To be blind pretending not to see...

As we're moving full steam ahead into the Ides of March, St. Patrick's Day, a full moon in Virgo, along with a Lunar Eclipse - I had a thought about choice - or even more deeply contemplative - the ILLUSION of choice. As if nears the sixth anniversary of my mother's passing, and all the choices that could've been made yet weren't I thought about choices - the ones we patently see, and the ones we don't, or at least don't know (or maybe don't care?) that they're available to us. Naturally, this leads to thoughts of the penultimate film about choice, The Devil Wears Prada, and Michael Jackson's Man in the Mirror. Two pop culture references that you may think are unrelated, but oh dear reader, they most certainly are not.

Man in the Mirror is steeped in the ballad of choice and how making better choices, shattering illusions (refusing to be blind to the suffering of others), inevitably begins with the self. This change will radiate to the outer world writ large. In The Devil Wears Prada, there are choices that are real, and then there are those that are steeped in illusion - providing an even further in-depth look at, well, soul development, to put it plainly. I've written several pieces now on illusions, initiations, becoming a sacred rebel - all of these are choices of participation regardless of what the Starbucks spiritual girlies will tell you - you do not have to be in agreement with what is around you if it does not resonate with you. You certainly do not have to comply with suffering - I had to do that as a child - I had no choice. It is why I wholeheartedly believe cartomancy is an invaluable tool in assisting anyone in the journey of shadow work. For me, this scenario, the belief of no choice is always represented by the two of swords. We see lady justice holding two swords in stillness and silence, making no motion - unable to choose between right or left, light or dark, feather or density. I sure as hell have a choice now, and I am not going to participate in untruths. I place myself in initiation spaces - isolation to work through processes, understand emotional and psychological biases, and unhealed wounds. That is my choice - and I am more than willing to have my eyes open to the truth.

This is where illusions are destroyed. The scene I chose for the headliner here is the scene in The Devil Wears Prada where they are deciding which belt to pick because "they're so different," and yet, our protagonist, Andy, can't see it and laughs. It is one thing to laugh when you do see the difference; it's quite another to laugh in ignorance. Miranda (Meryl Streep) insists that Andy always has a choice, as do her boyfriend and friends; however, Andy never believes she does have a choice. At the end of the film, Andy does choose. The life that "everyone wants this" as Miranda puts it is simply not what Andy wants for herself, and leaves that world behind - she's lucky they didn't cancel her return flight though. Most people never even make it to the airport - they stay in the illusion, too afraid to leave.

If you're a cycle breaker of your lineage, this will ultimately be your choice too - and there are sacrifices, make no mistake about it, and there's simply no spiritual bypassing around it. You can choose not to answer the calling, to stay in comfort over truth - I would imagine if such a decision is made, you will feel the weight of the unbroken cycle. You'll also most certainly see the fruit of that choice in future generations as well - the Norns (Fates if you prefer) have a lovely way of ensuring you have front-row tickets to such spectacles.

This is the individual's choice—but it is also the choice of a nation. And America? It is filled with people who do not believe they have a choice. Whenever I dive into the cesspool of social media, most of the illusions I see are that MAGA have no option but to chose the side that they believe (or have been conned into believing) are fighting the "deep state" whilst the other side has the illusion that their politicians are just as corrupt and on the payroll of the same corporations and PACs as their "across the aisle" counterparts. Americans have been hoodwinked into believing they have a choice at the ballot box, but choice has never been about the system—it has always been about the self. We can dive into how social media has corrupted the mind with its algorithms and behavioral modification information pumping, but you also have a choice not to participate. Step outside amongst the trees and take a deep breath - this is unimaginably eye-opening.

It was so obvious to me that during the 2016 election cycle, there was a notable overlap in the dissemination of anti-Hillary content across diverse political groups. This phenomenon was clearly influenced by sophisticated data analytics and targeted advertising strategies that exploited existing political divides - this is the new battleground - data. Make no mistake about it, dear reader - your data is more valuable than oil - black gold, Texas tea. I just loved the Beverly Hillbilles, incidentally - can't you tell? Soon after the 2016 election, whistleblowers gave us insights into data mining efforts on Facebook and personality determinations - this was used to manipulate - the false illusion that there was no choice was pumped into millions of Americans.

Cambridge Analytics utilized psychographic profiling to identify individuals susceptible to specific messaging. By analyzing personality traits, they could tailor content that resonated deeply with each target audience- they used the OCEAN personality model to determine what one would see on Facebook - although, could it be far-fetched to think it involved other platforms? Briefly, OCEAN stands for Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism. Each of these traits determines how someone interacts with the world, what they fear, what they value, and how they can be influenced. For example. those with the Openness personality trait, for example, the algorithm pushed high-openness people (open to new experiences, creative, free-thinking) into radicalization or disillusionment and low-openness people (traditional, values stability, resistant to change) into fear-based reactionary politics. Either way, both groups felt like they had no choice. Each of the OCEAN personality traits was targeted similarly - each group believing that they had no other choice.

Once Cambridge Analytica had someone’s OCEAN profile, they fed them content tailored to reinforce their existing biases, created echo chambers where their beliefs were constantly validated, and used microtargeting to manipulate them without them ever realizing it. This was how entire populations were radicalized into believing they had “no choice” but to follow the path laid out for them.

MAGA doesn't think they have an option—they believe only Trump can “save” them, whilst Progressives are bombarded with hopelessness—they believe nothing will change, so why bother? Both sides are engineered into pre-selected realities - it is what makes a case study into the movement of Ross Perot so damn interesting - can it happen again in this age of data and social media? I am skeptical.

As I bring this piece to a close, I would be remiss to not mention Meryl Steep, an actor who has found herself in two distinctly powerful roles steeped in choice. In this piece, I chose her role as Miranda Priestly, the powerhouse fashion magazine publishing magnate - the weaver of an illusionary lifestyle that she insists Andy has no choice but to sacrifice herself to. Then there is the other role of choice - Zofia "Sophie" Zawistowska in Sophie's Choice - a woman who is faced with the horror of an unimaginable choice where there simply is no right answer. There are no illusions for Sophie, only a trap which she bears the burden of for the rest of her life. These two films, The Devil Wears Prada and Sophie's Choice, represent opposite ends of the choice spectrum - one is about a false choice that only feels inescapable, and the other is about an impossible choice where there truly is no escape.

The unadulterated truth of the matter is that the majority are trapped in false choices (MAGA, political illusions, social programming), whilst others face real no-win choices (poverty, oppression, generational trauma). The real tragedy? Most people believe they have no choice when they actually do. So, in the words of the Grail Knight from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: Choose Wisely.

I leave you with Anders Carlson-Wee's Lay It Bare:

I know you’re hungry for it.
More money. More news. Desperate
for any laurel that parades you
as happier than you know
you are. A car. A cruise. Some haircut
reeking so deeply of depression
no one with a nose could miss it.
Making more each year. Spending
more. The pride of how little
time you have to spare. I know
I embarrass you, still living
on expired food I find, dented tuna
I squirrel away, spending at a pace slower
than a pulse. Slow, that’s what
I have. I’m not happy either.
I walk past bars where flush people
drink. Markets where I dumpster
what I eat. Down streets quiet enough
to hush the last ten years. Parks
dark enough to find Gemini, Lyra.
I don’t wish you were poor.
I wish you were here.