they limit their sources so may not even realise that what they are reading is at best mistaken.
Now that is not "brainwashing" as such, and it is voluntary, but it is still very unhealthy.
Thank you for a very comprehensive, thoughtful and informative response Durdle. Years ago I had a weight problem. I was always on a diet. Haven't had a weight problem since my mid-30's. But when you're young you want to be slim. I wasn't FAT exactly but I was a little chunky. Anyway my then-dentist was also a friend. We were both of Armenian ancestry and we attended the same church and our parents were friends so I trusted him. I also liked his wife a lot. She was a PERFECT woman in my opinion if any human can attain perfection. I remember her name was Rose.. He was also a hypnotist and I remember he used it mostly on people who wanted to stop smoking. I never smoked. So he asked if I would like him to hypnotize me and it would involve leaving with me a suggestion about eating less and making healthier choices. I was really excited to try. After an hour of futility he told me I was resistant to it. He said that I clearly wasn't willing to give up control over me..not even subconsciously..and so I wasn't a good subject. Even though I consciously wanted to be hypnotized I guess my subconscious fought it and made it unlikely. The brainwashed are puzzling. They are certainly the ones who believe whatever Trump tells them. He is their source of truth. I also read that something like 50% of the people get their news from Facebook. Well that fries it doesn't it? We already know how easily corrupted Facebook is and how it was/is replete with phony baloney fake made up stuff which people buy wholesale 24/7. What do we do about that? They don't even know what they are or became but they swear by it and refuse to listen to anything that refutes it. That is very scary. We KNOW that our 2018 and 2020 elections will be similarly attacked/affected. It won't be by the good guys. Woe is us. Sorry for the lengthy comment. I guess I had a lot to share with you! :)
This post was edited by RosieG at October 13, 2017 3:09 AM MDT
I have had spells of mental problems including a run of physically dangerous nightmares, and in one of three separate session of psychological counselling spread over perhaps 10 or 15 years, the psychologist tried something perhaps akin to hypnosis to see if there was something in my past that my memory wanted buried.
She told me to close my eyes, relax and imagine myself on a beach, and to try to let whatever it was emerge so I could "see" it. I was not in a trance as such, but perhaps something in between trance and meditation. Unfortunately it did not work - I could "see" people but not identify them or their actions, because they were almost ghostly, as if behind a thin screen. Curiously many of my non-frightening dreams have incredibly detailed settings but the characters are equally unidentifiable.
Eventually we had to call a halt. It didn't work and the psychologist was becoming a bit annoyed though convinced I was instinctively blocking something too well to bring it out - and I have no idea what.
I have not seen statistics but I am not surprised about the Facebook crowd. I have no idea what can be done about it, beyond perhaps trying to educate people into reading things properly, and being prepared to question statements and sources. There is nothing new in people becoming so blinded by their beliefs that they will believe anything that supports their beliefs irrespective of facts, but site like Facebook make that a lot easier.
Goodness I'm so sorry that you have experienced physically DANGEROUS nightmares m'dear! I hope that is all behind you. Here is something else we have in common though (besides being unwilling/incapable of being hypnotized). I have had two recurring dreams for decades. The template is always the same...the locations/details differ. In one I am at home and running late. I see the clock advancing and something prevents me from leaving. I feel powerless and I panic that I will be late. Sidenote. I am very anal about being late. I'd rather be an hour early and wait than be a minute late. The second recurring dream is always scary. I am someplace unfamiliar among people whom I don't know. I want to leave, go home. I can't find my keys or I forget where I parked my car or I find my car but have no idea where I am so I don't know in which direction to go. I am always so grateful to wake up. I think it might have to do with a severe fear of being abandoned. I remember when I was a kid I'd have nightmares about my parents dying and wondered what would become of me..who would take care of me? As an adult I probably have both dreams every couple of months. The closest I ever got to a psychiatrist was going to a family counselor with my then-husband because we were having problems. But that was 50 years ago! I don't think my recurring dreams are physically dangerous. The one about being late is frustrating/aggravataing but the one about being unable to get home scares the bejeesus outta me! I wonder what else we might have in common? Some foods perhaps? Thank you for sharing such a personal part of you Durdle. I really appreciate it. With some folks the more you know the less you like the person. With others the more you know the more there is to like. I think you know you fit into the latter category. Ca vas sans dire! :)
Durdle 