We humans are proud of our memory. We believe our memory is perfect and that we can remember everything in detail. Moreover, we assume that whatever we remember is completely accurate. But this is a myth.
Our brain functions in such a way that it doesn’t truly care about preserving memories. It cannot store information like a computer. Most of the time, our memory is flawed, vague, inaccurate and filled with the garbage that our mind creates when it has too much time to do so.
The mind remembers only what it considers important. Something may feel important to us, but if the brain decides it is not, it simply deletes it. It can even create false memories. The Mandela Effect is an example of this phenomenon. We cannot remember things as accurately as a machine. We can’t even recall events that happened right in front of us with perfect clarity when we have to tell about it years later. As time passes, memories become blurry and fragmented. This is why witnesses forget details of cases and clever lawyers exploit this to distort facts in their favour.
Politicians also use this weakness to manipulate the memories of the public. They implant ideas that serve their own intentions. They distort history and present selective facts that create feelings of pride or victimhood in particular groups. Through this, they control people. Individuals become absorbed in the past and forget the present. This is the greatest harm our memory can do to us.
Therefore, we need to think about the events and their chronology. We must not be selective. Instead, we should examine humanity, history and everything without being judgemental. We should not rely solely on our memories, instead we should be sceptical and study as much as possible.
