7 evils you can put to good use.
Both other people’s and your own.
I was just reflecting here about how I reframed my repetition compulsion. But before I get into it, I need to tell a quick story:
How I became an oracle
I used to lament how unfair it was that I was born into chaos, with a narcissist who instead of loving me, got paranoid that I (a baby!!!!!!!) would “plot against her”. I was born into that, without even knowing, as a defenceless child; And I would also lament about my adult relationships that mirrored parts of her. The situation felt very unfair, unwarranted, and above all else, unwise — yes, I resented the universe, or whatever higher powers-that-be, because they made this unwise decision… And probably, so many other unwise decisions with people born into similarly dire situations. (Imagine being born into war? Disease? Poverty? Psychopathic parents? Etc. Nobody deserves any of that!). This is a big part of the reason why I was an atheist for 10 years. And after I reconnected with spirituality, I wanted nothing to do with gods; Instead, I dealt with human spirits; Souls that are on the same boat as I am, except dead.
I still cherish my connection with certain kinds of human spirits, and I’ll make a post about it in the future; But today, I’d like to focus on what changed my worldview radically, almost overnight.
Several years into my spiritual practice, one of these human spirits started insisting that I should visit Greece. I kept telling him, “why? You’re not Greek and neither am I. Have you ever even been there?” (Don’t get me wrong, WONDERFUL place to visit! But I’m talking about spirituality, not just tourism. My confusion was about the spiritual side lol) and my spirit friend wouldn’t answer. Instead, he kept saying it was an order “from above” and it was in my best interest to follow it. Well, I ignored it several times over, brushed it off as some weird kind of prank, and just went about my normal life. It was only when I predicted a tragedy that happened in the family — which is none of anyone’s business, but just keep in mind it was a tragedy — and afterwards received the message to “come to Greece when you can”… that I listened. Well, first of all, I needed to attend to the situation and help out however I could. I kept “downloading” ways to help which turned out to be the best decisions. It really was a remarkable situation. So… Some time passed, all was well again, and I finally went to Greece. I impulse bought air tickets and a hotel stay for a week. I went, spontaneously visited the locations that I felt I should see, and found a god. In fact, I kept feeling drawn to his temples. Even when I visited A CHURCH, the tour guide mentioned this god’s name and said it used to be a temple to him. The “coincidences” started feeling too numerous to dismiss.
I won’t tell you who is that god. You can probably figure it out if you’re attentive. Above all else, though, you will figure it out if you’re meant to. I won’t validate you in case you guess in the comments. Don’t insist.
Since I felt indebted because of what happened earlier that year, I agreed to get to know this god before automatically dismissing him. Gradually, I changed my mind about deities, and got to know more of them. I entered into my current path around that time. There was a period of discovery and many epiphanies, culminating in the following understanding:
The universe is simply chaotic. Deities are at the mercy of it too — even though they’re more powerful than us.
That was my first glimpse into divine hierarchies: just because a being is more powerful than I, it doesn’t mean they control the whole universe. It felt completely true at the time, but I no longer hold that view.
Well, as I advanced in my path, I started noticing that some of my innate qualities (again, I won’t get into details, but use your imagination) were “coincidentally” too perfect a match for the spiritual path I was on. It’s almost as if I wasn’t only in a relationship of mutual camaraderie with this god, but also something a lot less serendipitous. Something planned from the very beginning.
And if you know me, you know I dislike determinism.
There was a period of denial, during which I also met some very problematic people — some of whom keep “hoovering” me to this day — who manipulated me into believing they were friends and/or well-meaning helpers. Today I know that when I lie to myself (ie, when I’m in denial, especially about something big), I become vulnerable to people who are happy to lie to me; But when it happened, I didn’t know that, and it was very disorienting.
Anyway, very recently, I decided to confront head-on the dilemma I was in denial about: was I tricked into believing I chose my spiritual path, when in fact life is deterministic and I have no choice after all? Between talking to this first deity I connected with, and doing a lot of introspection work, I arrived at the following conclusion:
Life is neither deterministic, nor is it completely chaotic. It’s complicated.
I’m choosing not to reveal some details that could better explain the decision-making you see in this story (both my own and other beings’), because I’m not naive to think all of my followers have good intentions. (Scroll down to “common evils we’re all afraid of”. Do you think you guys are exempt? LOL no-one is); But I think you — especially “you” as in: GENUINELY GOOD PEOPLE who follow me — can have a good idea of the general metaphysics at play here.
This is where I will say “the end” — for now. I’m not overextending myself or explaining too much here. You’re free to take your own conclusions.
The important thing to keep in mind is the fact that the “rules of the universe” (if you can call them that) are probably based on dichotomies. And the same goes for “good and evil”.
Common evils we’re all afraid of
(And how to use them for a good cause)
Let’s face it. The evils below can’t be completely eradicated from the planet. If they could, someone would have already done it, somewhere, some period in time. We keep trying and failing at it. I know it’s uncomfortable to acknowledge this dark side of human nature, but the sooner you do that, the freer you’ll be. I’m not telling you to trust people who display behaviours rooted on these evils; of course not, please protect yourself! But perhaps, if you can, listen to them. They have a twisted way of exposing the naked truth sometimes — even without realising!
I’ll give you playful, cartoon examples, if it helps lighten the mood a bit.
Envy
We often hear that envy is “the only sin that gives no pleasure” or “it’s like drinking poison wishing for someone else to die”, etc. So, some people might wonder if envy is truly evil or just unwise. Well, if you see it from that surface-level perspective, it’s just unwise. However, the evil of envy lies in what is underneath it: although we all feel envy every now and then, and that’s okay… Chronically envious people (ie, those who are CONSTANTLY envying others and seem unable to stop) lack empathy. If they were empathetic, they would allow others to have good things. But since they lack empathy (and they might not see this, they might think of themselves as “very empathetic” — bullshit. That’s a cope. If you’re often jealous of others, you have no real empathy and you’re just performing a fake version of it. Period. Deal with it.), They think everything is about them. “Oh, this person has something nice. Why isn’t it me instead? Me, me, me” — that’s the basis for envy. Is it comfortable to see? No. Do people go into denial about it? Absolutely. Go ahead and feel offended if the shoe fits. Nobody is perfect, but unfortunately some people are too attached to an illusion of perfection to bother caring about self-improvement. They think call outs are attacks, not a helpful nudge.
Anyway, shadow reactions aside, let’s get into what matters: how can we use envy?
Here’s how: if you don’t know what is your biggest asset; the thing which can make you world-famous, or at the very least have a stable career in your town without ever worrying about irrelevance or scarcity of income… Don’t listen to your supporters; Listen to the envious. That’s how you find out; Especially if it’s more than one person envying the same thing about you, so pay attention to how many agree. (Even because, when only ONE person envies you in a very weird way, it could just be a narcissist who isn’t in touch with reality. Unfortunately, narcissistic envy has a basis in delusion, so it’s not useful. But normal envy is, so keep an eye out for how many envious people agree).
When people discourage, ridicule, diminish, or dissuade you from something you enjoy doing without a logical reason, chances are they’re envious of this thing, and if they’re envious, that means THEY KNOW how valuable it is. They’re usually right. This is the hidden superpower of envy: accidentally helping the envied person realise what is their most valuable asset, to be honed and protected at all costs.
Machiavellianism
This is where you’ll find your (or someone’s) most unwavering sense of motivation. Alternatively, it can also point to your / someone’s sense of pride, revealing deeply-held values that are probably in your best interest to bring to your conscious awareness.
Machiavellianism is already widely known as an evil, it’s even included in the famous “dark triad” in psychological studies, so I won’t explain it here. I will, however, note that when you’re Machiavellian, you project it. You accuse others of being Machiavellian. If you suffer from this evil and you’re WILLING to introspect and see it (instead of getting angry at the oracle here for telling you about it lol buddy, I don’t discuss with attention-seekers. I’m speaking to the brave. Are you brave? Do you want to introspect? Do you want to improve as a person? Yeah? Keep reading then)… you’ll notice that you might have projected it onto other people here and there. That’s a normal thing to happen when you confront this shadow, and it’s not the end of the world. But yes, it will feel yucky. Let it feel yucky. There’s life beyond that.
Anyway, as I was saying, people normally project their Machiavellianism because it’s uncomfortable to admit. “Me? Acting as if the ends justify the means? Oh, no, I must be mistaken, it must be someone else”. Dear… You are a human being. Did you know that? Yep. You are a human being. What do you think Dr. Richard Christie and Florence L. Geis were talking about when they coined “Machiavellianism” in Psychology? Aliens? Leprechauns? Elves? No, evidently, they were talking about human Psychology. Sorry for the condescension, but sometimes I need to go there. It’s a great tool against denial. Human beings — not comicbook villains — exhibit Machiavellianism. Some more than others, but all human. So, yes, you can end up exhibiting it too. You’re not special. You’re not above it. Sorry to inform.
“Oh but Lucy, you’re talking about Machiavellianism. That’s projection”.
No. Projection is, “John Smith, my teacher, is Machiavellian”. Okay? “That blonde woman who handled my request was Machiavellian”. THAT is projection. It has a name, a face, a description, and perhaps most important of all, it’s something you have *no evidence for* (because it’s on you, it’s not *really* on the victim of your projection). We project things on individuals. When you’re simply talking about a concept to draw attention to it in theory, it’s not projection. In fact, the accusation (that I’m projecting this, projecting that — browse away, many commenters do it) is an attempt at silencing, because if you have the flaw, and you come here and see this article, of course you’ll want to silence me. Shadow work is difficult, isn’t it? Easier to shoot the messenger. Oh, of course! When you’re immature like that, and you see everything as a game of tit-for-tat (instead of a lesson to help you evolve), of course you shoot the messenger. I hope that’s clear and I have dumbed it down enough.
Anyway. As I said, Machiavellianism, despite its bad rep, can reveal your deeply-held values; the things you would “kill for”, if you will. And these are (believe it or not!) usually very reasonable, even noble. The problem is there are constraints in life, and we can’t simply go and do whatever is on our minds without considering the possible consequences -that’s why Machiavellianism isn’t a very smart approach to living in society; But whenever you get a Machiavellian impulse… without acting on it, just pay attention to it. Look at what is motivating it, and what values could be behind it. Perhaps you need to defend these values more directly!
Paranoia
Paranoia can be a window to your happiness. Did you know that?
This is because paranoid people are hyper-fixating on controlling situations to prevent their biggest fears from manifesting… But that’s just what their ego is doing. Let’s look beyond the ego here: what is it that makes you happy? And I mean “happy” not in an ecstatic way, but in a constant contentment and tranquility sort of way. What makes you feel that, and how do you find it? Well, simply look at what is the object you’re trying to protect when you get paranoid. Say, you’re paranoid about robbers breaking into your house when you’re away at work. What are the things you think would be stolen or ruined, if your fear came true? Chances are, these things bring you comfort and happiness. You don’t want to live without them. So, maybe cherish them. Take them off the pedestal and make some memories with them.
Paranoia can also point to things, people, or outcomes you haven’t yet manifested: are you paranoid of failing at “X” thing? And, say, this is why you keep sabotaging your chances to try? (Because trying and failing would hurt more than being stopped from trying by an “external” circumstance?) Well, if that is the case, consider that this fear is imagined. Chances are, in actuality, it could make you happy — and even weirdly comfortable — to walk towards that objective, regardless of the outcome; Simply because it’s a thing that brings you contentment every time you think about it. So, gradually approaching it, even if you fail along the way, might actually feel good.
Indulgence
(yes, the scene above shows envy too. It’s a mix of different evils)
When we think of indulgence… Perhaps some of us are like, “what’s evil about it?” — fair question. The concept of indulgence conjures up images of overeating, overspending, over-betting, having too much fun, or maybe in the worst-case scenario, addiction. All in all, it looks like the sort of thing that can be harmful for YOUR health, but not necessarily harmful to others. Therefore, it can’t be evil. Right?
Wrong. Every person prone to the above “innocent” kinds of indulgence (prone, as in, they do it too often, not just once in a while like normal people) is also prone to vampirism. And this is where the evil is found. When I say vampirism, I’m not talking about literally sucking blood. I refer to feeding off other people’s “goodness” because you think you can’t — or worse, flat-out refuse, because of entitlement — find this emotional “food” within.
If this is sounding too abstract, I’ll give you an example: when I wrote this older article (click here), I “coincidentally” was showered with private messages from problematic people I had lost touch with or stopped talking to altogether, pretending to try and reconnect, out of the blue, telling me very vaguely they’d like to talk (god only knows what they’d like to talk about. Spoiler alert: they were being deliberately vague because they wanted to feed off my goodness like they did before, they didn’t GENUINELY want to reconnect). These were different from the NORMAL AND HEALTHY bids for connection I sometimes receive and happily respond to, where perhaps someone will say, “omg hiii, it’s been so long. How have you been? [insert here questions about interests we had in common]. I’m sad we lost touch, [insert here story of theirs filling me in on what happened while I was away]”. See the difference? When someone is being genuine about reconnecting, they don’t only come at me expecting to receive (in this case, receive attention). They also give (namely, information about their own lives). Energetically, this indicates that they aren’t vampires; instead, they’re healthy people who give and take, and don’t just take. The vampires, however, always act mysterious and expect me to over-give — including in terms of emotional labour. “Why are you here?”, “what have you been doing?”, “how did you find me again?”, etc, are all questions they expect ME to ask, because NOT EVEN FOR THAT will they lift a finger. And I am what? Their slave?! No thanks.
“Lucy, these are just spoiled, entitled people. That’s not evil”, maybe you’re thinking. Wrong again. Allow me to remind you of an important detail: this kind of person only approaches when they smell some of that metaphorical blood. As I said, they could have “tried to reconnect” (if we can even call it that) during a happy period of my life, but no, they chose specifically a moment of vulnerability. That sounds very predatorial to me. Don’t you think?
Indulgence, as you may already have guessed, can be used for good by the victim (if you’re the person some “vampire” out there is trying to indulge on) because it reveals where your defences are weak and perhaps need some strengthening. Strategy-wise, this is precious information.
Observing others’ indulgence can also help you see who are the incredibly dumb people in your life; because let’s face it, you need to be truly limited in the head (if ya know what I mean…) in order to assume that just because someone is getting vulnerable in public, they’re gonna be vulnerable to you specifically and allow you to suck them dry. This can be a sign of lack of intelligence, or straight-up narcissism. Either way, cut contact without mercy, because both kinds of person can turn on you *snaps fingers* like this. They don’t have a loyal bone whatsoever.
(So, no, I don’t have sympathy for Princess. While she has a sad backstory, with a dad who overindulges her every whim but never gives her love or attention… She CHOSE to become who she became. She wouldn’t have been a real, loyal friend to the powerpuff girls. I’m probably overanalising a cartoon, lol but there ya go).
Inferiority complex
This is an evil that, if used in the right way and without exaggeration, can help you find your sense of humour and belonging. That’s because human beings in general find it easier to relate to those who admit their imperfections (somebody’s gotta go tell the narcissists, they didn’t get this memo, but yeah, MOST people get it).
“A witch cast a spell on me”, says princess Fiona when she hadn’t yet embraced her uniqueness. People with a crippling inferiority complex behave similarly. Underneath it, there’s always a victim identity and a feeling of powerlessness. This is not to say REAL circumstances out of your control can’t cause your inferiority complex — they often do, and there’s nothing imaginary about it. However, the reaction you have is a matter of choice, isn’t it? While it may be near impossible to have a fully positive reaction, what I’m saying here is that between a normal level of sadness and a full-blown inferiority complex, there’s an abyss. To transpose it, you don’t need to jump straight to “happy”, you just need to get out of the extreme. So, out of the deep, dark, hopeless pit… towards a bit of a higher level where sunlight is reaching you somewhat?
The entire Shrek series (but especially movies 1 and 2) deals with this question masterfully — it shows how adopting a sense of humour and finding your place among similar people (the order is important! Humour comes first. Otherwise you’ll make the same mistake incels are making, bonding in mutual misery)… can ultimately result in MORE happiness than if you had “fixed” yourself from the get-go. I mean… how many of you guys were ever rooting for Prince Charming? I wasn’t. I was rooting for Shrek to stay with Fiona.
“But Donkey, I’m a princess. This is not how princesses are meant to look”, says Fiona. Can you see the misplaced longing for belonging there? I relate to that — not on the beauty department, but I never cared much about it anyway… But in other ways, such as something I used to say, “I’m an oracle for god’s sake. A mystic. Mystics don’t have a logical and analytical mind. They’re more creative and humanities-oriented. I have no business being an oracle with my love for numbers and Science”. See, you can replace Fiona’s famous words with your specific situation. Just about any scenario where you find yourself sticking out like a sore thumb somewhere will do.
The thing is… Very rarely does anyone TRULY not belong. You might not belong in this teeny tiny circle of acquaintances you’re used to, or in “the established standard” for whatever it is you do… But I guarantee you, somewhere, others who relate to your own brand of uniqueness exist. Fiona found other heroic ogres (and even different kinds of misfits like Pinocchio) for her circle of friends. I eventually found other mystics who aren’t “right-brained”. But in order to find that kind of deviant crowd, one must look beyond the established standard they think they wanna fit into. A great tool for that is humour, because humour is by definition something that only works when you disappoint expectations. Telling jokes at your own expense will “train” you to start looking outside the box in other contexts, if you will.
Limerence
(Okay, okay, not the best example. Hans EXISTS — at least as a real character in the story — but we get limerence vibes from Anna here)
Although every evil in this list exists in “average people” to some degree… Limerence probably takes the cake as the most common and easiest to identify. Sure, it’s usually happening to a moderate degree, not in an extreme capacity (although I’ve had the misfortune of getting to know extremely limerent people. Hell, I’m a magnet for messed-up folks, ain’t I?), but even when it’s moderate and under control, limerence can be — as Heidi Priebe wisely says here — a doorway to the shadow. And that’s potentially great! Shadow work can be immensely helpful.
A keyword for limerence is idolising: when you’re limerent about someone, you idolise them. It doesn’t matter if they’re real (and unreachable — like a celebrity or historical figure… or even a spirit) or imagined (such as a fictional “waifu”, “husbando” or imaginary friend), there’s always a bit of a parasocial relationship going on. (And by the way, having “waifus” or “husbandos” is fine. Just maybe don’t replace reality with them. Touch some grass). When you’re limerent, you’re on the bottom of this parasocial hierarchy. Now, just to clarify: I didn’t say the person you’re limerent about is always secretly evil or secretly out to get you; “Frozen” example aside. Sometimes, the real person/spirit/whatever you’re limerent about has genuinely good intentions with you… These intentions simply aren’t the extremely devoted and idealised romance you’re imagining. Sometimes they’re not romantic at all, but something else entirely which you’re not allowing yourself to see because of limerence. (And in the case of fiction, well, yes, the character you created will necessarily “reciprocate” your love for what it’s worth — but remember it’s NOT REAL. It’s not healthy to stay there).
“But Lucy, am I not supposed to idolise a celebrity? Idolise a god? Idolise this intentionally perfect fictional character here?”
Uh, no. I’m with Nietzsche on this one: break your idols. Maybe you’re mistaking idolising for “following” or “worshipping”. They’re different concepts! I mean, of course you’re allowed to admire a celebrity, go to their shows, talk to them during meet and greets, give them money and messages of kindness, etc… But stalk? Obsess over them? Delude yourself into believing they’re no longer out of your league? No. These are obsessive, idolising behaviours. The former, healthier ones, are simply part of “following”. It’s similar with spirits and gods: worshipping? Yes. Even going as far as working with/for them? Sure. Idolising? Assuming they’re temporarily no longer big and mighty because they now fit into your little world like a regular lover, because your limerence said so? No.
So… How can we put limerence to good use? I’ll quote some of Heidi’s video:
If I think my limerent object DOESN’T love me back, what do I think that means about me as a person? vs what would it mean about me as a person if they DID love me back? (…) What my psyche is begging me to integrate is my desire to move more in the direction of [insert thing here I want my limerent object to believe about me and say to me out loud].
Sometimes your limerence will reveal qualities you don’t need to acquire, and actually already have; but they’re shame-bound. Say, they’re things you think configure “bragging” to feel proud of. And in that case, limiting beliefs might be at play (as well as narcissistic splitting — such as in, automatically assuming you can only be EXTREMELY [insert quality here] or EXTREMELY NOT that, and you can’t find a healthy middle ground).
Greed
(Greedy people don’t usually have a backstory of privilege. Sorry to inform, indulgent folks! Oh- My bad. You guys are still in denial about your entitlement leading to indulgence? Uh-oh).
The opposite of indulgence, also having opposite effects, greed comes from a place of anxiety about being insufficient; “not good enough” if you will. You want to accumulate more and more of [whatever you consider valuable] instead of constantly depleting your supplies by indulging in it.
So, whereas the indulgent person is vampiric, the greedy person is the opposite: they don’t want to “suck” anyone directly. They provide for themselves! Perhaps they work too hard and don’t allow themselves to enjoy the fruit of this labour. The evil of greed, however, lies in how they extend this principle to others: a greedy person won’t allow others to enjoy the fruit of their labour either. (Insert here tired comments about Capitalism).
Necessary tangent: the world is infested with evil people who criticise Capitalism, but do something worse —they go to the other extreme and start thinking that it’s okay to be energy vampires. Uhhhhh no. Stop it. That’s a sociopathic approach to opposing Capitalism. That’s NEVER okay. There’s merit to “doing”. There’s merit to “labouring”. If there wasn’t, we wouldn’t be born with the ability to use tools, have goals and aspirations, or even to reason. I’m saying this because if you’re reading this section and thinking “oh, the answer is to simply consume our planet’s natural resources ‘as they are’ without ever perfecting or modifying anything, without ever giving back, because any ‘doing’ is greedy”, or “the answer is lucky girl syndrome. Just be delusional and entitled and demand things while you do nothing”, stop. Grow up. And don’t come back here unless you can see how problematic these ideas are.
(My tangent was based on actual interactions of mine. I’m no longer entertaining that level of stupidity OR allowing it to stay unnoticed — ie, if you wanna tell me stupid things, you’re signing up for me to unmask you and expose all the filth you were hiding. Okay? So think LONG AND HARD about that before feeling entitled to waste my time. In the past, though, I used to give everyone a chance, including the stupid. Enjoy the absurdity of my tale, I guess).
Believe it or not, greed can hide resentment and exhaustion. Your greed (which we all have, like all other evils here — and I hope you’re not extremely greedy, but even if you are, you can make good use of this info) can show you where in life you’re having a bad “cost benefit” with your efforts. That’s because, if you were being efficient, you wouldn’t have become greedy. Remember that greed always points to “I want more, I can’t get enough. And more and more. Not there yet, maybe some more”. Well… if you could feel like you have achieved enough through work, you’d dissolve this greed, wouldn’t you? And what I’m hinting at is the solution to greed: [if the scarcity is real and urgent] find a way to work more efficiently (so that you won’t need to continue on and on forever without a break), OR acknowledge and confront the fake scarcity you fabricated to justify working too much and producing more than you need because of a deep-rooted sense of inadequacy — but that’s best addressed in a psychologist’s office, not here; Or a sociologist, if we’re talking about the collective.
This is where people will start doubting the dichotomy I pointed out: “Lucy, didn’t you say greed and indulgence are opposites? Why are they sounding so alike?” — that’s the point of this entire article, sweetheart. Opposites become eerily similar to each other in the extremes (Remember good and evil? I’m finding the good in 7 evils here). Horseshoe theory is real, and it shouldn’t only be applied to politics. Look it up.
I’ll let you take your own conclusion here.
Feel free to comment. I’ll merely note my own takeaway, which is helpful in my personal life: whenever “that good old pattern” of narcissistic behaviour that hits close to home repeats in my life, instead of feeling only frustrated, now I’m also amused and even sort of grateful in a twisted way — “oh, hi there, old pattern. Good thing I have you, or I wouldn’t be able to handle this situation here. More of the same? Okaaaaaay. I can be lazy about dealing with it then. I mean, if my life won’t move forward, at least I can relax and pretend it’s like a videogame that someone set up for me on easy level. That deserves a toast”.
There’s one thing I will say, though: none of the work above is easy, comfortable, or desirable at first. This is why people have so many defenses against it.
One could say some people have built their entire careers on avoiding this kind of shadow work — for example, very “love-and-light” spirituality where you dismiss it all as the devil’s place (or Samsara’s place if you’re leaning more towards Eastern religions), or worse, “edgy” spirituality where you PRETEND you’re okay with shadow work, but won’t admit you’re full of limerence or envy or [insert evil you think you’re “over” already and only other people have]. Both tend towards assuming they’re perfect in order to have carte blanche to judge others. Let’s just say that as soon as someone keeps telling me they’re always feeling “excellent”, I’ll just see through that as some kind of defence mechanism where they’re avoiding vulnerability like the plague, and I’ll say “no thanks” to any further communication with that kind of person… But this article is here, if they care to read it and take away something helpful.
I shall note that a third crowd tends to try shooting the messenger — that’s as common as the other two resistance-displaying crowds above, but I think I’ve already addressed it extensively and won’t give it more attention than the bare minimum.
All in all, this is the sort of topic people love to hate… but funny enough, they take notes when no-one is looking. Yeah, I see that. Welcome to planet Earth, I guess.
