Alright I'm really tired of people who start to immediately call people who are legitimately concerned about security/privacy and just trends in general: tinfoil hat. I could just as well call these people naive sheeps, if you want to turn this into an insult game.
However let's think more about this, where society is going and what these technological gadgets are bringing us.
It seems to me that only those people share all their things who really have nothing to protect. Because they are either dirt poor, or they have this slave mentality, with 0 privacy in their minds.
Of course we can debunk that "if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear mentality", I have debunked that in my e-book, which you can download for free, at the bottom of this article.
But these people really have nothing to protect. Or essentially they think they have nothing to protect, until reality kicks them in their face, and they realize how much they have to lose if they don't protect those things!
Yes, even if you think you have nothing of valuable, you could quickly find out that that might not be true, and there is a lot you can lose for not being vigilant. And if you do have things to protect, then you really have to rethink your security strategy, concerning your actions online or with technology.
For example a rich person has all his wealth that he needs to protect. He is not a "tinfoil hat" for protecting his property, that is just common sense. Or a parent is not a "tinfoil hat" for protecting his child, that is just what parents are supposed to do.
This inversion of reality is totally absurd, and it will only lead to suffering and tyranny. Look at the latest malware attack infestations:
I guess these people had "nothing to hide" right? It's total nonsense of course, so don't believe the government narrative, it's illogical.
You will never ever ever see rich people post how much money they made to Facebook, occasionally they might refer to their profits in % points, since the percentage will obfuscate how much actual money is at stake.
So nobody will post his income online, it's absurd. That's like saying:
- "Hey look I made 6,000,000$ this week, please kidnap me and ask for ransom!"
It's exactly like this, the mere fact that you post some financial info, is already giving ideas to potential burglars, kidnappers, and other types of thieves.
So why would anyone give out any other kind of information to Facebook? Maybe because they really have nothing to lose, or maybe because they are totally fooled by this hedonistic mindset, and are totally ignoring the negative consequences.
The Old Boss
I remember when I still worked in trading, I once had a dinner with the CEO, we were at a pretty high stake restaurant, we drinked a lot of wine so the conversation got friendly and personal at some point. This guy, according to some sources, was basically making 5 figures a week, which really made him very rich in the area (I guess people on Steemit can also make that much now).
But he never ever showed off his wealth in any way. He weared like a 5$ chinese watch, a tie under a cheap sweater and some no-name shoes. He basically looked like my elementary school math teacher. He drove an older model Mercedes, like the one you get for 2000$ at a second-hand car dealer.
So this guy probably had 30-40,000,000 $ worth of assets, and he looked like your average high-school teacher, barely spending anything on himself, and his haircut wasn't that great either.
I mean he could probably buy himself a Lamborghini, a 24k gold watch, and 5000$ suit, to show off to the peasants who is the boss in town, but instead he layed low, and wasn't really that obsessed with ego and money. He was just doing what he did in the company because he enjoyed it, but boasting his ego wasn't his thing. He was a very rational person, and I had a lot of respect for him.
Conclusion
So why was he behaving like this? I mean you can watch movies like the The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) where they illustrate how wild you can live your life when you are filthy rich. Yet in the real world, not a single rich person lives like that. Well maybe some crazy gambler or poker player who just won money through gambling. But actual businesspeople, you will never see that kind of mentality there.
Well he basically told me after a few glasses of wines, as I asked about "why he didn't bought a more expensive car", and he replied, that money for him wasn't for showing off with it, but to actually use it to build things, and he also said that you don't want to attract a lot of attention to yourself if you are the richest person in the room, because every bad guy will take that as a sign of weakness, and will take actions against you.
So hedonism is only for those that have nothing, they have nothing, they live from paycheck to paycheck, so they think how much worse can it be? But once they start to build something, like a family, or a business, or wealth. They will quickly realize that this wild irrational mentality will only get them into trouble. So it's always better to be a planner, than to be a victim.
Sources:
https://pixabay.com
the mentality of this hard working rich guy was the focus of a book called The Millionaire Next Door, pre Rich-Dad days. great post
The way I see it, this is another way of calling them concpiracy theorists. I believe tin foil people and concpiracy theorists are far deeper critical thinkers than sheeps. Thats the end of it... sheeps tend to accept what is told almost immediatly. Atleast others give it some thought and make up their own mind.
Yes but both are derogatory terms. They are critical thinkers, and are aware of the dangers that surround them.
Those are admirable qualities and there is nothing to criticize about that. People only survive if they vigilant.
The caveman was not a tinfoilhat for looking around when walking in a forest. There might be a bear there that could attack him any moment.
I agree! Anyhow, great post sir!
I disagree. It depends on the person. I've seen quite a lot of "conspiracy theorists" just accept the words of whoever they follow. They are sheeple themselves
It's really just independent thinkers vs people following the group. Believing or not believing conspiracy theories doesn't mean anything.
And btw I don't mean 'conspiracy theorist' in a derogatory way, I just don't know what else to call them. And I don't mean anything bad when I say 'them'
Upvoted, followed. Great post!
Good stuff, @profitgenerator. The CEO you described reminds me of the founder of IKEA. I like that. Have your valuable assets and lots of money, and have plenty for yourself and your projects, but still keep stuff simple and keep a low profile.
He was like a Steve Jobs, but in his 60's, and without the bad things that was floating around Steve Jobs though.
So he was like your average grandpa, pretty friendly and pretty rational. That is why most employees loved him.
However he retired shortly after, after that I left too, but those days were really an interesting business experience for me.
For sure. Thet kind of experience/time with a mentor is gold.
I learned a lot about markets and trading from him. I mean what you learn in universities is really useless, but he had 30 years of practical experience on the floor. That is outstanding.
To show off is a very superficial way of living style. But there are so many people who live to attract attentions.
Most people imagine it that way, they all want a nice car, a nice house and a lot of beautiful girlfriends.
But once they get there, if they get there, they will all drop these silly ideas and focus on the bigger picture.
I'm an actual loopy bin tinfoil hat, but I come by it honestly.
Some just call it caution, and vigilance. Others call it "crazy thinfoil hat".
I guess it's just a question of perspective.
There is a difference between caution, vigilance, and being paranoid about everything. The people who believe in lizard men or a flat earth are wrapped head to toe in tinfoil.
Yes obviously I am not talking about people who thought they were abducted by aliens.
Some of these people might have genuine mental problems. But to just be vigilant and observant of things is not "tinfoilhat".
It looks like the mainstream propaganda tries to conflate the 2 things, associating the mentally ill people with rational people who are just curious and investigative.
It's brilliant propaganda.
There are people who just don't want to change anything in your life.