We live under a triad of control: technology, economy, and government. Each system feeds into the others, forming a complex web of power. These forces appear distinct, but they function in synchronization like the parts of a combustion engine, ensuring that control is consolidated in the hands of a few while individual autonomy is gradually eroded. This is Systemic Realism: the recognition that human freedom has been curtailed, and the systems we live within offer only the illusion of choice.

I. Technology: The Cage Disguised as Liberation

Technology once promised liberation. We were sold the dream of endless possibility: machines to simplify our labor, devices to connect us, and platforms to empower us. Yet what was presented as liberation has become a quiet prison. And we, the willing participants, have walked right into its embrace. Technology is no longer a tool we wield; it wields us.

Surveillance Capitalism: The likes of Google and Facebook have mastered the art of commodifying human behavior itself. We have become the product. Through constant monitoring of our online activity, they have built profiles more intimate than anything we consciously share. These profiles are then sold to the highest bidder, not for our benefit, but for theirs.

Algorithmic Manipulation: Platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok do not just serve content; they shape it to keep us endlessly engaged. The longer we stay, the more data they collect. Algorithms decide what we see, not based on what we need, but on what keeps us hooked. It is not entertainment or information. It is a digital feedback loop, designed to amplify our biases and feed us more of the same until we no longer see outside of our curated bubbles.

Addiction as Control: Psychologists have long warned us of how these platforms exploit the brain’s reward system. Every “like” and notification triggers a dopamine release, making us crave more, until engagement becomes not a choice, but a compulsion. This is not connection; it is addiction. And the more we consume, the deeper we sink into dependence.