Raised by Father Media
Morning Thoughts #206
“He is an evil man.”
“What makes him so, Father?”
“Child, wisdom teaches: he who speaks evil is evil.”
“Have you heard him speak?”
“Every word. Doing so was my initiation ritual.”
“What does he say?”
“What are words to you? When you go to the market for bread, do you buy unprocessed wheat grain? Only loaves do I have to give you; what could you possibly want with the grain as it exists at the moment of its harvesting? He is evil. That is the true loaf to tell.”
“Father, it’s as if your mouth is a second home for his name. You speak of him so much, warning after warning. With such confidence, you mince no words at all; you do not blush as you name him evil.”
“That is my duty. The father gathers the raw materials of reality so that he may build interpretations for his children.”
“May I not listen, just a little bit? Isn’t there wisdom in confronting evil directly oneself, if only to understand it better?”
“There is danger in the wisdom you seek. Evil words, sometimes, do not sound evil. Sometimes it takes the experience of a father to guide you to that understanding.”
“Are you saying I might be tempted by falsehoods?”
“Worse, son. There is much truth that leads to evil outcomes. Let us say evil is a city. As with any population center big enough, there are back roads and main roads that lead there. Certain truths, if paved and maintained, lead to evil quickest of all. We must never speak of those directions.”
“So I may not listen directly?”
“Well, because you’ve shown such curiosity, I guess I can permit you, but, as a responsible father, I must impose certain guardrails.”
“I am listening.”
“What comes to you from outside, I will recontextualize. There are dangerous riptides in the free flow of information; I am not about to lose my children in it. Any primary source that comes to you should always be dammed up first before swimming in it. The great ocean of context abounds, but you may swim only in what I’ve safely taken out of it, set aside as a chlorinated ‘truth pool’ for you.”
“Thank you, Father. As I take my first dip, I find I’m at a loss for words.”
“You haven’t lost them, son; I have hidden them. Now, repeat after me…”
Insightful. (Don't think for yourself; I, Father, can tell you what to think by controlling information input.) This applies especially to our public media of today, but also even in one-on-one communication.