Conflation, the linking of two separate but related ideas, generates thought “dots” that when connected can only ever lead to misunderstanding. At times, in fact, the concepts are so disparate they are mutually exclusive, and accepting their conflation means one’s understanding will not only be wrong, but the resulting beliefs will have no tether to reality itself. A Fake News consuming society is a deluded society and a deluded society is ripe for the political pickings. (Step back, stay home, and mask up!)
Acting on delusional beliefs, those that reject reality, will “unintentionally” produce consequences that oppose intent. In other words, not only will that society fail to make things better, they are guaranteed to make matters worse. This is the desired Fake News goal because the worsening conditions can then be presented as conclusive “evidence” that the problem needs more “solution”, leading society into a perpetual cycle of policy failure and totalitarian political success. Tyranny grows and, because Liberty and Tyranny share a fixed size pie, freedom necessarily shrinks.
