"Resisting Attempts to Silence #PwME"

[Nielk]

Resisting Attempts to Silence #PwME

Methods of Silencing Dissent to Control a Specific Agenda
Globally, government agencies and officials as well as private sector companies, and organizations use known astroturfing and silencing methods to achieve their intended goals. They use media to spread propaganda to manipulate opinions. They employ specific tactics to squash dissent to institute their desired agenda.

In the myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) community, this method of controlling a specific intention is used by government health agencies, medical interest groups, and those supporting them. They advance the false narrative that ME is not a distinct disease but, a collection of fatiguing conditions. They also perpetuate the myth that ME is imagined – a functional somatic condition.

This government deceit harms people with ME (pwME). The underhanded conflation of ME with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), chronic fatigue (CF), and psychosomatic conditions results in falsely depicting the disease as a benign condition, possibly just in the mind of the patients. The medical community has therefore in the main dismissed this ‘vague condition,’ neglecting to care or study it.

Read blog here - https://relatingtome.net/2017/11/01/resisting-attempts-to-silence-pwme/

 

[Mary]

Very interesting discussion about methods of propaganda and stifling dissent! It's everywhere in our political discourse nowadays and of course in the area of ME/CFS as well --

 

[IThinkImTurningJapanese]

@Nielk There was a post many years ago, on Reddit I believe. It referred to Companies hiring master debaters to join forums and manipulate the public perception. Peer pressure is a powerful force.

I find this particularly disturbing because of the potential for open communication, worldwide, to advance the knowledge and relations of humankind. Kind of a lofty sentence, but I think this issue is deserving of such accolades.

That is an excellent article you have done, and for that I want to give you a very special thanks.

Domo Arigatou Gozaimashita

Sharyl Attkisson

 

[Nielk]

@Nielk There was a post many years ago, on Reddit I believe. It referred to Companies hiring master debaters to join forums and manipulate the public perception. Peer pressure is a powerful force.

I find this particularly disturbing because of the potential for open communication, worldwide, to advance the knowledge and relations of humankind. Kind of a lofty sentence, but I think this issue is deserving of such accolades.

That is an excellent article you have done, and for that I want to give you a very special thanks.

Domo Arigatou Gozaimashita

Sharyl Attkisson

Thank you.

I agree that this is such an important topic, especially today when we are bombarded with articles, blogs, videos on all social media outlets. There is a definitive attempt to control opinion, whether in politics or the private sector. Psychological studies have shown that it is actually easy to sway views and those who are knowledgeable about effective tactics can gain attention and power.

 

[Nielk]

Here is another short video of how to influence a crowd.

https://www.ted.com/talks/derek_siv...-b&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare

 

[IThinkImTurningJapanese]

I agree that this is such an important topic, especially today when we are bombarded with articles, blogs, videos on all social media outlets.

I feel this way about health news. We are learning so much about healthy living, but so many people seem overwhelmed and simply dismiss concerns with, "well everything's bad for you".

 

[Ember]

Here’s the final rallying cry:

Our advocacy efforts should focus on demanding the use of proper criteria for diagnostic and research purposes ( ME-ICC criteria and ME-ICC Questionnaire), and for appropriate NIH funding ($250mil a year in the US) to effectuate impactful studies leading to an acceptable biomarker as well as FDA approved treatments for #pwME (https://relatingtome.net/2017/11/01/resisting-attempts-to-silence-pwme/).

How radical is that?