{"id":18826,"date":"2025-08-17T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-17T19:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/?p=18826"},"modified":"2025-08-17T15:09:22","modified_gmt":"2025-08-17T21:09:22","slug":"triggers-signals-signs-and-symbols","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/triggers-signals-signs-and-symbols\/","title":{"rendered":"Triggers, Signals, Signs, and Symbols"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Precise and accurate words are required in order to have precise and accurate debates that are grounded in logic. If one side of a discussion is grounded in logic and reason, and the other side only offers emotion and feelings, there is little opportunity for agreement.<strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After 150 years of failed ideas, socialists, communists, and progressives have no arguments in logic to offer in the arena of political ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Throughout all the world and in our own country, their ideas have failed and they more than anyone else understand that fact. Listening to Zohran Mamdani talk during his \u201cFive Borough Anti Trump\u201d campaign, makes one think of the Broadway show Music Man. Government run grocery stores, rent and housing price controls\u2014he himself is living in subsidized housing though he draws a six- figure income not to mention an allowance from his parents who are living in the upper quintile of income, are ideas coming from a coddled life. Isn\u2019t it interesting that most \u201cvirtue signaling\u201d comes from the upper \u201ccoddled\u201d classes!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our politics today are no longer grounded in words and thoughts, but rather by signals, signs, and symbols. The difference in those words is nuanced, but the differences are significant. Here is a helpful outline from PERPLEXITY.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>1. Signal<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Definition: A signal is something that conveys information or triggers a response\u00a0in a direct, often physical or mechanical way.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Characteristics:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Functions as a stimulus that prompts immediate action or interpretation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Often\u00a0cause-and-effect\u00a0in nature.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can be\u00a0natural\u00a0(e.g., smoke indicates fire) or\u00a0artificial\u00a0(e.g., a traffic light turning red).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Example:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A train whistle is a signal that the train is approaching.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A rise in hormone levels signaling the body to react.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>2. Sign<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Definition: A sign is\u00a0anything that stands for or indicates something else.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>In a general sense, it\u2019s broader than \u201csignal\u201d\u2014a \u201csign\u201d can be static, symbolic, or conventional.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Characteristics:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Relies on\u00a0recognition\u00a0rather than just triggering automatic action.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>May be understood through\u00a0convention\u00a0or\u00a0direct observation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can be\u00a0icons\u00a0(look like what they represent),\u00a0indexes\u00a0(direct connection to what they represent), or\u00a0symbols\u00a0(abstract, conventional meaning\u2014see below).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Example:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A stop signs on the road.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Dark clouds as a sign of impending rain.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Handwriting on a door that says \u201cClosed\u201d as a sign the store isn\u2019t open.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>3. Symbol<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Definition: A symbol is a\u00a0special type of sign\u00a0where the relationship between the sign and what it represents is\u00a0arbitrary or agreed upon through culture\/convention.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Characteristics:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Meaning is\u00a0<em>learned<\/em>, not directly obvious from the form.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Often carries\u00a0layers of meaning\u00a0or cultural depth.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Highly dependent on\u00a0shared understanding\u00a0among a group.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Example:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Christian cross as a symbol of faith.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>National flags as symbols of countries.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The mathematical \u201c\u03c0\u201d symbol representing the ratio of a circle\u2019s circumference to its diameter.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Political debate from the left deals almost exclusively with signals and signs. These trigger responses at the most basic and emotional levels. An emotional \u201ctrigger\u201d typically activates a rapid, automatic level of cognition\u2014sometimes called \u201cimplicit\u201d or \u201cbottom-up\u201d processing. Here&#8217;s how this works in cognitive science and psychology:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Habitual Emotional triggers often begin with an immediate, unconscious reaction. My Australian Shepperd reacts and is \u201ctriggered\u201d by a whistle. This initial stage is governed by subcortical brain structures (like the amygdala) that respond quickly to perceived threats or salient stimuli, sparking bodily sensations or action tendencies before conscious thought occurs. Sounds like Covid histrionics to me.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>This automatic reaction is considered a\u00a0<em>low-level<\/em>\u00a0cognitive process, as it happens without deliberate, conscious reasoning or reflection. It is fast and driven by emotional salience detected in the environment or thoughts.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>At higher levels of cognition, conscious awareness, interpretation, or regulation can come into play. People with high emotional awareness can notice and reflect on these triggers, integrating them with conscious reasoning and self-awareness. In summary, an emotional \u201ctrigger\u201d first involves low-level, automatic\/implicit cognitive processes\u2014typically not requiring conscious awareness\u2014though it can escalate to higher cognitive levels if you become consciously aware and begin to reflect or regulate your reactions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>When reading and listening to the words of those on the left like Bernie Sanders, AOC, and Zohran, I am immediately captivated by their mannerisms, their use of emotion, their faux empathy and sympathy\u2014I am reminded that compassion requires an action. Anyone who has listened to one of Hitler\u2019s speeches is many times captivated with his inflexions and mannerisms, even if we don\u2019t speak German.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here are some simple facts that can serve as a basis for a reasonable argument.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"1\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>There is too much crime in our country\u2014especially in big cities run by progressive politicians. We need more police, stronger prosecutors and judges who will apply the law as written understanding that as C. S. Lewis opined, \u201cMercy without justice becomes catastrophic\u201d.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Our government at all levels is operating at a troubling inefficient level when compared to the private sector. This may be the result in many instances of corrupt governance practices. The position of special interest as agent between principle\u2014politician, and citizen\u2014object, is what has led to years of corrupt practices at all levels of government. Donald Trump knows this. This is what DOGE was all about. Corruption in government will become a major issue at all levels of government in the years to come. The politicians that understand this early on\u2014like DJT, will benefit from rooting it out.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>We cannot continue as a country and a society unless the RULE OF LAW prevails. Property rights and the duty of stewardship need to be secured. Contract rights need to be sacrosanct. The people need to believe that the process of governance and jurisprudence is not corrupt in order for our society to move forward politically and economically.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>We need to continue to have the best military in the world\u2014forever, if we want to secure our liberties for our children and grandchildren.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>Our political debate needs NOT to be centered on low level cognitive feelings, but on arguments in logic, grounded in historical moral predicates. Moral discipline and self-control need to be brought back into the political debate. I don\u2019t think politicians can ever be held to a standard of \u201ctelling the truth \u201cbecause since the beginning of time they have lived by the adage \u201ctell them what they want to hear, give them what they deserve\u201d, or \u201cother people\u2019s time and labor, other people\u2019s money\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We should insist that they operate at a \u201chigher cognitive level\u201d, a higher logical level, and a higher ethical level. If we don\u2019t, it will be back to the same old, same old\u2014in our cities and towns, our State, and our Country.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Precise and accurate words are required in order to have precise and accurate debates that are grounded in logic. If one side of a discussion is grounded in logic and reason, and the other side only offers emotion and feelings, there is little opportunity for agreement. After 150 years of failed ideas, socialists, communists, and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":18827,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1051],"tags":[511],"class_list":["post-18826","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-john-livingston","tag-bernie-sanders","cat-1051-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18826","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18826"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18826\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18828,"href":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18826\/revisions\/18828"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18827"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18826"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18826"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gemstatepatriot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18826"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}