A haunting parable

When I reflect on Putin’s gradual but steady success in brainwashing the Russian population and spreading the Kremlin’s narratives abroad, I often think about the parable of the king and the poisoned well, a version of which follows.

Once upon a time, in a great and prosperous kingdom, there was a single well that provided water to all the people. One night, an enemy crept into the city and poured a strange potion into the well. By morning, everyone who drank from it became afflicted with a peculiar madness: they began to see the world in a completely different way and became absolutely certain that their new way of thinking was the correct one.

The only person spared was the king, who had his own private well. He alone retained his clarity, his reason, his sense of what was real. But as the days passed, he realized something disturbing: his people, now united in their madness, saw him as the insane one.

Eventually, they called him unfit to rule. “Our king has lost his mind!” they cried. “He refuses to see the truth that we all know!” The king stood at a crossroads. He could try to reason with them, to explain that the well had poisoned their minds. But what good would reason do when the entire kingdom was convinced he was the delusional one?

So one evening, as the crowd gathered outside his palace, the king walked to the tainted well. He lifted a goblet of water, took a deep breath, and drank. And from that day forward, the kingdom lived in peace. The people loved their wise and understanding ruler. They never questioned what they believed, because everyone believed it. And the king, though he had once known better, no longer had any reason to resist. After all, he too now saw the world just as they did.

A key takeaway is that disinformation can become self-sustaining and the dominant paradigm. Fortunately, Western democracies are far from that point on most issues-for now. But we have to remain vigilant and fight for the truth because if the majority embraces disinformation, it may be too late to change course.

Originally published at https://ukraineinsights.substack.com.