Triggering

As I argued a few posts ago, getting “triggered” is actually not the fault of the environment, per se–certainly it is not best viewed as such–but rather a symptom of a type of psychological dysfunction called a reduced “Window of Tolerance”. It is a symptom of identifiable and treatable mental illness.  It is treated through–to use Dan Siegel’s word which I am mildly ambivalent about–Mindsight.

It is treated, to use a phrase I like a bit better, through emotional maturation and the development of greater emotional intelligence.  This is done through introspection, and a mindfulness practice based on sensations, thoughts, feelings and images (SIFT).

But practically, such practice requires emotional openness, and our university campuses particularly are breeding grounds for infantile entitlement, and self righteous anger; and it seems to me that being “triggered” and being a victim of any sort actually creates the illusion of emotional depth.  If someone has suffered then they must be deep, and the people who are “helping” them (creating a codependent sick relationship with them) get to feel like helpers, like compassionate people.  A soft feeling situation is created where everyone gets their need for self importance met, but massive on-going mental health problems are both created and expressed in this dysfunctional dynamic.

I”m all for competent mental health professionals (I will note again what an odd phrase that is, like they are a different species of human) doing their jobs competently.  But I am not for dumbing down emotional intelligence.

In important respects creating “safe spaces” is dumbing down the curriculum–as most curriculums have been dumbed down for many decades now–and simply creating emotionally stupid people in addition to ignorant and incurious ones.

What better mass of people to create the DEMAND for tyranny?  This is the plan.  People who are capable of using freedom want it.  People who are not, who need to be protected from every last vagary of life, and who are incapable of learning and growing, demand complete stasis, and stasis is something totalitarians deliver well.  They will tell them what to think, what to feel, they will feed them, clothe them, and rock them to sleep at night, across the duration of their pathetic lives.

They will put them in jail cells, and be thanked for it.  Those iron bars keep out the world.  Prison is their safe space.  No wandering for them.  They will even be provided pacifiers if they want them.