Hello neighbor, are you an extremist?

Says the stunned neighbor: “Well geez, I don’t know, what is an extremist?”

Have you not heard? Extremists are the greatest threat to our democracy! Extremists are experts in the dissemination of disinformation and they infiltrate your mind with dangerous misinformation. They are always seeking to deceive you, to activate your own latent extremist sympathies and radicalize your beliefs and perspectives.

Says the neighbor: “Gosh, how do I know if I’ve been deceived?”

Well, for starters, if you still support MAGA, you are supporting “the most extreme political organization” in American history — which means sporting your MAGA gear in public might constitute extremist behavior. If you believe in the slogan “Make America Great Again,” you have been deceived into believing that our country is off-track, and this is the first step toward being radicalized. You are on the wrong path.

But, of course, it’s not too late to fact-check your perspective and realign yourself with the greater good. However, if the malinformation has already infected your emotions, you may feel resistant to our collective programming, and even become inclined to speak out against perceived intrusions into your personal life. By whispering about what you mistakenly believe to be wrong, your extremist views may even begin to spread and ignite extremist feelings in your own social circles.

You might even find yourself feeling compelled to take action by attending local school board meetings and the like. If you do so, be very cautious, as this is the known behavior of violent extremists and domestic terrorists. Fortunately, the FBI is monitoring the situation, but it’s probably still best not to participate in such fringe behavior — especially if you’ve been tricked into believing that something is wrong with state curriculum. That’s a telltale sign you’ve been receiving misinformation.

Says the concerned neighbor: “Wow, I had no idea I’ve been being lied to for so long.”

Unfortunately, it can be very difficult to tell who’s telling you the truth.

The good news is that the new Disinformation Governance Board, in conjunction with the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Intelligence Community, will be monitoring your text messages, emails, phone calls, and social media accounts so they can alert you, your friends, family, and local law enforcement if it appears you are suffering from radicalization and influence of extremists.

Even better, they are already deploying Artificial Intelligence to develop algorithmic solutions to combat this global “infodemic” of misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation. They have already been quite successful in quelling the rebellion of extremists in other countries, which proves their strategies are effective at preventing the spread of the nationalistic rhetoric that leads to violent domestic terrorism.

Says the curious neighbor: “Sounds good, but what was extremism again?”

Good question! Turns out, the Department of Homeland Security is still trying to nail that one down. In a March 11th, 2022 report on Domestic Violent Extremism, the top issue they’ve been struggling with is this lack of an official definition. Thus, exercising the Precautionary Principle, we can assume that their efforts to target disinformation will cast a broad net to keep us safe from the greatest number of potential threats.

It may feel like this is restricting your access to information, but you must understand the threat. If they allow you to be inundated with misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation, you will almost certainly become radicalized, start questioning the Trusted News narrative, and become disenchanted with the greater good.

Friends, we must understand, that is something they simply cannot let happen. Whatever discomfort you may feel at the thought of the government eviscerating free speech is an indication that you may already be a victim of radical free thinking.

In these perilous times, we have to look out for our neighbors. If someone you know seems to be suffering from too much information, please share this with them. Often it’s a simple anecdotal thought that keeps the real extremists in check.

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