Weaponised values

Lash out.

Succumb to rage.

Wield your most sincerely held values
as a weapon. Your feelings too.

Frame your views
negatively.

Gossip - promote trust
among members of an in-group -
even if it involves reckless calumnies
about others.

Feel satisfied - scratch that itch.

The ultimate effect is more like
scratching a poison-ivy exposure.

Devilishly hard to resist
and momentarily feels wonderful.

The result gets worse and worse
as the itch turns into -
a festering wound.

I ‘found’ this piece in an article by Arthur C Brooks published in The Atlantic last week: ‘How to Influence People—And Make Friends’.

Dream intentionally - while you’re awake.