I watched the important parts live on the TV in between clients yesterday… I had to… I am not sure if it was the actuality of the occasion, or just wanting to sheepishly follow the hype… Incredibly hypnotic event yesterday, wasn’t it?
Unless you crawled into a dark room, unplugged your television, threw the radio out the window, and unlugged your phone, and then avoided every living person on the planet… You probably realised that the inauguration of Barack Obama went on yesterday.
In fact, whether you are excited or concerned about his presidency, whether you are a US citizen or not, you have probably been engaged in a lot of conversations about him since he was elected in November. Why is he such a big topic of conversation? Even here in the UK? What is the hypnotic allure? Let me explore that…
The obvious answer is that Obama is a big deal for a wide variety reasons. Many people are dissatisfied with George W. Bush, and are excited about a new administration, I guess… That is the impression I get from my peers and friends in the US…
Obviously, the election of the first African American as President has huge social and historic implications.
But what is it that makes people want-and need-to talk about this? There are lots of events in the world that are enjoyable and widely known, but they do not engage this level of conversation for this long… There is a mass hypnotic influence emanating from this event, isn’t there?
The way that human beings make sense of our world is by creating knowledge structures called schemas. A schema is a bundle of knowledge that tells you what to expect in a situation and why it is happening. For example, going to a party at a friend’s house could be a buzzing confusion of people if you did not have knowledge about what to expect and how to act.
Because of your knowledge about parties, though, you may expect loud conversation, music, dancing, or drinks. You know that you should find the hosts and let them know you are there. You might not ordinarily throw a coat on someone’s bed, but if they are having a big party, that is an acceptable place to pile coats. All of this knowledge helps you get around the world.
An important way that we form these schemas is by telling stories and repeating them. Anyone who has spent a lot of time with a child attending play school knows that they ask you the same questions over and over. They want repetition of stories. They are using this information to help them figure out how the world works. For a 4- or 5-year-old, almost everything in the world is new.
As adults, when something strange, new, wonderful, or traumatic happens, we return to that preschool behavior. Think first about a traumatic situation.
Following the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon were all that anyone could talk about. They talked about where they were, and what they were doing. They followed the news reports to find out what happened and why. All of this was done to try to create some bundle of knowledge that would help this unthinkable tragedy make sense.
We often need to make generalisations of our knowledge as we filter in the information we receive… How do we generalise such massive, seemingly ground-breaking events?
On a happier note, the election of Barack Obama marks a significant milestone in American history. Less than 150 years separates the end of slavery in the United States from the election of our first African American president. An occasion like this that breaks significant new ground violates our expectations about the way the world works… Isn;t that a wonderful thing to behold?
As we try to understand this momentous event, we are driven to talk to others. We certainly do this to share the moment with others. More importantly, though, we talk about it in order to make sure that it makes sense to ourselves.
In essence, this is a form of hypnotic communication going on within us and around us that is marvellous to see.
I got a link through from my good friend this morning and she said to me “I may be imagining this, but I think Barack Obama has a “just don’t trip!” look on his face for his swearing in. You know the one…you imagine falling flat on your face in the middle of the most important day of your life. He then messes up his words. Self hypnosis?” đŸ˜‰
Yuo can see it on the 2nd video down on this page. As well as being the central component of the most hypnotic world event… He also has to remember his lines and make sure it is flawless… That is some self-hypnosis that must be going on there!
I thought it was a fabulous spectacle yesterday… Utterly hypnotic…
http://joinmartin.wordpress.com/2009/01/20/what-did-the-brit-do-he-stood-up/
I watched the whole thing and stood up for the whole of Obama’s speech. I’m told by my American friends that the oath wasn’t read to Obama correctly so Obama paused until the correct version of the oath was read out for him to repeat. They ran behind schedule which is apparently very rare in such ceremonies in the USA.
I think there is something hypnotic about Obama. I wrote about Obama on my blog yesterday and I had over 300 hits and broke the twelve thousand hits in total barrier. If you spend enough time on Youtube, you can find videos made by the last vestiges of the neo-cons (who are now, at long last, back shouting in the darkness). Those videos are bonkers. They take each and every aspect of Obama’s speeches and accuse the man of “brainwashing” or even “hypnotising” the American people. Those videos are fun to watch because it is fun to see the lunatic end of the right wingers in America clutching at straws.
I have to admit to being an Obama fan but not because he “hypnotised me” into liking him or thinking like him. Obama inspired me to be proud of myself and to see what I can do to make the world a better place. Obama’s books reveal a powerful mind with some amazing ideas and- if Clinton annoyed the lunatic end of the right wingers in America with his ability to bring opposing sides together- then Obama is going to terrify them.
Interesting fact: There have been 44 Presidents of the USA. But they count Grover Cleveland twice.
There was a document that was spouting anti-Obama ideology too – whereby he was apparently using hypnosis techniques to blindly lead, manipulate and brainwash people into voting… Pah!
What a load of tish and pish!
I find him hypnotic for many reasons… Importantly because he makes me search for my internal references for so many great things… And that is a trance induction in itself…
Thanks Marty.
Marty’s American friend was correct. Chief Justice Roberts did not read the swearing in correctly, which must be recited perfectly according to Constitutional Law, so Obama, who had the entire thing memorized, was being gracious.
And as an American who was one of only 3 percent to oppose the war at one point, and who could not believe that Bush was elected for a second term, I feel like America has finally woken from a trance, not entered into another one. I feel like people are finally seeing past dogmas and spin, and have been shocked awake by the utter and cataclysmic failure of the Bush Administration’s neoconservative agendas.
And Adam, perhaps your friend that wrote to you about her projections was actually the one under hypnosis, being familiar with you and your work, looking for self-hypnosis even where there may not be any. đŸ˜‰
You’d be amazed… I have had 35 emails and messages today from people telling me that the Chief Justice made the error (GrĂ¡inne – I hope you read this!)… When actually that made a very small part of the point I was making… I included it because it made me smile so much… The idea that the entire world is focusing on your every word at that moment… Wherever the linguisitc ‘stumble’ emanated from, there must have been some major internal communication going on…
However, with this blog entry… I am more interested in the process and clusters of behaviour people are encountering and experiencing throughout a period of social novelty and this continued curiosity and utter fascination… I just find it an amazingly engaging process and have been openly thinking through the reasons why… All watched through my own hypnosis-tinted specs.
Excellent post, Adam.
Anyone interested, the “Obama Hidden Hypnosis” document (60 pages full of excellent “information”) can be read free here:
http://tinyurl.com/6zwl6a
If you’re interested in propaganda and brainwashing, this makes an excellent case study.
I know it shouldn’t, but I’m still amazed by the amount of fear and hatred a black president causes, and how it’s masqueraded.
Hypnotic regards,
Bob Walsh
http://www.twitter.com/bob_walsh
Obama cut in and interrupted the Chief Justice first, who then stumbled his words, then Obama stumbled his more and said neither what was read out to him nor the correct version….so they both made mistakes. I think it was doomed from when he butted in the first time. He admitted afterwards that they both had a lot on their minds, and I still think his face is one of a man who is trying not to trip up and then does!
Yeah! Screw you guys, I’m going home…
GrĂ¡, as Brucey would say “you’re my favourite…”