The Red Pill, and the Blue Pills

Once again, a reference to The Matrix today—but it’s such a revealing movie that it’s easy to refer to.

For those who have seen and enjoyed the film, we all remember the famous scene where Morpheus offers Neo a choice: the blue pill or the red pill.
The blue pill keeps Neo in the Matrix, while the red pill makes him wake up.

Unfortunately, in reality, there is no actual red pill—no tailor-made trigger that suddenly makes us see things differently, as it did for Neo or for those who have already escaped the Matrix.

However, in theory, taking care of our brain is the closest thing to that. By building good habits, we can take the equivalent of the red pill every day—by learning, socializing, embracing difficulties and challenges, and taking time to reflect.

On the other hand, we live in a world full of blue pills, even if we don’t perceive them as such (and that’s a shame—just like nutrition or environmental labels, we could create an “Awareness” label, more or less blue or red depending on how much an activity or product fosters awareness).
Would that idea sell?
Probably not, because, cynically speaking, the elites at the top have already escaped the Matrix and are exploiting people for even more profit.
Of course, not everything is black and white—some individuals, I’m sure, are doing their best and genuinely believe they are acting for the good of humanity.

In my opinion, the more we continue distributing blue pills—especially ones that are increasingly effective at influencing our brains—the closer we get to disaster.

If neuroscience can help us understand that the brain is the key to a united humanity, one that lives in harmony with nature and understands individual differences, then that’s promising.
But ironically, a deeper understanding of how the brain works also allows those who care less about global balance to develop systems that push people even further into taking blue pills.

So the real question is: how far can we go on blue pills?

Nowadays, unless you’re a Tibetan monk living in the mountains, it’s practically impossible to live without taking blue pills.

Work is perhaps the most insidious blue pill because it’s essential for survival.

More recently, social media and smartphones have become the most powerful blue pills—designed and optimized to be exactly that.

So, what can we do?

Take it step by step. At your own pace.

I know that there are already people who don’t consume too many blue pills, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are taking actions for the red pill.

Understanding that we are responsible is only possible when we take the time to ingest those red pills.

PS: I feel like today’s post turned out to be far more abstract than I initially intended.