George Lucas Warned Us

I’ve been thinking about the scene in Star Wars where Obi Wan uses mind control to misdirect the storm troopers. “These are not the droids you’re looking for.” He explains that some people are easily fooled by the power of suggestion.

One of the Capitol rioters was sentenced to prison today. He apologized saying that he had gotten swept up in the moment. This fellow didn’t harm anyone or destroy and property, but who knows what he might have done if he had encountered a member of Congress and gotten “swept up on the moment.”

Other defendants are facing more serious charges. A number of them have entered as their defense that they were motivated to attack the Capitol because they believed the ex-president’s rhetoric, the “stop the steal” conspiracy theory that they now refute as false. It’s amazing how the thought of doing time in prison can clear the mind and sharpen the perception.

The Star Wars franchise is a cautionary tale about authoritarianism. George Lucas warned us that people could be tricked into believing things that aren’t true, especially if it’s presented in a way that confirms existing biases.

People have been convinced that climate change is a hoax so oil companies won’t lose money.

People have been convinced that socialized medicine is inferior while for-profit medicine enriches big companies and bankrupts working families.

People are being convinced that vaccines are part of a plot to control them and rob them of their freedom. I don’t understand who actually benefits from that Big Lie, but someone is pushing it with great enthusiasm. (The Russians, perhaps?)

Fox News went on the air in 1996 with the mission of affirming the beliefs and stoking the fears of conservative viewers. Twenty-five years later, American citizens can’t agree with their neighbors on basic facts.

George Lucas warned us.