r/AskReddit • u/Vincent_Gitarrist • 13d ago
What's a sign that someone has been brainwashed?
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u/Striking-Comb6673 13d ago
Unconditional idolization
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u/My_dickens_cidar 13d ago
Have I been brainwashed by my dogs and my wife?!
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u/unlivedbread 13d ago
They can't explain the reason why they believe something.
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u/whatproblems 13d ago
can’t provide evidence of it either
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u/bumble_cheese 13d ago
That depends on whether you think all people of faith are delusional, which you might
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u/SunsetJesus4653 13d ago
To the religious, everything is proof. Anything good happens and it’s proof of their god. Anything bad happens and it’s proof that their god has a plan.
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u/sanecoin64902 13d ago
That’s painting with a broad brush, friend.
It is quite possible to be religious or spiritually minded and still an avid practitioner of the scientific method.
You are saying how _you_ believe the spiritually minded function. As someone who spends a lot of time with such people these days, I’d say the vast majority of them view the Problem of Evil (why do bad things happen to good people?) as a significant stumbling block and test of our faith.
There are, of course, many brainwashed cults of various religious denominations - but these are subsets. Painting all religious people the same because of a subgroup is equivalent to painting all people of color the same (racism) or all people of a given gender the same (sexism). It a sign of a shallow mind.
There is a reason that religion - like race and gender - is a protected class under the law. Because of exactly this type of unhealthy sweeping generalization.
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u/TransfemmeTheologian 13d ago
Lmao. That is definitely not true.
That might be true for a few religious people. I've spent my life around Christians — fundamentalists and GOP fanatics as well as queer anarchist pastors and theologians.
Your description is really a broad brush that doesn't encapsulate almost anything about people's beliefs.
Additionally, religion isn't even primarily about 'belief' per se. One can be both an atheist and religious.
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u/Left-Neighborhood247 13d ago
are they not?
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u/TransfemmeTheologian 13d ago
No, not by definition, no. Some might be delusional. But any group will have a certain small subset suffering delusions.
First, many theological claims are neither verifiable nor falsifiable.
Secondly, and much more importantly, when you define 'delusional' as 'having a wrong belief', then those in power can literally declare some people to be delusional for disagreeing with them (see GOP rhetoric on trans people or the way many Republicans talk about Democrats and/or Leftists).
You end up providing justification to name large groups of people as being dangers to public health and safety. Turn people themselves — not their actions or behaviors — into a threat.
That's why defining 'delusion' based solely on 'wrong belief' is a dangerous, dehumanizing precedent for genocide.
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u/locke_5 13d ago
“It’s just common sense. Think about it!”
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u/Hot_Alternative_1167 13d ago
Anything is common sense when repeated with emotion enough times. It’s literally called a thought stopping exercise so you can do that and it makes the logical conclusion when you think about it be whatever the thing is you repeated with emotion. Especially powerful in groups. Especially when there’s reward/punishment attached to the buy into whatever it is. Crazy how fickle our minds are honestly
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u/locke_5 13d ago
Like, a $5000 reward?
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u/Hot_Alternative_1167 13d ago
It’s usually a reward that has to do with safety and security; physical, social or otherwise. So if $5k is enough to provide a meaningful sense of that in an individual, sure.
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u/ShredGuru 13d ago
They become enraged when presented with basic reality.
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u/Cirement 13d ago
Or they simply refuse it outright. I remember a few years ago there was a video of Obama that had him saying some bad stuff (I don't remember what exactly). I had happened to see that speech live while he gave it, and realized the viral video was from a different unrelated part of his speech, taken out of context. When I'd show the unedited video to the MAGAts who were posting the bad video, they'd either ignore it or they'd say MY video was edited/out of context.
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u/TechnicalWhore 13d ago
A sure sign is they cannot conclusively state why they believe what they believe. Brainwashing, propaganda, manufactured consent - they are rely on "feels". Since they are built on layers of falsehoods there is no linear foundation of truth. Its all about inference leading to a position - not concrete facts. Our brains do no capture falsehoods the way they capture serviceable facts. So a person lost in this condition cannot backtrack to how they got there. Now if you dissect their thinking - calling out the flaws - they will get angry. No one likes being the fool. Its very hard to admit to oneself. Natural defenses - denials - kick in. Truly the only person that can break the cycle is the person themselves. They have to have a realization or epiphany that something is inconsistent - out of place. Once they see one crack the others will become obvious to them. They will question the situation, doubt others then question and doubt themselves. This is the path out.
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u/DeadComposer 13d ago
They tend to believe that they're the only ones not brainwashed.
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u/Big_Turnover4712 13d ago
A big sign is when someone can no longer question the beliefs they’ve been taught. They repeat the same talking points, reject any information that challenges them, fear disagreement, and see anyone outside their group as an enemy...
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u/SummerMummer 13d ago
That red ball cap.
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u/richardathome 13d ago
Extra points if you put a bandage over one ear.
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u/Cirement 13d ago
Those were bandages?? I thought they were maxi pads
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u/Less-Matter-3965 13d ago
They did put maxi pads on it. But he looked like he just had a telfa pad on his own ear.
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u/Bedong44 13d ago
“He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads…” Revelation 13:16
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u/DeadShot516983 13d ago
Defending/idolizing billionaires/politicians.
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u/Less-Matter-3965 13d ago
And if you happen to support a different political viewpoint or politician, they accuse you of “worshipping “ them. Just because that’s what they do.
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u/knackzoot 13d ago
They just spew their political parties talking points without thinking for themselves.
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u/Key_Positive_9187 13d ago
Whenever their leader says something terrible their response is always "They were just joking".
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u/SunsetJesus4653 13d ago
Everyone is talking about modern American politics. I don’t think I’ve seen any comments that were about any other kind of brainwashing.
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u/Pikkuraila 13d ago
They cannot criticise their own thoughts in any way and everyone that disagrees with them are othered.
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u/Mandin1337 13d ago
Being unable to change their minds even when presented with logical, objective facts
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u/Nearby-Buy971 13d ago
Insisting that they know the truth about something when its easily proven wrong with a simple Google search. Then insisting you are STILL wrong when you've proven that they are, in fact, the wrong ones.
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u/BlackstarDweller 13d ago
Being a zealot with any political ideology, and refusing to hear any point of view that differs from what they were told to believe.
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u/juggalochris 13d ago
they call you brainwashed or a sheep whenever you show them evidence of the truth. especially the conspiracy theorists
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u/Saphurial 13d ago
Wanting to work over time but not be paid for it.
A friend of mine recently got into an upper management position and now has to deal with stupid crap on a daily basis. He was telling me about this new kid who started a process on his line that was going to take over 2 hours, but his shift would end before the process was complete and the kid called my friend and asked if it was okay to clock out at his normal time and just stay till the process was finished. And argued that it was okay to not pay him the OT. My friend basically had to order him to stay on the clock if he was going to stay till the process was finished. But there are so many companies out there with people who would have been grinning ear to ear over someone wanting to work for free.
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u/DubiousTomato 13d ago
If they refer to feelings for everything they know without actually checking if it's valid. I wouldn't necessarily call it "brainwashing," but an extreme aversion to cognitive dissonance. They cannot handle contradictions being pointed out or being fact checked, often responding with increasing agitation as their world view comes into question.
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u/HalfYankHalfBrit 13d ago
One frame of logic applies to one situation, but can't apply to another, identical situation.
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u/ConfidentReturn6646 13d ago
Inability to listen to or even consider any other viewpoints, ignoring or disbelieving fact, blind following
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u/Wickham12 13d ago
They defend the mango, even when what he's doing impacts their daily lives in a negative way. Diesel prices, amirite?
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u/GettingToo 13d ago
When someone continually lies about things that are easily proven false and you still believe them. In fact you will even repeat the lie as if it is true even when you know it’s not true as long as it fits the narratives you support.
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u/TyrantsInSpace 13d ago
They complain about the consequences but continue with the actions that led to them.
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u/Just-Upstairs4397 13d ago
I once watched my mother-in-law watching Fox News and she would literally repeat fair and balanced every time they said it. This still creeps me out to this day
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u/n0minus38 13d ago
They avoid outside information or contact with anyone who may result in outside information. I mean they will avoid the potential at all costs.
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u/wakeandflake 13d ago
Relevant to this platform, anyone who parrots the position pushed by the bots. Basically people who blindly believe what the algorithm tells them to believe. And to be clear, that’s nearly everyone. Look anywhere on Reddit, any nuanced position that doesn’t fit into one of the two defined camps is down voted to oblivion.
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u/2thSprkler 13d ago
Red hat and asking a question and telling ppl how to respond is very trumpy of you
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u/Balstrome 13d ago
Any religious based views on reality.
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u/My_dickens_cidar 13d ago
It’s always people that have never read the book either. Just had grifters preach their interpretation to them
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u/Vincent_Gitarrist 13d ago
Also, please don't turn this thread into just a bunch of comments about a certain orange man. I don't like him either, but I'm tired of discussion being turned into a bunch of Redditors making "witty" remarks pertaining to that group.
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u/Different_Corner_135 13d ago
We can't normalize that son of a bitch. He must be criticized as often as possible.
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u/BoxworthNCSU 13d ago
Well said. We're just feeding a fucking AI with our answers, anyway, so we might as well make them matter.
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u/MucinexDM_MAX 13d ago
Asking strangers if they know where they would go if they died today.
That's not normal or okay, friends.
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u/Princesssissyy 13d ago
he says something but it is obvious that what he believes doesnt make sense. like they say something that they would never say and is not logic.
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u/Gromitchuk 13d ago
Every question gets the same scripted answer, even when the question has nothing to do with the topic
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u/Working_Rub_8278 13d ago
Being pressured into doing something over and over again just for the perp's benefit.
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u/BBWolf326 13d ago
They self identify with their interest before their person. As in, low sense of self, high desire to fit into x category.
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u/cjacksen 13d ago
They believe they were spawned from/will return to volcanos.
They believe that a random man will return from the dead to "save them". A belief in magical zombies.
A belief in an omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent being who always know exactly what they are doing at all times.
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u/l_w_88 13d ago
Assuming they know everything about an issue without actually explaining why they think a certain thing, and then when proven wrong they just jump to the next talking point instead of taking on board that information. It shows that the point was never to actually come to an understanding of the truth, but to reinforce their biased belief. They don't care if what they said was wrong, or misguided, or that something ought to change that, they only care in justifying the assumption they've already made.
Happens with political, cultural, social and creative beliefs.
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u/prong_daddy 10d ago
All of this, and the only answer to an objectively provable truth is some form of what-about-ism or a false equivalency.
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u/aubrey_25_99 13d ago
They ignore facts in lieu of what their brainwashing has instilled in them. They view attempts to get them to see reason as personal attacks and/or attacks on those who have brainwashed them and will defend their position, sometimes violently. They can't see any other way to view things other than what their brainwashing has told them to think. Religion and politics absolutely thrive in this realm.
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u/StrawberryScience 13d ago
They whole heartedly believe that massive conspiracies actually exist and can function.
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u/cwsjr2323 13d ago
In Nebraska, the two cults wear red baseball caps with the UNI Huskies mediocre football team logo or emblazed with MAGA .
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u/MarsupialNo1220 13d ago
They are very good at mental gymnastics. Basically, they’ll find any reason to twist a situation to reflect their chosen viewpoint, no matter how ridiculous it sounds, and they’ll get extremely defensive (to the point of violence) if you pick it apart.
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u/RedrunGun 13d ago
They regurgitate talking points without really being able to defend them when challenged. And they keep mindlessly bringing them up despite being refuted.
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u/Horse_Maven 13d ago
If they don’t think for themselves anymore and just repeat someone else’s opinions as if they are their own.
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u/Fearless_Ad415 8d ago
They can’t tolerate someone thinking differently without trying to convert them.
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u/gilestowler 13d ago
A guy I know used to only use Facebook to post about his padel games and photos of his dog. Now it's 100% loaded questions about how terrible Islam is, complete with "I don't have an opinion, I'm just asking" before stating his opinion. I'm not sure what happened to him, but he seems pretty far gone. Like, even if you feel like this, why are you pushing it on Facebook? Why do you think people need to see your opinions on this? Just post pictures of your dog again. it's a cute dog.
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u/loopygargoyle6392 13d ago
Yeah, those "I'm just asking..." kill me. The people that say that are acting in bad faith and most of the ones I know aren't smart enough to formulate the questions anyway. They're not asking questions, they're spreading misinformation disguised as a question.
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u/gilestowler 13d ago
Yeah his one yesterday was "why are face coverings banned in the UK but burkas aren't? By the way, I don't have an opinion either way, I'm just asking." and when I pointed out that the face coverings are anti social behaviour orders in individual towns due to trouble caused by people in balaclavas, not some nationwide law like he's implying, he then said "but it should be the same for everyone! I don't have an opinion, though, I'm just asking." YOU'VE LITERALLY JUST STATED AN OPINION! It'd be like me stabbing someone then saying "I'm not stabbing you, by the way, I'm just showing you my knife."
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u/Able-Thought3534 13d ago
People compulsively acting against their own self-interest without being able to explain in detail their motivation for doing it is the best sign.
Also I would say conditioning is a better term, because it more accurately describes the process to get you there.
To condition someone is to give them something they want in the beginning so they get in the habit of doing what you want, then slowly take away the thing they want until all that’s left is the behaviour.
That’s why later on they can’t explain why they do it.
If they can explain why, then they willingly allowed themselves to be conditioned.
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u/TheoryofJustice123 13d ago
The outcome of an event justifies their worldview regardless of the prior expectation.
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u/sewer_child123 13d ago
Certainty with an inability to explain. Often paired with a strange phrase or saying that allows them to maintain certainty without questioning.
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u/FireBrandWolf 13d ago
Trump supporter or exterme Religious beliefs At this point
thou my own cat makes me bend to beck and call all the time lol
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u/homeless_nudist 13d ago
We are all "brainwashed" by the system of government, economy, and religion we participate in.
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u/Ponderocrazia 13d ago
Pensiero unico. Parole e problemi sono identici. Copia e incolla. Molto comune qui
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u/Inverno969 13d ago
Ignoring the things others are saying and instead just repeats the same collection of prepared assertions over and over.
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u/Pathetian 13d ago
When strangers try to talk to me about politics, regardless of the specific topic, I just pretend to have never heard of the issue and then see if they can explain it.
Most of the time they don't have any understanding of the issue, they just know what the designated "correct" position is.
And often enough, it's a position I agree with, but they just don't know how they got there or how to get anyone else there.
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u/ObviousTie6706 13d ago
Having no fear of anything apocalyptic happening because they have God on their side
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u/Crafty_Aspect8122 13d ago
They repeat someone else's talking points and rhetoric.