Alex argues that if you care to convince people to fight an injustice, such as the torture of innocents, do not talk about how terrible the injustice is. Spin it as a minor issue that can be easily fixed, or turn it into an us versus them scenario. It’s clear this strategy works on lesser issues, such as with office politics.
Torture in a Just World
If the world is just, only the guilty are tortured. So believers in a just world are more likely to think that the people who are tortured are guilty. Perhaps especially so if they experience the torture closely and so feel a greater need to overcome cognitive dissonance. On the other hand, those farther away from the experience of torture may feel less need to justify it and they may be more likely to identify the tortured as victims. The theory of moral typecasting suggests that victims are also more likely to be seen as innocents (a la Jesus).
