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We Will Never Successfully “Defeat Our Shadow”
Maybe the path to collective liberation does not lie in either fighting, or running from “the devil” — but in embracing it?
There’s a viral video going around, asking ChatGPT this question: “Hey ChatGPT, if you were the devil, how would you destroy the young people of the next generation?”
The answer cuts deep:
If I were the devil, I wouldn’t come with violence. I’d come with convenience. I’d give them everything they wanted and strip them of everything they needed. I’d make them feel connected, but completely alone; endlessly entertained, but quietly empty. I’d blur the lines between truth and opinion until nothing meant anything. I’d teach them to chase dopamine, not purpose; to worship self, but loathe who they are. I wouldn’t destroy them with war. I’d destroy them with apathy. I’d keep them distracted, numb, scrolling — always scrolling. I’d dismantle the family by redefining it, make fathers optional, mothers exhausted, and children confused. I’d hand them a phone before they could speak in full sentences, and I’d watch their minds rot slowly, sweetly, silently. And the most brilliant part? They’d never know it was me. They’d call it freedom.
