Parting the Waters: How far can you spin a false narrative?

By: Omowale Luthuli Allen

For some of us, it will be impossible for you to give us a drink of muddy water and tell us that it is rainwater. For some of us gaslighting will not work. Gaslighting is a form of emotional and psychological behavior designed to manipulate and dominate. Abusers and dictators use it a lot. Many of these people can pass a lie detector test with ease because they have convinced themselves that their straight up lies are the truth. Pastor Jim Jones preached at the corner of Jensen and Lyons Avenue a few decades ago. He had cultivated a cult of personality with his gift of gab, olive hair, tan skin and Bible thumping. He lied faster than a Tennessee walker could trot, and we know that a Tennessee walker is genetically programmed to trot. Leopards are genetically programmed with spots on their skin. They can change their neighborhoods but can never change their spots.

Father Jim Jones could chop lies and convince you that Guyana and poison Kool Aid was part of your destiny.

Father Jones would medically diagnose women from the pulpit. Divinity would reveal to him which women had dangerous malignant and painful tumors in their wombs. This type of narcissists could keep you listening to a four-hour sermon and quasi- hypnotize their flock. 15,000 repeated lies and you begin to question your own reality.

Professionals in multiple intelligence services diagnosed the hacking of the American 2016 elections. All of them concluded that the Russians made a concerted attempt to subvert the democratic process by spinning conspiracy theories and distrust.

One candidate who didn’t know which continent Ukraine was a part of promoted that the intelligence services could never be trusted and were part of a deep state plot to undermine him while he was trying to determine if he was a Democrat, Republican , Manchurian or chameleon candidate. He told a huge ridiculous lie and people were thrown off kilter. Then it became easier and easier for them to question their own unsteady perception and experience of reality.

Confusion reigns. The only thing more dangerous than a confused individual is a confused group of individuals. The cult figure proudly states that if the shot somebody on Main Street at high noon that enough people would disbelieve it and he would get off scot free. All that he would have to say is don’t believe your lying eyes.

Two decades ago, some of us said to Father Jim Jones, let the doorknob hit you where the dog should have bit you. Adios, Vamoose friend.

We regret that Hilary Clinton and President Obama are living in your head and are masterminding your descent into madness.

Gaslighters can undermine and subvert intelligent people. Gaslighters isolate you from the people that you can trust. Manipulative spouses divide family members from each other to maintain their dominance. Cunning and evil political leaders drive a wedge into the people that they represent. The more confusion that they have fostered, the more opportunity for a strong man to rule in a democracy.

Some of us may look like cotton but we aint for rubbing. Like Ms. Jane Pittman, once we saw the North Star we are able to recognize cons and fraud.

Mayor Bloomberg, we recognized the fraud in its infancy, baby fraud. An African proverb says that 99 lies can save you but the 100 lie will doom you.