The Function of the Fake Binary. By Catte.

In his 1998 book The Common Good, Noam Chomsky describes the key role that managed disagreements play in modern politics…

The smart way to keep people passive and obedient is to strictly limit the spectrum of acceptable opinion, but allow very lively debate within that spectrum — even encourage the more critical and dissident views. That gives people the sense that there’s free thinking going on, while all the time the presuppositions of the system are being reinforced by the limits put on the range of the debate…”

What he’s describing is the “fake binary”. The imposition of the idea that Viewpoint A is the official approved narrative and that Viewpoint B is therefore its antithesis.

Points C through Z can therefore be ignored.

The whole point of the fake binary framing is to ignore options C through Z. You see that on issue after issue today. There is the narrative position (A), and the position the narrative select as their opposition (B), and that’s all we hear. The real positions of most people are simply ignored.

The fact hidden in plain sight being that both Viewpoint A and Viewpoint B actually reinforce the overarching narrative being sold and both lead to the same place.

It’s an incredibly effective management tool.

A fake binary allows you to not just manipulate the conformist Normies who automatically obey, but also those who consider themselves to be ‘anti-establishment’, contrarians or ‘rebels’. …

How are fake binaries created?

• Using the legacy media to widely publicize Viewpoint B while appearing to deny, refute or ridicule it.
• “Leaking” allegedly confidential documents that “expose” Viewpoint B as the “hidden truth”. This is usually done through the legacy media, though it’s more effective if you can seed it through the indy media sector.
• Creating entities that are tagged as “anti-establishment” but given a mass following, and feeding them Viewpoint B material.

Once Viewpoint B becomes a dominant “anti-establishment” view you can afford to sit back and allow the oppositional instinct in human nature to do your work for you, and reinforce the fake binary you created without the slightest awareness this is what is happening.

Which is why the opposition to the narrative almost always appears dominated by crazies and conspiracy theorists. Where is the sensible opposition, we keep asking? Why are we always being forced to choose between the narrative and a bunch of fact-challenged fringe dwellers?