could the powers that be, the media, or other establishment, created an illusionary artificial reality?

Question

in place of what is the ' actual' reality, the way things really stand, and the way the world really is?

for example if you were to remove the establishment, the government, the media, advertizing, papers, magazine, there was no tv, nobody to enforce or govern....
would we then se the 'real' world, how it really stands?
but instead we have an artificial reality and subliminal messages put in are way to govern are lifes, to tell us how to conform, how things are, what to wear, how to act, how you should think...possibally distorting life and the way the world actually is..
another example you stand gazing at the world and its wonders..forming your own, independant thought...which is the way it ought to be, but then imagine giant screens coming down around you, blocking your view, showing you continous advertizements....posters and billboards and signs been constructed around you...telling you this and that..graadually you focus is cloudly & your imposed upon by the establishments

alternative messages...them telling you how you should think...them telling you their perception and them portraying it as the correct perception........

so the world as it really is as you originally saw it has become a distant dream....and is told to you that it isnt correct....because now, in place you have government and establishment telling you how things are and how things are going to go....

any thoughts on this?

Answer 1

Fantome, if you remove just the institutions and the government you already have a new, different reality than the one you had before. :) I think what you really mean is removing governmental propaganda, corporations' advertising, and all other biased sources of information that deliberately try to mold our opinions and taste for their monetary gain, not the institutions themselves.

However, even if we do that, people will still need to communicate somehow. And communication is almost never 100% objective, 100% pure facts. It implies an exchange of subjective opinions among individuals. So a naked world purified of all opinion and functioning only on hard facts will never be possible.

I do think tough that if we could eliminate somehow just 2 things: governmental propaganda and the aggressive (and often misleading) big corporate advertising, then we would have a better world to live in. We would certainly eat differently, dress differently, probably wage fewer wars than we do now...who knows? It's very hard to estimate what the international system would look like if the voices of its major players are silenced. But I'm guessing it would be a better, probably more honest world.

Answer 2

No. You see the world as is. External data may expand conscious perception. But you see reality as you choose to perceive it.. Fact or fiction you judge, not perceive. Somebody may indeed lie to you and misinform you but given enough time you will rectify that. However, opinion is different from fact. And, the way information is presented may shade or color your feelings. Continually introducing more information from varied sources will give you a chance to balance others projections. Reality is always changing. Dynamic and not static so it takes much time and experience to discern the reiterative formula used buy various entities to try to stimulate individuals towards change. without regard to truth. Weak willed people will change every time the wind changes direction while strong willed people will take time to consider what is real or not. The H. G. Wells's fantasy, "The War of the Worlds," radio broadcast was an example of rapid reality orchestration.

However, you are in fact seeing how others perceive reality as they communicate to you. And that is valuable knowledge in understanding them and why they make the choices they do.

Answer 3

If you look at America, there is reality and what the President says it is. People believe him, even when they know he's wrong. I don't understand, am I that far others? The media and the government control what the people see, why not an "artificial reality".

Answer 4

Who's to say whats real? Is it not equally possible that the reality created by "the powers that be" becomes real because people believe it? Is there one true reality, or is reality in the eye of the beholder?

Answer 5

People have been getting high and pondering "deep thoughts" for years. You should stop. Now get on your big wheel and run in place like a good lab rat.

Answer 6

Yes. We are puppets.

Answer 7

Conspiracy theories are always so funny, and utterly ridiculous

Answer 8

I think your on to something my friend :)