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Having run into people like this and the fact there really are people that are the subjects of targeted psychology operations, it's a very troubling and complex
by nxzero 10y ago
Having run into people like this and the fact there really are people that are the subjects of targeted psychology operations, it's a very troubling and complex topic.
Guess I'd be curious if there's a way to prove to someone they're not being targeted.
- alkonaut 10y agoNo doubt targeted operations exist, but unless you have good reason to believe you should be targeted (such as you having left the church of Scientology or a similar organization) then you aren't targeted. Believing that you were randomly selected for a form of psychological terror that would take enormous resources from the attacker is a pretty clear sign you are delusional. This is a group of people with mental health issues that unfortunately also self sustain by suggesting relatives are "in on it" and that seeking help is bad.
- lettergram 10y agoTo be fair, some people (to a lesser extent) were targeted at random when Facebook was showing some people more negative posts on their newsfeeds as an experiment.
- nxzero 10y agoFact that it's random means it's not the same; explicitly talking about targeted efforts. Also, online efforts are not as resource intensive as in the real world. Only way this might be similar is if for training or testing reasons that someone randomly became the subject of some effort. Given the resources this would take, such efforts would be short in duration and likely near known R&D or training spots for entities that would engage in things like that.
- alkonaut 10y agoThat is both something that has a reason (they want to test something, in order to change/improve their product) and it doesn't require massive resources since it's automated. Believing this isn't necessarily crazy.
- fiatmoney 10y agoI don't actually find it that implausible that the same sort of organizations that engage in experimental torture campaigns also engage in at least some experimental gaslighting campaigns. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_Zubaydah https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_Zubaydah
- the_af 10y agoI took a look at the YouTube video from StalkinVictim (linked to from the article), and it's instructive. He is wearing a GoPro in public, poking out of his chest (he claims it's hard to notice, but who knows), and he gets some looks from people, which is what I would expect. He sees signs of surveillance in women with crossed arms, in someone standing next to him at both the station and the train, and in everyone who glances in his general direction. More tellingly, he readily admits he can't think of a single reason why he's being targeted. Judging by the comments in StalkinVictim's video, this is typical: the "victims" have no idea why they are special to the stalkers, but are quick to jump to conclusions anyway. To me this is a form of alienation and possibly mental illness. They see the patterns they already expect to see. Each day I take the subway I look at random strangers, and random strangers look at me. When someone stares at me longer than normal, I just assume they are either lost in thought (and just happened to rest their eyes on me), or my hair looks funny, or they like my clothes, or maybe I resemble someone they know. People with paranoia tend to think they are being stalked, which is the least reasonable assumption to make. I suppose there is no way you can prove to them they aren't really being stalked. They base their assumption on the flimsiest of evidences; it's their brain that's making the unwarranted connections.
- nxzero 10y agoAgree, reminds me of the movie "Pi" where the main character thinks so much about Pi that they start to see Pi everywhere they look.