Theory of Oppression

In terms of what the victim experiences, the only difference between a slave and a prisoner is the label.
Oppression is seldom pointless. The problem is we too easily get caught up in the discussion of who is doing what, instead of paying attention to the effects as a whole. It won’t matter what labels we apply to those who run the system, nor their names. Nor is it really necessary to examine all the various mechanisms of oppression and their plans. All we need to know is they plan to grab more power and wealth in such a way as to make executing their dreams less inconvenient, which typically means reducing resistance from those they intend to oppress.
It’s not a question of how much They want; They want it all, however much that is. And control results in slavery of one form or another. The ultimate issue for you and I is dependence. The one thing They must have at all costs is our dependence. Without that, none of it will work.
If all you really want in the coming days of trouble is to survive, just learn to accept any indignity and embrace your dependence. Let them see your distress and fear. You’ll do as well as anyone else, and better than most. For anyone who feels there is something about living which is worth more than life itself, you’ll need to understand how oppression works at the most fundamental level. It’s not about resistance, per se, so much as maintaining that certain little something they can’t take from you, that something which has to be surrendered.
You could play Superman, if you possess whatever talents and resources are necessary to actually defeat the minions of darkness, but people like that never listen to advice in the first place. I’m not any part of a Superman, and I’ll bet you aren’t either.
We will all surrender something, tolerate some measure of indignity, because it simply doesn’t matter against the thing for which we would die. As humans, we are a social species, and survival on any terms is greatly increased by compromise in favor of the group. The coming oppression has been built so far on convincing you the compromise has already been made, that it would be sheer madness to question the unstated assumptions of the oppressor’s hand inside the glove of false community. “Didn’t you elect us? Let us do our jobs!” Simply observing what They do, regardless of all the propaganda from all directions, we see they intend to claim unlimited obedience.
The path to such obedience is fear and dependence.
I’ll give you a sample. During my training as a Military Policeman, the trainers gave us the official outline of our mission using three “S” words: secure, segregate, and speed. Roughly that translates as subdue them, make them dependent, and move them. You have to understand the utter lack of intellect found in military occupational specialty training schools. Virtually all of the instructors ended up there because, while they aren’t trouble, they can’t be advanced to anything more important, either. A precious few get to choose the class they teach, but most get what’s left, and we as trainees are under the guidance of leadership leftovers, too. Much the same can be said of those who write the instructional materials. So rare is writing talent in those manuals, it’s remarkable when you find one you actually want to read. The whole purpose of military training is to lower the standards until an acceptable majority makes it through and graduates, which typically means dumbing it down and dragging the talented down with it. The young and sharp students always get in trouble until they learn to shut up. I went through the MP School somewhat older, and already with some military experience. I had something of what it took to analyze things on a different level. That three-S business was meant to disguise from the MPs the sort of nastiness our work involved.
I hated it right away, but there was no escape short of what actually happened totally unplanned. I was physically disabled just enough to justify separation. But not before I had plenty of opportunity to see quite how nasty they demanded I be. In handling prisoners, we were trained to keep them disoriented, focused entirely on what we demanded of them moment by moment. We never told them our plans, and did almost nothing by routine from their perspective. We were taught subtle, low level cruelty and arrogance. We never allowed them to get close enough to talk with each other any more than was absolutely necessary as dictated by circumstances. We rewarded any snitching, even when it was apparently dishonest. The most simple courtesies of human existence were called into doubt. We wanted them dependent on us.
There was a lot less work involved if our only contact with prisoners was transportation. I preferred that part of the job a great deal. There were ways to make myself tolerate doing the searches and pat-downs, and I seldom had to deny them standard human needs. I just had to make sure not to chat with them, as it was all strictly business. I did recall having to remind my partners to shut up all too often, but that was simply part of being the senior patrolman. It was as confining on me as it was for the prisoners. I never enjoyed much of it the way my soulless associates did.
A sick truth: We were taught from the start to distrust each other, to be ready to snitch about the slightest variation from instructions. We were always ourselves dependent and fearful of our superiors, of losing what little advantage of position we had.
Even now, right this moment, your freedom is already limited. There is the appearance of some routine liberty, but the moment you overstep the boundaries, you’ll experience the other side of what I just described. You’ll be handled by thugs who have little depth of understanding, just following orders, and very little patience with anything. Even though police work is increasingly less risky, they will insist to themselves everything is a threat, and it must be met with force. For some of the slightest variations from their subjective expectations in any context, you’ll be treated worse than you can imagine, until you see it up close. Now remind yourself the things which they’ll let pass will shrink daily, and the things which can get you in trouble will increase at the same rate.
Joking and clowning your way through it will often infuriate them, and you should expect handling to get rougher. They are taught to expect resistance, anger, incredulity, and even joking. They are taught to induce terror to get past resistance. The one thing that will make them most uncomfortable is a complete, almost robotic aplomb. Yes, most of them can spot the sort of involuntary cues our bodies give off when we are afraid, but when those are completely missing, it is they who become disoriented. Despite appearances, it is you who are in control.
You don’t have to be a victim.
For Christians, the lesson should be obvious. When we fear only God, and care for nothing in the world so much we tremble at its loss, we make Him look glorious. Nothing else matters.