This is one of the most powerful ideas Derrick Jensen transmits (source):
One of the smartest things the Nazis did was to co-opt rationality and to co-opt hope. The way they did that was by making it so that at every step of the way it was in the Jews' rational, best interest not to resist.
Would you rather get an ID card or would you rather resist and possibly get killed? Do you want to go to a ghetto or do you want to resist and possibly get killed? Do you want to get on a cattle car or do you want to resist and possibly get killed? Do you want to take a shower or do you want to resist and possibly get killed?
Every step of the way, it was in their rational best interest to not resist. But I'll tell you something really interesting: The Jews who participated in the Warsaw ghetto uprising had a much higher rate of survival than those who went along. We need to keep that in mind over the next ten years.
If you're alive, there always comes moments when the immediate experience of reason and logic becomes irrelevant to the task of being human. We can remain aware of that humanity so that when action outside of the system's premises becomes necessary, when short term welfare becomes worthless, the groundwork for trusting ourselves has already been laid. And if we trust ourselves, maybe we'll decide that our survival is desirable - that our lives are worth fighting for.
It's always possible that we could resolve to live.
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