If Dracula had a cat

[Mousetoescamper]

30. You may call me Mouse--just don't call me late for supper!

While this a serious topic for such a light-hearted thread, I'll give it a wee bit of space.

There is a psychological technique that has been used by everyone from politicians to preachers, "life coaches" to litigators and many others besides. Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) can be used for good or ill, but what I've observed through the years since becoming aware of NLP through some its practitioners, is that it is often used to manipulate people without their consent, or to convince them that they need to consent to the NLP practitioner's methods for their own well-being. I've also recognized its techniques being used by politicians, marketers, and various charlatans and cultists, both religious and secular.


The worst of NLP practitioners use the techniques to control and manipulate others for their own gain. They use pseudosience (NLP itself is pseudoscientific), mis- and dis-information (including conspiracy theories) and fantastic promises to lure their victims and make them dependent.

The best defense against such manipulation--whether it's malignant or relatively benign salesmanship--is to be assertive, self-confident and a critical thinker.