If the Story Changes, the Followers Change With It

In the cult of denial, the “update” isn’t learning—it’s editing reality’s entrance requirements: “See No Evidence” on the left, “Hear No Facts” on the right, and a leadership-at-the-front that never has to sweat over what happened. Then comes the line that tells you everything: “If the story changes, the followers change with it.” Not because the world got clearer—because the tribe got threatened.

I’ve sat through enough confessions (and enough press releases in a collar) to recognize the same moral trick: when truth costs you comfort, denial becomes a sacrament. But if evidence is always the enemy and facts are always the distraction, the “truth test” stops testing truth and starts testing loyalty. Peace be with the neighbor who wants receipts; mercy be with the voter being told that ignoring them is the same thing as being faithful.