Okay, so can someone please explain why secret societies put so much effort into being secret? What would be the consequences of them not being secret? Like let's say some politicians and other people in power stepped forward and announced that there was a secret society controlling everything: from rigging elections to hacking into our computers/phones to staging terrorist attacks as excuses for going to war...what would happen? Sure, people would be upset and there would be lots of protests and public outcry, but other than that, how would it affect the members of the secret society? If average citizens tried to overthrow the government, the government (with the police and military on their side) would no doubt come on top. So why does the government try so hard to hide the bad things it's done when they won't face any punishment? After all, the government (congress, president, judges, police, military) would be the ones to arrest citizens for committing crimes and would never admit that they did wrongdoing and arrest themselves.
Because their power rests in the fact that nobody knows what they are doing. Once people found out they were being used by a group they would quit being used by them and that group would lose their power. Simple as that really.
You've accidentally stumbled on why Americans love the 2A. Yes, people would die, but, in the end, we come from liberty lovers. As long as the bread and circuses continue, all is mostly fine. Once you destroy the mirage, people will, no doubt, revolt. As soon as they remove our right to vote, it would be over. The bloodshed would be massive, but ultimately, the people would win. There are more of us then them. And we have guns, too.
Adding that the police and military would most definitely not be on their side. Our government treats them like used trash after their service. Rookie move, government. Rookie move.
Because when it came out that powerful Dems and powerfull Pubs were in the same societies and working backroom deals while playing political theatre for the news cameras, the bipartisan sham would be over and they would all lose influence.
Secrecy and deception are part of the human condition, especially humans in government and business. Privacy for the individual is most excellent, but deception by the government should be against the law, probably is against the law, but who cares?
Secret societies work hard to stay secret because they are "secret societies". If they did not stay secret, they would not be a secret society. They would just be an average boring club.
I think it makes people feel like they have some exclusivity and value, because not just anyone can join the group or know what they do. If you look in anthropology at traditional tribes in West Africa and the islands around New Guinea they had secret societies for both men and women.
