You ever notice how common gas lighting is these days?

Do you know what gas lighting is?

Gas lighting is when someone manipulates you, making you doubt reality. Like when they deny something that you know happened happened. It's a form of abuse and manipulation.

But it's not like most people TRY to manipulate and abuse people. It just sort of happens. People don't try to become evil. It just happens.

At least I fucking hope they don't try to learn how to become manipulative and abusive.

So when you try to talk about something that someone did, and they just outright deny it and pretend it didn't happen, that can be gas lighting, at least when it becomes pervasive.

So when someone comes forward about sexual abuse and the guy denies it, says it never happened, and then others talk about how she's clearly "mistaken", that's kinda gas lighting.

People's memories aren't nearly as good as we would like to think sometimes. We don't really record 100% of what is happening, even if people say that shit about hypnosis and shit bringing forth more of the memory and shit. The brain actually fills in all the gaps in the memory, which makes it very easy to actually implant false memories.

And people can lie. In fact, quite often people lie about bullshit statistics about how almost no one lies about rape and other sex crimes. It does happen. People do get accused all the time when things didn't happen the way they said they did.

This is why the law is the way it is. You have an investigation and examine all the evidence that you can, and determine if you can charge them, or if there's not enough evidence, or there's a hole in the story, or whatever.

You don't have to say they are mistaken or making it up or anything like that. You really shouldn't actually. You can believe whatever you want...but you should try to avoid making a determination until all the fact are in.

This is a problem with the way the news is currently. They focus way too much on one story, when there's no more news about it, and when there really is no reason to talk to some expert about it. Maybe you should get some experts to talk about certain aspects, but maybe you should just hold off.

And when Trump denies things...says fake news...says that people are lying...he's gas lighting America. He's making a certain segment of the population doubt reality. He's convinced them the Mueller report said no collusion, no obstruction...even though it didn't really. He's convinced many of them somehow that he doesn't lie. He's convinced them of so many things.

I feel really sorry for his wife and family. How much of that abuse and gas lighting have they experienced, since it comes so naturally to him.

_{Gas light Stevenage by 70023venus2009 January 1, 2008 (source)
Used under the CC BY-ND 2.0 License}

But it's even more pervasive than just our president.

Every time there's some allegation of sexual assault, there are those that say that they are mistaken, that they're confused. This is gas lighting.

When people are talking about the problems of domestic terrorism and white supremacy, they say that it's not a real problem, that we're just mistaken. That it's not real. Even though we know it is.

All the time they always lie and deny. They pretend like it's not a thing. They misdirect us at some other issue that likewise won't be dealt with, if it's really an issue. Like the video games with gun violence. Now that really is not a thing. Though, I suppose that the AAA industry's focus on first person shooters could be a bit less of a thing. There's no reason games have to be so violent.

Ironically, them directing us as mental health could actually help with the issue of gun violence, if it was addressed well. But it's not like gun violence is perpetrated by crazy people. It's perfectly sane people that are just homicidal.

The use of gas lighting in politics, unlike in personal life, might actually be a deliberate strategy. But as I become more and more aware of what they're doing, I see it more and more in what they're doing. It seems pervasive in our society.

So, are we all being abused by politicians and the media?

What's an example you have of gas lighting in society?