A fnord is disinformation or irrelevant information
intending to misdirect, with the implication of a conspiracy.
The word originated in the obscure Principia Discordia, by Kerry Thornley and
and Greg Hill, but it was popularized by the Illuminatus! trilogy
(1975) by Robert Joseph Shea and Robert Anton Wilson. This series is a science
fiction-influenced drug- and sex-laden trek through a number of conspiracy
theories, both historical and imaginary, which hinge around the authors'
version of the clandestine Illuminati Society. The three books that comprise
the trilogy are The Eye in the Pyramid, The Golden Apple and
Leviathan.
I will not try to describe here the tremendous impact this trilogy had on me
as a young man.
In these novels, it is claimed that the interjection "fnord" possesses
hypnotic power. A conspiracy of the world's controlling powers conditions
everyone from a young age to be unable to consciously see the word "fnord";
instead, every appearance of the word will unconsciously generate a general
feeling of uneasiness and confusion. Fnords are scattered liberally in the
text of newspapers and magazines, causing fear and anxiety in those following
current events. (However, there are no fnords in the advertisements,
encouraging a Consumerist society – leading to more power for the controlling
forces!) It is implied in the books that fnord is not the actual word used for
this task; it is a substitute, since use of the actual word itself would not
be able to be detected by most readers.
To "see the fnords" means to be unaffected by the supposed hypnotic power of
the word or, more loosely, of other "fighting words" or terms of disparagement
such as yid, kike, nigger, whore, slut, fag, queer or towel-head whose use
usually arouses painful feelings in the target, members of the targeted group
or sympathizers. They may also signify derision for people of specific
geographic areas, such as Mick, Kraut and Jaffa.
I believe one modern coinage that comes close to describing spoken fnords is "codespeak".
A codespeak word sounds innocent enough, but it is laden with psychological
and emotional meanings of quite a different, more sinister nature. (Think:
The Final Solution, Welfare Reform, The Patriot Act,
Trickle-Down Economics, Pacification Campaign, etc.)
Have you seen or heard any fnords lately? There are plenty of them out there.
Postscript: Use of the word "fnord" is a
popular catch phrase with followers of Discordianism. The Discordian religion
has been described as both an elaborate joke disguised as a religion, and a
religion disguised as an elaborate joke. It has also been described as a
religion disguised as a joke disguised as a religion. Others view it as a
simple rejection of reductionism and dualism, even falsifiability — not in
concept different from postmodernism or certain trends in the philosophy of
mathematics. It has also been described as "Zen for roundeyes", and converges
with some of the more absurdist interpretations of the Rinzai tradition.
The Principia Discordia is the primary sacred
scripture of the Discordian religion. The full title of the fourth and most
popular edition is PRINCIPIA DISCORDIA, or How I Found Goddess And What I Did
To Her When I Found Her: The Magnum Opiate Of Malaclypse The Younger, Wherein
is Explained Absolutely Everything Worth Knowing About Absolutely Anything.
The work describes the Discordian Society and its Goddess Eris, as well as the
basics of Discordianism. It features typewritten and handwritten text
intermixed with clipart, stamps, and seals taken (possibly illegally) from
other sources. The work is characterized by nonsense and numerous non
sequiturs.
The Principia Discordia contains the Law of Eristic Escalation. This law
states that Imposition of Order = Escalation of Chaos. This can be read as an
argument against "zero tolerance" and hard security, or just a statement about
the world.
The Pentabarf (given on page 00004 of the Principia) is the set of 5 holy laws
of Discordianism. It is as follows:
-
There
is no Goddess but Goddess and She is Your Goddess. There is no Erisian
Movement but The Erisian Movement and it is The Erisian Movement. And every
Golden Apple Corps is the beloved home of a Golden Worm.
-
A
Discordian Shall Always use the Official Discordian Document Numbering
System.
-
A
Discordian is Required during his early Illumination to Go Off Alone &
Partake Joyously of a Hot Dog on a Friday; this Devotive Ceremony to
Remonstrate against the popular Paganisms of the Day: of Catholic
Christendom (no meat on Friday), of Judaism (no meat of Pork), of Hindic
Peoples (no meat of Beef), of Buddhists (no meat of animal), and of
Discordians (no Hot Dog Buns).
-
A
Discordian shall Partake of No Hot Dog Buns, for Such was the Solace of Our
Goddess when She was Confronted with The Original Snub.
-
A
Discordian is Prohibited from Believing What he reads.
The Pentabarf is the most fundamental of all
Discordian catma (which is what Discordians have instead of "dogma"). As the
third commandment demands a violation of the fourth commandment, and the fifth
commandment seems to subvert the concept of written law, it is not clear
whether the Pentabarf is considered binding. Furthermore, the "Official
Discordian Document Numbering System" from the second holy law is not
mentioned anywhere else in the Principia.
Reading the Pentabarf in reverse order may help
to better link its concepts together. The prohibition of belief in readings is
a stern warning that beliefs should be inspired, not dictated; that one
shouldn't adhere to dogma. The fourth creates dogma, and is it reminded in the
third that dogma should be rejected. The second orders the following of what
would be dogma if it existed at all. It reinforces the futility of following
dogma by showing that words cannot set an official belief system to be shared
by all; each will interpret differently, in accordance to the principles of
chaos. As for the first, a circular definition, it warns of the dangers of
such definitions, nearly universal in belief systems. Thinking about the first
reveals the futility of circular definitions.
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