Good Cop - Bad Cop

There is a well-known psychological experiment (link here) initially published by the European Journal of Social Psychology, which demonstrates clearly how the rapid “see-sawing” of emotions (particularly from negative emotions to relief) has the effect of making people compliant. The experiment involved a college student standing just outside a busy marketplace and asking random passers-by for 5 minutes of their time to fill out a questionnaire for a school project. Researchers found less than 30% of shoppers were kind enough to stop, give up their time, and fill out the questionnaire.

  The second group of researchers tried a slightly different approach. Just as the shopper entered the store, they were grabbed from behind on the shoulder. The startled shopper turned around and saw the person who grabbed them was blind, wearing dark sunglasses, and wielding a white-tipped cane. The blind person said, “excuse me,” and the shopper, realizing that being grabbed was a mistake - then turned back around and proceeded into the store, where just moments later, they were approached by a college student with the same questionnaire.

Researchers found in the second group, a staggering 56% of shoppers gave up their time and filled out the questionnaire. Consider this scenario from the perspective of the shopper. Initially, they felt a brief jolt of fear, having been grabbed from behind, only to have that fear turn into relief once the shopper realized there was no threat. Psychologists suggest the second group of shoppers were “startled into compliance” by the whipsaw of emotions they experienced. There is no other plausible explanation for why the percentage of shoppers willing to give up their time in the second group was almost double that of the first group.

This same psychological mechanism of creating compliance is why many police interrogations follow the “good cop, bad cop” script. The bad cop yells, threatens, and intimidates any way he can, eliciting as many negative emotions in the suspect as possible. The Good cop then intervenes, ostensibly on the suspect’s behalf, providing much-needed “relief.”  Even though both cops are on the same side, opposite the suspect, the seesaw of emotions in the suspect often makes them much more inclined to cooperate by way of confession. Thanks to the remarkable effectiveness at creating compliance, the good cop-bad cop routine is the go-to weapon for the police when they lack the evidence necessary to get a conviction in court.

The interrogation room is not the only place this good cop/bad cop routine is played out. We are all subject to this psychological warfare on a daily basis, and have been for decades. The political arena is nothing more than a never-ending nationwide routine of good cop/bad cop.  In the police interrogation room, it’s easy to tell the good cop from the bad cop. In the political world, our two-faced politicians play both roles depending on the audience. For example, half of this country would tell you Trump is a savior while Biden is the anti-christ….The other half of the country would tell you Biden is a savior while Trump is the antichrist. Everyone in this country has been polarized into one of those two camps. As proof, look no further than the emotionally visceral responses you get from people when bringing those names up in conversation.

Just like a cop with no evidence in the interrogation room, politicians have nothing. They exist only to solicit consent and compliance. They only need us so long as they can pick our pockets. Once those pockets are picked clean, or heaven forbid we become un-compliant, we will be de-platformed, demonetized, and “cast out, like leppers.” Until then, their mouthpiece, also known as the mainstream media, is well aware emotional swings are the direct path to compliance. This explains why politicians of every stripe are routinely portrayed by the media in an emotionally polarizing manner.

It makes no difference which side of the political aisle you are on; when your side is in charge, everything is sunshine & roses. When the other side is in charge - there is an emotionally crippling widespread sense of worry and fear. When the next election cycle comes along, it invariably switches. For half the country, the dread & fear give way to a new day, while darkness moves in for the other half. The good cop/bad cop routine is a more plausible explanation than sheer coincidence, as to why the last 30 years’ worth of US Presidents continues to alternate back and forth from one party to the other.  Had one party owned the White House for the last 30 years, Bag would argue the populace would be more thoughtful, less emotional, and of course, less compliant.   

Recognizing politics is nothing more than a scripted routine of good cop/bad cop requires acknowledgment that all politicians, regardless of the letter after their name, are on the same team, just like the cops in the interrogation room. Simply put, there is no significant difference between Republicans & Democrats. Sure, they might aim the federal money hose towards different targets, but at the end of the day - they both GROW the size of government, they both PAYOFF their corporate cronies with fat government contracts, they both RAISE taxes, they both SPEND like drunken sailors, they both OVER-FUND the military to further their imperialistic visions, and they both RESTRICT our freedom with ever-more intrusive laws.

Accepting there is no difference between the two political parties brings with it freedom from the emotional swings inherent in the latest election cycle. It provides the opportunity to see the world as it actually is, rather than through the hopelessly smudged  “us and them”  lenses our rulers freely provide. Finally, and most importantly, that clarity of vision seizes back control of our day-to-day lives from the government, and puts that control where it belongs…. in your hands.

For those who insist on pitching their tent on one side of the political aisle or the other, know this: You are being startled into compliance, as the only actual difference between politicians is which ones get to play the good cop, and which ones get to play the bad cop.