Does the use of the term false flag tend to create in our minds the fallacy, false dilemma?
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Original Question
Does the use of the term false flag tend to create in our minds the fallacy, false dilemma?
The meaning given for false flag is “an act committed with the intent of disguising the actual source of responsibility and pinning blame on another party.”
But could it be that the term sets up the mental model of a false dilemma where argument over a claim of false flag splits opinion into a confined set of two opposing arguments as follows:
Option A: Entity A’s claim that Entity B did the crime is correct.
Option B: Entity A is lying and it was really Entity A who did the crime …
when, in fact, there’s a third option:
Option C: Entity A staged what looked like a crime and blamed Entity B but no real crime was committed apart from the psyop of making people believe the crime occurred and was committed by Entity B.
Where only two options seem to be possible, people will tend to plump for Option A or Option B for various reasons but they’ll all be wrong because the false dilemma prevents them from seeing the correct Option C.
Example: Bologna Station bombing 1980
At the time, it was blamed on Communists; and indeed, soon after, the PCI (Italian Communist Party) was badly beaten in parliamentary elections. However, later it was deemed to be a false flag operation carried out by neo-fascists. The neo-fascists were hired as operatives for Operation Gladio, a clandestine NATO "stay-behind" operation in Europe during the Cold War in which the CIA played a central role.
When we look at the visual evidence, however, there is nothing to suggest that the killing and wounding isn't staged - the sheets draped over people are awfully white - and there are strange anomalies "hidden-in-plain-sight" style. The BBC reported a 22-year-old witness saying he saw a middle-aged man carried to an ambulance with blood pouring from a severed leg but we see no clear evidence of injury of any kind or an ambulance but rather strangely seemingly a person being carried onto a bus. Another witness is reported as saying he saw a flash of bright light but didn't hear any explosions. Why not?
Challenged by someone who finds my opinion on the bombing very upsetting (my goodness do those in power prey on our finer feelings), I wrote to the President of the Association of the Relatives of the Victims of the bombing, Italian MP, Paolo Bolognesi, expressing my opinion about the bombing and asking if it was correct ... but, unsurprisingly, I got no reply. It amazes me the myth is still going strong 40 years later.
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Answers
2You ask: Does the use of the term false flag tend to create in our minds the fallacy, false dilemma? This is a psychological question, not a question of logic.
Those bad guys who fly the false flag intend to blame a specific person or group for an evil act the bad guys did. Investigation of the facts and the use of logic will destroy the false flag. But, how any individual reacts depends upon the method that person uses to draw conclusions. Those prone to knee-jerk will be the first to be suckered into the false flag operation. Those who sit back and investigate after the dust settles will not be drawn into deception. In short, the initial mindset will determine the outcome.
There seem to be two elements in play here,
1. Who is responsible for the event
2. The consequences of the event
an act committed with the intent of disguising the actual source of responsibility and pinning blame on another party.
The term ‘false flag’ as expressed above relates to who is responsible for the event (irrespective of the consequences). It would be legitimate to call an event ‘false flag’ before you were aware of the consequences.
Subterfuge or deceit in relation to the consequences is an additional activity.
I agree that, when the term is used, the audience is given two options. In line with your definition, I would replace ‘did the crime’ with ‘is responsible for the event’
A. Entity A’s claim that entity B is responsible for the event is correct
B. Entity A is lying and it was really entity A who is responsible for the event
I agree that this does not offer the full range of options. I propose four:
1. Entity B is responsible for the event and the consequences (expressed by A) are real
2. Entity A is responsible for the event and the consequences (expressed by A) are real
3. Entity B is responsible for the event and the consequences (expressed by A) are not real
4. Entity A is responsible for the event and the consequences (expressed by A) are not real
Using the definition above, ‘false flag’ would denote both option 2 and option 4.
...which brings us back to the dichotomy that either,
A. Entity A’s claim that entity B is responsible for the event is correct (would be true with options 1 and 3)
B. Entity A is lying and it was really entity A who is responsible for the event (would be true with options 2 and 4)
I don’t see a false dilemma (or dichotomy) here merely incomplete information.
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Very interesting and insightful observation, and I think your comment is valid.