The Psychological and Intelligence War Against Civilians: How Information, AI, and Subliminal Warfare Are Targeting the Average Citizen

Jae Byrd Wells
Jan 3
7 min read

Introduction: A War Without Uniforms

There is a psychological and intelligence war actively unfolding, and it is not primarily targeting soldiers, intelligence officers, or battlefield commanders. Instead, it is aimed squarely at the average civilian: abused individuals, trauma survivors, angry and disenfranchised citizens, political opponents, religious dissenters, and creative individuals desperate to escape toxic environments. This war does not announce itself with tanks or air raids. It arrives quietly—through screens, music, images, algorithms, and emotional manipulation.

This conflict exploits vulnerability. Individuals seeking opportunity—actors, authors, writers, artists, activists—are particularly exposed. Many are living with toxic parents, abusive spouses, or strained family systems. They are searching for meaning, validation, safety, and escape. Hostile actors recognize this psychological opening and weaponize empathy, curiosity, and trust to extract information, destabilize identity, and sow internal conflict.

This is not speculation. It is the modern battlefield.

a woman with her hands raised as she is kneeling on the ground

Civilians as Intelligence Targets

One of the most dangerous features of this war is that civilians are encouraged—often subtly—to open up about safety. Individuals are asked about security procedures at conventions, libraries, schools, religious institutions, and public gatherings. These questions are framed as concern, advocacy, or academic research, but the aggregated data reveals vulnerabilities within a country’s civilian infrastructure.

This intelligence is not gathered to protect communities. It is gathered to identify weaknesses that can later be exploited for massacres, psychological terrorism, and destabilization campaigns. The individual providing information often believes they are contributing to safety, unaware they may be feeding a hostile intelligence pipeline.

Subliminal Messaging, Light Patterns, and Neurological Pressure

Modern psychological warfare increasingly relies on subliminal messaging, embedded not only in language but in visual stimuli, particularly in music videos, short-form content, advertisements, and algorithmically promoted imagery. This includes deliberate manipulation of light patterns, repetition, contrast, and rhythmic visual loops.

From a neuroscientific perspective, the way our brain processes visual information begins with light entering the eyes as photons. These photons hit the retina, where specialized cells called photoreceptors convert the light patterns into electrical signals. These signals then travel along the optic nerve to the brain’s visual cortex, located in the occipital lobe. Within this region, a complex network of neurons works to break down and analyze the incoming data—detecting edges, discerning colors, tracking movement, and understanding spatial relationships between objects.

The brain doesn’t simply piece together raw data blindly; it employs intricate circuits and comparison processes, constantly matching incoming signals against stored memories and learned patterns. This elaborate system allows us to create a coherent, integrated picture of the world—an experience of reality that feels seamless and meaningful.

However, this delicate process can be disrupted or manipulated. When visual stimuli are intentionally designed—whether through looping images, conflicting patterns, or overstimulation—they can produce adverse effects. Such stimuli can trigger migraines, generate intrusive thoughts, induce cognitive looping, and cause emotional distress. In some cases, they lead to dissociation, where individuals feel disconnected from their surroundings or themselves. This is because overstimulation overtaxes the brain’s ability to process information healthily, creating a state of neurological stress that can overwhelm the mind’s defenses.

On a more insidious level, intelligence agencies or extremist groups have learned to embed these visual patterns into media as subliminal cues. These cues are subtle, often hidden within images or videos, but they can have profound effects on the brain’s neurological state. Exposure to these subliminal stimuli can induce a form of neurological stress that pressures the individual’s mental and emotional stability, gradually fracturing their psychological defenses. This process can lead to inner conflict, confusion, and emotional turmoil.

At this breaking point, the individual is often pushed toward acting on deeply rooted emotions—such as hate or rage—that may already exist within them but are usually kept in check. The manipulation acts like a form of “hate therapy,” intentionally designed to evoke destructive responses. The person may find themselves acting out violence, harboring intense resentment, or even turning against their own mind in an effort to recall or reclaim their true identity—before they were subjected to these manipulative stimuli. In essence, they are driven toward a psychological war within themselves, torn between their authentic self and the influence of the engineered stress and fear implanted through targeted visual and sensory manipulation.

This understanding underscores the profound impact that carefully crafted visual patterns and subliminal cues can have on the human brain—transforming a person’s internal landscape and pushing them toward destructive behaviors, all while they remain largely unaware of the forces at play.

Psychological and Intelligence War in Social Media: The Primary Battlefield

Today, social media isn’t just about sharing photos or catching up with friends—it's become the main battlefield for psychological warfare. Unlike traditional wars fought with guns and tanks, this is a quiet, invisible war happening online, where influence and manipulation can sway entire societies.

Foreign countries, extremist groups, and even some political groups actively target each other through social media campaigns. They aim to spread hate, fear, and division—sometimes with coordinated efforts using fake accounts, bots, and fake news. Their goal is to create chaos, deepen existing conflicts, and turn communities against each other—all without setting foot on a single border.

The social media platforms themselves play a part in this. Their algorithms are designed to show you content that makes you react strongly—whether it’s anger, outrage, or fear—because that keeps you engaged longer. So, things that trigger strong emotions spread faster and wider, often fueling tribalism and polarizing opinions. This makes it easier for bad actors to manipulate public opinion and stir up trouble, all while people are unaware of how much they’re being influenced.

Artificial intelligence has made this even more dangerous. Deepfake videos, fake images, and voice-synthesis technology can create incredibly convincing fake content. A single convincing video or image can make you believe something that’s completely false—like implicating someone in a crime or spreading false rumors—so easily that you might not even question it. When these fakes confirm your fears or biases, they’re even more powerful.

And here’s the tricky part: false information spreads so quickly online that even when the truth eventually comes out, it often lags behind. Correcting misinformation is like trying to put a genie back in the bottle—almost impossible once it’s gone viral. The emotional impact of a fake story can stick with people long after the truth is known.

In short, social media has become the new battlefield where minds are won and lost. It’s a space where influence is the weapon, and truth is often the first casualty. Recognizing this reality is the first step toward protecting ourselves—by being more aware, questioning what we see, and developing smarter ways to defend against manipulation.

Comparative Data: Weapons, Population, and Psychological Risk

To understand why this psychological war is so dangerous, especially in certain societies, we must examine structural realities.

Table 1: Civilian Firearm Ownership per 100 People

a chart comparison of guns per person in the USA

(Small Arms Survey, https://www.smallarmssurvey.org)

[Chart: Civilian Firearm Ownership per 100 People — visual above]

High weapon availability does not cause violence by itself. However, when combined with psychological manipulation, misinformation, trauma exploitation, and social fragmentation, it dramatically increases the consequences of mental instability and radicalization. The United States exists in a uniquely high-risk environment where information warfare targeting civilians can have catastrophic outcomes.

Social Media Penetration and Exposure Risk

Table 2: Social Media Penetration (% of Population)

(DataReportal, https://www.datareportal.com)

a chart showing the comparison of social media penetration

[Chart: Social Media Penetration by Country — visual above]

When high social media penetration overlaps with high emotional polarization and AI-driven misinformation, societies become extraordinarily vulnerable. Hostile actors do not need physical access to destabilize nations; they already have digital access to beliefs, identities, fears, and unresolved trauma.

From Information Warfare to Real-World Violence

The tragic outcomes of this war are visible. The Las Vegas massacre, 2017, repeated school shootings in the United States, and the October 7 Hamas attacks in Israel demonstrate how psychological radicalization, grievance narratives, and dehumanization can culminate in mass violence. These events are not isolated. They are symptoms of a world where information, emotion, and identity are weaponized.

Former CIA Director Michael Hayden warned that “the world is not dangerous because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing” (Hayden, Playing to the Edge). Former FBI Director James Comey emphasized that radicalization often occurs “long before a trigger is pulled, in the quiet reinforcement of belief” (Comey, A Higher Loyalty).

Ethics, Faith, and the Return to Moral Grounding

This is why many traditions emphasize moral restraint and dialogue. The Torah teaches, “Whoever destroys a single life is considered as if he destroyed an entire world” (Sanhedrin 4:5). The King James Bible echoes this in Matthew 5:9: “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God” (https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+5%3A9&version=KJV). The Qur’an similarly states, “Whoever kills a soul…it is as if he had slain mankind entirely” (Qur’an 5:32, https://quran.com/5/32).

Sigmund Freud warned that unresolved trauma, when manipulated, can turn inward or outward destructively. Modern psychologists echo this concern, emphasizing that identity destabilization is a precursor to violence.

a woman kneeling at a pew and her hands are in folded prayer — Pray for Your World

We Are All Diplomats Now

We must recognize that we are in a knowledge war. Humanity is at war with itself, and subliminal warfare is tearing at the fabric of society. The only viable defense is a return to principles, standards, and moral accountability. We must relearn how to talk to each other—about religion, politics, activities, and feelings—without slamming doors or walking away.

We must stay at the peace tables until every voice is heard and every feeling acknowledged. Every life is precious. In this war, civilians are not collateral damage—they are the front line.