re: #1 freetoken

It’s fascinating (and disturbing) how easily we can be manipulated. I think we’re much more driven by emotional and biological responses than most of us care to admit. We fancy ourselves to be oh so intellectually sophisticated and reasonable, then someone comes along and pushes a button that’s hot-wired to one of our instinctive responses and our critical thinking skills disintegrate.

I don’t think the psychology of marketing is necessarily a 20th century advancement though. There have always been people skilled in the understanding & manipulation of human nature, though maybe not in as complete or refined a way as we understand it today. The difference now, IMHO, is the rapidity with which people, images and ideas can travel vast distances.

Throughout history there have been individuals and groups who were adept at marketing their “brand”: The Spartans, Julius Caesar, Cleopatra, Genghis Khan, the House of Medici, Vlad the Impaler, etc. (Yes, I’m purposely leaving religion out of it.)

I mean, when the Mongol horde was headed your way, you KNEW they were coming and you knew—thanks to the hideous but highly effective “brand marketing” techniques they employed en route to your town—to be out of your mind with mortal fear.

Wait. How did I end up talking about Mongol hordes? O_o