In recent weeks, a number of readers have written in to ask how they can talk to family and friends who are so TDS-infected and indoctrinated by the left that there’s seemingly nothing to be said that won’t be rejected.  These Democrat acquaintances believe all the hoaxes, all the most monstrous lies being perpetuated about Trump, and any challenge to these beliefs just sparks their cognitive dissonance and leads to an argument that goes nowhere but to opposite corners.

Persuasion expert, trained hypnotist and DILBERT creator Scott Adams addressed this in his Sunday podcast.  To help you get through these last 100 days --- yes, we’re that close! --- before the election, we’ll paraphrase his advice here and elaborate a bit on what he said.

Scott calls his strategy the “brainwashing test” plus empathy.

Start with a quick assessment of the person’s beliefs concerning the three biggest Trump hoaxes of the many that Trump-deranged people have been brainwashed to believe, with number one being the “fine people” hoax.  Ask the person if it’s true that President Trump said of the protesters in Charlottesville that there were “fine people” on both sides, talking about the racist neo-Nazis who were protesting.  Of course, the person will say that, yes, it’s absolutely true that he was defending white supremacists.

Then ask if it’s true that Trump suggested that people ingest or inject bleach to treat their COVID.  Typically, that’s another major one that they believe if they’ve been brainwashed.

Finally, ask if it’s true that Trump was leading an insurrection at the Capitol building on January 6, to subvert the democratic process, which, of course, makes him a threat to democracy if he should win the presidency again.  Of course, the person will say that, yes, this is true.

At this point, just by answering “yes” to these three questions, the person has identified himself as someone who is thoroughly brainwashed by the left.  What Scott says to do next might sound counterintuitive, as one’s inclination is to immediately start debunking the hoaxes, one by one.  It’s quite easy to do that.  But it won’t work on somebody who’s brainwashed.  Again, it will just lead to more arguing and probably a slammed door, if not worse.  The better you are at debunking, the harder that door is going to slam.

Another mistake is to keep going and adding to the list of the hoaxes.  This just gives the person more opportunity to find one tiny point of contention in just one of them, which, in his mind, allows him to insist all the hoaxes is true.  No, all you need are the answers to the three “tentpole” hoaxes to determine whether or not a person’s brainwashed.  A brainwashed person will say these three are undoubtedly proven true, that he saw them with his own eyes and/or heard them with his own ears.

Scott says he used to try to explain to brainwashed people why they were wrong, saying, “No, here’s what you missed; here’s why it’s not true,” but it seems to him much more powerful now to say something like, “Oh, I’m sorry that they did this to you.”  In other words, once it’s determined that the person is brainwashed, the strongest response is one of EMPATHY, as this person has been VICTIMIZED by the power-crazed left and the major media (I repeat myself) to believe these things.

“You need to treat the brainwashed not like they have different opinions,” he advises, “’cause that’s not what’s going on.”  Just tell them they “failed the brainwashing test” and that you’re sorry to see that this has happened to them. “That’s it,” he says, “and let them deal with that.  And never leave that frame.”  Don’t try to argue with them.  “If you’ve been brainwashed,” he says, “you are literally a victim.  And that’s the way to treat them.”  It’s the one way that might get them thinking and end up being more persuasive.

You’re not going to get them to suddenly flip by giving them information, no matter how well documented.  They’ll just call it “misinformation” or even deliberate “disinformation.”  (Maybe from the Russians!)  The light is not suddenly going to dawn for them just because you point out that Trump was only joking about being a dictator and will not be instituting a nationwide abortion ban.  They won’t believe you.

Our thought is, imagine Jessica Tarlov on THE FIVE being handed the hard facts, boom-boom-boom, by Greg Gutfeld.  Is Jessica suddenly going to say, “Oh, Greg, I see now!  Thank you so much for explaining how I was completely wrong about Donald Trump!”  No, that will not happen.  Just say you’re sorry she got brainwashed and that you hope she finds the strength to venture out of her bubble, because she’s being lied to.  That’s all you can do.

Here’s the Sunday episode; Scott starts talking about this technique about eight minutes in.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVZ6hQbYGyg

RELATED:  If you run across someone who doesn’t flunk the “brainwashed” test and is genuinely interested in knowing more about the truth as opposed to the hoaxes, open to the idea that he might have been lied to, this might be a good piece to start them with.

https://williehayes.substack.com/p/an-insurrection-and-another-hoax?utm_source=app-post-stats-page&r=dyanm&utm_medium=ios&triedRedirect=true

And if they’re up for reading a piece from BREITBART (maybe not), here are some of the ways the media are lying about the Harris campaign.

https://www.breitbart.com/2024-election/2024/07/25/gilbertson-5-ways-kamala-harriss-democrat-and-media-enablers-are-gaslighting-america/

ALSO RELATED:  Readers have also written in to ask how to talk about Project 2025, which was created by the Heritage Foundation and, contrary to lies being told by the left, has no connection with Trump or his campaign.  It’s being deliberately confused with Agenda 47, which WAS created by the campaign.  Best to just read Agenda 47 for yourself, not twisted misinterpretations (and there are lots of those) from so-called “fact”-checkers and others on the media left.  Agenda 47 is made up of the basic goals that President Trump has long been clear about.

https://www.donaldjtrump.com/platform

One place to start when someone brings up Project 2025, aside from saying that Trump had nothing to do with it at all, is perhaps with this update essentially proving that what the left is saying on this is garbage.  The Harris campaign is deliberately lying when it repeatedly calls this “Trump’s Project 2025” and says it includes drastic moves like cutting Social Security benefits.  Believe it or not, Daniel Dale at CNN actually fact-checked Kamala’s campaign on this and reported the truth.  (We don’t know what’s gotten into CNN these days; it actually seems at times that they want to be known as a credible news organization.)  Here’s the story as posted on X…

BREAKING:  A campaign official for Vice President Harris ADMITTED to CNN that her campaign is DELIBERATELY CHOOSING TO LIE about Project 2025.  “A Harris campaign official said the campaign has ‘made a deliberate decision to brand all of Trump’s policies’ as ‘Project 2025,’ since they ‘believe it has stuck with voters.’”

https://x.com/Prjct2025/status/1816225357785190430

Here’s a good opinion piece about this, too...

https://granitegrok.com/national/2024/07/harris-campaign-admits-it-lied

And as long as we’re talking about deliberate anti-Trump hoaxes, brace for another one that’s being pushed by Hollywood leftists like Rob Reiner and Mia Farrow. They’re spreading a deceptively-edited video of Trump and claiming that he’s admitting that once he’s in power, he will outlaw elections and never give up power.

https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2024/07/28/celebs-spread-deceptively-edited-video-falsely-claim-trump-will-outlaw-elections/

And from that, the leftist celebrities got: “Trump said he would do away with elections!!”

I’ll end this by quoting one of the few celebrities worth quoting, Homer Simpson: “Celebrities…Is there anything they DON’T know?”