[crazy] Undiscussed Secrets In Plain Sight

[Karl]

I was thinking on parallel construction, and remembering two scenes
from the Snowden movie.  Movies are like a way to remember things that
are a little similar to reality if you can't pay attention to anything
more serious.

In one scene, Snowden is learning how the NSA spies on people
"lawfully".  His instructor is teaching a bunch of newbie spies about
this, and the instructor says something that is blatantly false but
sounds kind of true if you don't go too deep into it.  He claims that
this spying is legal and constitutional.

In another scene, Snowden is doing advanced work among surveillance
workers, and he is referred to as "snow white" in parallel to having
concerns around spying on people without due process.  It is the
introduction to engaging in illegal spying as a matter of course.

What's notable here, is that a bunch of people are breaking the law,
and are aware of doing so, but talking to each other as if they are
not breaking the law.  Additionally, people who come out around not
wanting to do this, are persecuted on an international level by
multiple governments and other organizations.

I imagine there being wealthy or powerful people pulling strings and
cleaning up, and the workers who do their work basically just adapting
to this situation in various ways, maybe knowing or not knowing what
it is, I don't know, so as to succeed.

I'm thinking of that part where the newbie spies are taught that the
illegal work is legal.  There's a possibility there that the
instructor knows it isn't legal.  Meanwhile, each spy finds out in his
or her own way, and many don't find out, that it is not actually
legal.

The situation seems to parallel many others.  And this kind of
situation has played a big role on this list.

It's hard for me to think about.  I think most people kind of "pick
up" that you talk about it as if it is legal.  I feel like this must
be analogous to something socially normal, for so many people to pick
it up, but I'm not sure what.

Why would it be normal for so many people to comply with unspoken,
constantly-changing rules? --> Maybe because the rules _are_ spoken.

The instructor gave them to the newbie spies when he revealed by
action that the entire system they were in was a part of it.  This
implies something.  The thing it implies is very vague, and it seems
to stay vague as far as the movie is concerned.  But even though it is
very vague, it is very clear that it is very real and very powerful.

So the social norm would be like hushing about the weight of an obese
+ popular person.  Maybe.

It's hard to think about.  But it could save one's life to comprehend it.

It's never good to keep genocide secret, but I guess you can get
killed when you talk about it to the people who are trying to cover it
up.