Gaslighting

     

                                                                     

                    Gaslighting

 

Shortly before leaving office, President Joseph  Biden issued preemptive pardons to five family members, including his brothers and sisters. This action was criticized by commentators who accused President Biden of "gaslighting" the public by previously downplaying allegations of family corruption. (New York Post)

Earlier the Wall Street Journal discussed the Democratic Party's portrayal of President Biden's mental fitness, suggesting that the party and media had been misleading the public about his capabilities.

These incidents illustrate how the term "gaslighting" has been used recently in the national news to describe actions perceived as attempts to manipulate the public .

 

The term "gaslighting"  is a metaphor that originates from the 1938 play Gas Light (and its subsequent 1944 film adaptation), where a husband manipulates his wife into doubting her sanity by dimming their gas lamps and insisting she's imagining it.

Although the modern psychological use of the term is often focused on interpersonal relationships, historical instances demonstrate that the concept has long been employed in various forms of public deception.

In the Biblical story of Genesis, Chapter 3,  the serpent's manipulation of Eve is an example of early psychological deceit. The serpent makes her question God's command by saying, “Did God really say you must not eat from any tree in the garden?” and reframes the consequences, sowing doubt about her understanding of reality.

Ancient rulers and leaders sometimes employed strategies to manipulate their subjects' beliefs or perceptions of events. For example, Roman emperors like Nero blamed Christians for the Great Fire of Rome to distract from his own culpability.

And During witch hunts in the 15th and 17 centuries, people were convinced accused individuals were guilty of supernatural and heretical activates creating a non-existent reality.

Now coming into the 20^th Century, did you ever wonder how Germany, Italy and Japan were able to shape public opinion, justify aggression, suppress dissent and gather support for  their participation as an Axis nation in WW II ?

These regimes relied on gaslighting strategies  to lie, distort reality, suppress alternative views, and manipulate their citizens into supporting war and oppression.

 

Germany

Under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi regime, Hitler blamed others for society’s problems. The Nazis convinced many Germans that Jews, communists, and other minority groups were the source of Germany's struggles, particularly after the Treaty of Versailles and the Great Depression. The Nazis painted Germany as a victim of unfair treatment after World War I. They downplayed German responsibility for the war and exaggerated the injustices of the Versailles Treaty, convincing citizens that military aggression was justified to reclaim national pride. Scapegoating encouraged Germans to direct their frustrations toward these groups.

The Nazis flooded German media with propaganda through films, posters, speeches, and newspapers, promoting a false reality where Germany was destined for racial and cultural supremacy. Dissenting voices were silenced, so people began to accept the Nazi worldview as truth. Nazis used fear to generate loyalty. By presenting themselves as protectors against fabricated threats like Jewish "conspiracies" or communist uprisings, the Nazis made citizens feel dependent on their leaders for safety.

The Nazis co-opted the term "Aryan" to promote their idea of that they were part of Germanic Master Race that was superior to all others. They used this myth to justify their policies of racial purity, eugenics, and genocide. In Nazi ideology, "Aryans" were idealized as tall, blond-haired, blue-eyed, and of Nordic descent—even though this ideal bore little resemblance to the diverse population of Germany or other so-called "Aryan" regions.

"If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it."

Joseph Goebbels, Nazi propaganda minister

Italy

Benito Mussolini, deeply inspired by Adolf Hitler, established a fascist regime in Italy that dismantled democracy, outlawed opposition parties, and stifled dissent through censorship and a heavy-handed police force. The carefree La Dolce Vita spirit of Italy was replaced by the Opera Volontaria di Repressione Antifascista (OVRA), Mussolini's version of the Gestapo.

Like Hitler, Mussolini idealized national greatness and pursued territorial expansion through military aggression. He fostered a false narrative of past glory by romanticizing the Roman Empire, promising to restore Italy's historical grandeur. This manipulation of national pride encouraged Italians to believe that war and expansion were necessary steps toward reclaiming their country's former greatness.

Distorting the truth about threats and opportunities, Mussolini framed Italy's military actions, such as the invasion of Ethiopia, as noble efforts to civilize and expand Italian influence, masking the reality of aggression and exploitation.

Mussolini is always right" ("Mussolini ha sempre ragione") became a slogan that reinforced his supposed infallibility, making dissent appear irrational and disloyal. This made people doubt the legitimacy of opposing views and align themselves with the regime's vision or glory.

Germany had its Führer" while Mussolini was called” Il Duce."  Both meant Leader.

 

 

Japan

In Japan, as in Germany and Italy, nationalism was glorified, but with a distinct twist. Under the militarist government and Emperor Hirohito, the Japanese regime promoted the belief that the Emperor was really a living deity—a "god"—and that Japan possessed a divine right to expand its territory. Citizens were taught to view their nation as morally and culturally superior to all others.

Framing military aggression as self-defense, Japan justified its invasions of China and Southeast Asia as necessary for securing resources and protecting the nation from Western imperialism. This narrative manipulated the population into seeing Japan as the victim rather than the aggressor.

Like their counterparts in Germany and Italy, the Japanese government tightly controlled information, suppressing dissent and promoting only propaganda that supported its goals. War efforts were portrayed as noble sacrifices for the nation, while alternative perspectives were silenced. The government also downplayed or just denied its war crimes, such as the atrocities committed during the Rape of Nanking, creating a false reality where these events were either justified or claimed they didn’t occur.

 

Across these three regimes, gaslighting tactics fostered a shared narrative that war was both just and necessary. Aggression was rationalized, enemies were dehumanized, and citizens were manipulated through propaganda, censorship, and fear. Dissent was quashed, and people were made to doubt anything outside the official narrative. Patriotism and blind loyalty were equated with moral virtue.

 

Meme:

The Big Lie," was described by Adolf Hitler in his book Mein Kampf. He wrote about how a big, audacious lie could be more believable than small ones, because people wouldn’t expect someone to fabricate something so grand in scale.