Hello,
I was with my brother and his group of friends, and one of his friends was talking about various drugs. My brother told him, “Shut up, you’re going to put us on a watchlist,” and he said it in a serious tone. It felt pretty dystopian when he said that; honestly, it was a bit eerie, mostly because he’s being controlled and self-censoring without anyone there, and he seems to be aware of the freedom he’s giving up, yet he continues to act this way. I’ve talked to my brother about privacy and why it’s important many times, but he would rather live this type of controlled life and doesn’t care because “they already know everything about me anyway.” He’s in his early 20s.
Has anyone else had moments like this?
No one gets put on a watchlist for talking about drugs with their pals in a bar.
The fear that some “other” will somehow overhear, have the power to add you to this list, actually do so, and that even such a “talked about drugs” watchlist exists that can upset your life, is the irrational and paranoid bit.