psychological roots of pathology

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I wonder if collective guilt acknowledges the projective identification, which is behind the persecution of minorities.  The primitive notion, "we have an enemy within", which can be identified and destroyed/cast out in order to purify and thus "save" the community tends to run beneath the level of conscious awareness.  It afflicts communities that are very stressed and therefore inclined to adopt regressive modes of coping.



I think that whenever communities become very stressed they are in high danger of creating another scapegoat to purify themselves and try to change their bad luck into good luck.



Reparations are one thing, and I have no comment on those, although in some circumstances they would be a good idea.   But I don't think they get to the psychological roots.




2. The minute you make it all about one group, another group has already become victim and then another. Hard to keep up. I do think that collective guilt has actually worked to CAUSE more stress and thus MORE projective identification in much of the Western world. I point this out, but because I am considered one of the evil ones, I may as well be speaking to the air. Paranoia increases with guilt and insight deteriorates.