You have probably seen the 1999 movie, “The Matrix.” The movie is pretty campy but it is still an excellent metaphor for modern life. In fact, it is truer now than when the movie was released.
The Matrix is about, ‘Neo,’ a middle class computer programmer/hacker who is living the standard life as an office worker. Through his computer hacking, he is gradually introduced to the concept known as the Matrix.
He meets up with a group of odd people whose leader is a man named ‘Morpheus.’ Morpheus gives Neo the choice of whether he wants to go back to his mundane life by taking a blue pill, or learning the full truth of reality by taking a red pill.
Neo swallows the red pill and he learns that the mundane world that he lived in was a false front that concealed the fact that humanity was being used by an alien race.
There are strong parallels to our modern world. Unfortunately, there is no red pill that will give us instant enlightenment, but there are tangible things you can do to “take the red pill.” In this post, I will give ten steps to unplug from the Matrix.
1. Get Rid of Debt
A big part of the modern Matrix is debt. We live our lives to benefit the bankers. One of my former classmates is simultaneously juggling mortgage debt, school loan debt, credit card debt, and auto loan debt.
The problem with debt is that it literally enslaves us. It forces us to keep working at jobs that we hate. It also prevents us from bettering our financial station. If you are trying to get ahead, debt holds you back. It is possible to spend your whole life spinning your wheels only to enrich bankers.
Begin today to retire your debt. Start with the highest interest debt and get it paid off. For most people, this would probably be credit card debt. After you have done that, continue on until you have gotten rid of all of your debt. It may take you a few years, but it will be worth it. It is the first step in gaining freedom.
2. Own Property
Owning property is another way of unplugging from the Matrix. If you have no debt and you own property, you will be pretty much set financially.
There is no quick way to do this. My recommendation is to buy a house that you can afford, get a 30-year loan, and pay the loan off early. A good target to shoot for is 15 years. The reason to go with a 30-year loan versus a 15-year loan is that it gives you some flexibility. If finances get tight for a month or two, you can always relax and pay the lower amount.
3. Detach From Corporate World
The goal here is not necessarily to leave your corporate job. The goal is to have enough money that you could leave your corporate job anytime you want to. This is commonly known as “fuck you” money.
The most pleasant way of doing this is starting your own business, but building a successful business is hard. If you choose to do so, it is a good idea to have at least one year of wages saved up before you start.
An easier way of detaching from corporate world is by starting a side business. Choose something that you would like to do long-term and begin it in your spare time. For example, if you would like to be an editor, you could start by doing gigs on Fiverr. Once you build a resume and a customer base, you could launch your own consulting business and be reasonably assured of its success.
Even if you never go full time with your side business, the revenue you earn can be applied toward retiring your debt and invested. Either way, you will be moving toward being able to say, “fuck you” to your corporate job.
4. Recognize the Kabuki Theatre Aspect of Modern Democracy
I used to be a political junkie who spent inordinate amounts of time watching debates and reading political commentary. I still enjoy politics, but I waste very little time on it. The reason is that big money interests largely control modern democracy: corporations, unions, and other large donors are the real rulers. They easily lead the populace through the use of political ads and through control of the mainstream sources of media. They control the politicians themselves through donations to their political campaigns.
I still think voting has its uses. I still vote for the least offensive candidate, and in the very rare circumstance that a truly independent candidate emerges, it is worth supporting him. But because politics is largely a show to delude the masses, it is not worth spending much time on it. The time spent watching debates or reading political articles is better spent building a business or playing with your children.
5. Cut Back on Entertainment
You may have read that the Roman emperors appeased the Roman populace through the use of “bread and circuses.” They provided free food and entertainment and that was enough to keep the Romans fat, dumb, and happy.
Human nature has not changed much. We are still happy to go on leading enslaved lives as long as we have our entertainment.
Entertainment is one method that our elites use to indoctrinate us. For example, the acceptance of gay marriage came about largely because of TV shows like “Will and Grace.” Even if you try to be aware of all the messages that are being sent your way, some of the more subtle ones will slip through.
Also, by buying entertainment, you are funding the cultural elite indoctrinators.
The best course of action is to radically reduce the amount of entertainment you consume. Some men have gotten rid of their television set. For me, I have reduced my consumption of entertainment down to an hour or so a month. The one exception is when the new season of “Game of Thrones” comes on HBO—that is the only television series that I watch.
A less radical course is to cut your consumption of entertainment in half. If you determine that you spend six hours a week playing video games, watching TV shows, or watching sports, cut it down to three hours per week.
In place of prepackaged entertainment, spend more time connecting to people who you love, reading quality material, getting outdoors more often, and working out.
6. Get Married and Have Kids
I’ve written a lot about the virtues of getting married and having kids already, so suffice it to say that this the main way we will get out of the Matrix. Teach your children about the red pill from birth. Train them to be confident and strong. They will grow up to become the leaders of the new world.
7. Read Old Books
The current delusion has not come upon us suddenly. It has been underway for several centuries. However, in the last 15 years, the influence of the cultural Matrix has become especially oppressive. That means that a lot of modern writing is imbued with the modern philosophy.
To counteract this, read old books. Historical, political, and philosophical works prior to 1940 are a good bet. Cast your net wide. Every age has its own mistakes. Reading old books allows us to see the mistakes of our own age.
8. Keep Fit
If you are overweight or sick, you are not going to have the presence of mind necessary to find a wife, raise your kids, or start a new business. Lack of discipline when it comes to caring for your body will manifest in other ways—if you are out of shape, you probably also have other addictions.
Start working out regularly. Do some form of exercise everyday, even if it is for a few minutes.
Stop eating processed food. It is laden with carbs and chemicals that will make you feel awful. Eat plenty of protein and vegetables. Add a moderate amount of fruits. Eating this way will give you energy and greater clarity of mind.
9. Get Rid of All Addictions
Addiction is a form of slavery. It also keeps you groggy so that you are unable to wake up. Whether your addiction is masturbation, porn, prescription drugs, alcohol, or gambling, do whatever it takes to extricate yourself from it. As long as you continue to be addicted, the Matrix will continue to have its claws in you.
10. Worship God
Yes, your priest or pastor is also probably indoctrinated in the Matrix so what you hear from the pulpit may be a message from the Matrix. I hate to say it, but much of what Pope Francis has to say, is pure messages from the Matrix.
That said, Christianity is the polar opposite of the Matrix. Put yourself on the side of Heaven and you will immediately strike at the heart of the Matrix.
Conclusion
Of course, these ten steps will only make a difference in your life if you diligently work at making them happen. Make a firm resolution complete all ten steps. Select one of them and get busy making it happen starting today. Don’t let the day end before you have taken a small step toward reaching the goal of true freedom.
A fine strategy Michael. The Matrix (the modern world) is a soul killer. Often I stop to ask myself if this is all just a dream because none of it makes much sense, even before that stupid movie came out – when I was a teenager, I could not make sense of the bullshit I was being sold and the direction society was heading in… it didn’t make sense then and it makes less sense now and there is no way anyone can convince me that the world we live in is better off than the world my grandfathers lived in and their grandfathers before them…
If I could just go over your points and add my own thoughts – with your kind permission.
1. Get rid of dept – don’t even get into dept, avoid dept at all costs and teach your children not to go into dept. follow this rule: if you can’t pay for something with cash then you can’t afford it.
2. Own property – income producing property is always a plus and if you have a home with enough land to grow your own food on even better, the future is uncertain in this modern world, if you can live a self sustainable life – you’re giving the finger to the matrix.
3. Detach from the corporate world – yes “fuck you money” is the best money to have, nothing beats complete and total independence from the world. How I suggest you get there is by learning a manual trade and developing skills that you can take anywhere in the world and find work, and bring your children up learning a manual trade so that they may be independent – I am a big believer that the easiest and fastest way to create wealth is to work as a family and develop a family business in the service and trade industries – plumbing, electricity, construction, auto repair… stuff like that. As your business grows then start to create multiple streams of income with a new family based business. Take some of this money that your family business has generated and buy enough land to build a family farm on and homes for all members – think of the “Kennedy Compound” or “South-fork” ranch or “The Ponderosa”.
4. Politics – the game is rigged, the sooner you come to terms with that the better off you will be. Stop thinking in term of left and right in politics because the reality is that any man that wants to be a politician is just a do-gooder up to no good or some ego-centric crook out to get what he can for himself – they are both scum… I’m still waiting to be proven wrong.
5. Modern entertainment is garbage made by retards for retards… just find something else to do, but if you need entertainment find old movies and old television shows where men are not fags like that retard show Everyone loves Raymond – why the hell was that show so popular… find old shows where the men are strong and brave and smart that is closer to reality than shows where the women are the smart brave leaders… or just go do something – experience life.
6. Get married and have kids – I spent too many important years chasing money and sluts when I should have been chasing happiness and creating a family of my own… but yeah… get married and make babies… and build a traditional family… that will really piss off the Matrix!
7. Read old books – like old movies, there is wisdom there that must not be forgotten in fiction and non-fiction alike… also, as a part time book dealer, might I recommend that you grab as many reference books from libraries as you can – the information in them is priceless and there seems to be a purge of reference books from libraries – not sure what that is about, but the books will be very valuable as collector piece and for their information – which is not the same as what can be found online (what you find online is modern information – and everything from history to science in being rewritten).
8. Keep fit – because it makes sense and working out makes you feel good and builds confidence and it not only builds physical strength but also helps build mental strength for a healthy lifestyle requires discipline and the stronger you get you will find that your way of thinking shifts more to conservative thinking because of your confidence in yourself – yet another fuck you to the Matrix.
9. Get rid of all addictions – if it serves no meaningful purpose in your life throw it out… make learning your addiction. Make working out your addiction. Make strengthening your mind and your soul an addiction. Make tradition your addiction. Make your family your addiction. Make the legacy you leave behind your addiction.
10. Worship God – Yes, worship God. We are not here by accident. We did not evolve – those that preach evolution will not survive evolution without God on their side. Worship God.
And I would also like to add an 11th to this fine list
11. Create – be artistic, write or paint or make music, learn and develop some artistic skill. It require discipline and takes time to perfect. It will help develop your mind to solve problems and create something of beauty and of use to society and it is good for the soul… so be creative.
Victor,
Thank you for sharing your thoughts here. Each of your points gives a valuable elaboration.
Your point 11 is so necessary. In our “practical” society, we’ve pushed creativity into the background. In the not so distant past, every educated man could compose poetry. Not all of them were great poets, but they all appreciated poetry. Even my uneducated grandmother was able to recite long poems—something that we have lost.
I also think of the men who built the great cathedrals. We don’t know their names, but they lovingly crafted works of great beauty to the greater glory of God.
We could all benefit by developing our creative talent. It would make our lives more truly human.
Thank you for this inspiring entry.
In our not so distant past most men where renaissance men, our military leaders, corporate leaders, and teachers new a little bit of everything – art, literature, music, architecture, and history and not only that – and this I think is important, the men of the generation before me had great penmanship, but even more impressive is that the men of the generation before them had even more extravagant writing techniques… how did we lose that art?
A side note on #6 – Getting married and having kids. I went out for burgers Wednesday night and one Muslim family after another kept coming in while I sat there eating slowly and sketching in my notebook. the first family was a young couple and they came in with six children, the man and wife did not look to be over thirty, the second family came in with four children, as well as the family after them, the fourth Muslin family that came in was huge – it was an invasion of the burger joint… it was three couples that I am assuming were related somehow and about a dozen children. The women were modest and quiet with their hair covered and the men loud and aggressive and with their chests out trying to intimidate those around them with their bad English and rude demanding behavior… I was hoping that a huge Mexican Catholic family would come in, but no dice… there was something about these people that night that got to me… I usually mind my own business but it felt like my positive energy was being sucked out of me, from when the first Muslim family came in until I left… I was just being drained of all good feelings, I packed up my fries and my books and left… as soon as I walked out the door and took a deep breath… my vibration began to return to normal and by the time I had walked home I was feeling good again.
So misogynistic asshole behavior is accetaple? Good luck with that.
Great post. Spot on.
Also good comment from Victor. Really like your addition number 11.
We need more men to see through this matrix and I hope this is happening. I know I have, but now I’m stuck in my corporate job and my massive mortgage. I was sucked into the matrix before I realised. Also spent too many years fart arsing around when I should have married my girlfriend and been having babies. Still attempting to make an exit, although its very very hard. Taking the red pill is good, but it doesn’t then make it easy to escape.
David, Don’t feel bad. I think all of us have been sucked into a greater or lesser degree. I wasted a lot of time chasing women and spending money on stupid things.
But none of this is pure chance. Even our wanderings are part of the plan and God is able to bring good out evil.
Out of all the debt that you could assume, the big mortgage is the least offensive one. At least you are building equity in an asset that usually does not depreciate in value. A mortgage is almost a necessary evil these days.
Great post. We need to disengage from the frenetic intemperance of our times. People have a mania for speed and a nausea for reflection. Breaking with the “matrix” is a great way to wean us away from those absorbing activities that take us away from all those things that really matter. God bless!
John, thanks for the comment. I’ve started to read your excellent book, Return to Order, and we are in complete agreement.
I’ve decided to stop bowing at the altar of consumerism. Thanks for your great posts!
8 out of 10 is not bad.
Our overlords are obviously and intentionally destroying, weakening, and dividing the economy and the USA by punishing hard work with regulations and taxes and rewarding laziness with welfare while promoting illegal immigration, free trade, feminism, homosexuality, moral decay, drugs, wars, the minimum wage, political correctness, debt, gun control, and the nanny police state.
Once the country is destroyed and the poor become too much of a burden on the rich, the elites will soon say Capitalism failed to justify turning the US into a hardcore Communist state. Americans will then be sent to concentration camps and starved and killed so the 1% can divide the wealth and land among themselves.
Wake up. How else can you explain why the government is doing the opposite of every logical action to help the economy? Economics isn’t rocket science. If you want to boost the economy and nation, don’t allow millions of cheap illegal immigrants to flood the country, offshore jobs to 3rd world countries, punish hard work with taxes and regulations, and reward laziness with welfare.
Sadly Americans won’t realize what is happening until it is too late.
Never underestimate the inhumanity of man towards man. Greed has no bounds.
Totally awesome post! Each point was right on.
I also appreciate your posts and comments on ROK.
I do have to give you a bit of a razzing about the Pope however.
Scripture (not a man like the Pope) is the true inerrant, and infallible source of spiritual authority. Scripture is what it is. The Word of the LORD stands true forever.
Bart, glad you enjoyed the post. Although it looks pretty simple, there is actually quite a bit behind each recommendation.
About the pope, no worries. As Christians we are at a point where we have to be united in prayer and action even if we don’t have full doctrinal unity at this point. The forces that are arrayed against us are vast and formidable. If we are too busy fighting each other, society is going to take a bad turn. All believers are on the same team.
That said, one of these days I will type up why I am Catholic, and you can poke holes in it. 🙂
A real Catholic, and a real Protestant (not the average modern mealy-mouthed Evangelical variety, but the old school Calvin, Luther, Spurgeon, Edwards, Knox variety) actually have a great deal in common.
Serious Christianity is of critical importance if our society has any hope of recovery.
Christ will reign and all who oppose Him will ultimately come to utter ruin.
I enjoy this blog, and your articles at ROK.
Thanks
On reading books: have you noticed that fiction in the last 20 years has abandoned narrative and replaced it with a series of random events?
You see it in Film too. Pirates of the Caribbean is a good example.
The latest Sherlock Holmes adventures have taken the original character and turned him into a postmodern sexual and cultural adventurer.
That’s a great observation. I’ve noticed it in film. Most movies are unwatchable now. They are just a bunch of scenes strung together with only the thinnest plot.
It has two effects: (1) It decreases our attention span making it less likely that we will stop and think, and (2) it reinforces the idea that life is a meaningless series of random events.
This is probably more insidious than even the overt messages they are pushing. More reason to avoid modern film/literature.
Thank you gentlemen you have shown me the red pill path i think the best way forward is to start area groups to perpetuate red pill thinking and reverse the matrix messages. Might be better to keep these groups below the radar till enough intel has been collected to negate any attempt to interfere in our work we in the UK are waking up to the hypocrisy and are beginning to look for leadership to be proactive in our responses
I came across your article when I was web searching for an applicable and easy description of what Globalism really meant. After reading the article, I knew I had to post it to every political social media outlet in the hopes of others reading it. I have since posted it to every Facebook site that deals with politics. I find it hard to explain what happens to us after globalization, but I know it is not going to be good. Perhaps a form of Communism? I constantly hear it cannot happen because Americans will not put up with it. My response is, “you have already been putting up with it for years.” Thank you for this article. I will continue to encourage others to read it and to post it .