What do you do when you have the Devil by the tail?

[Editor's Note: The image was too large, so it is posted at the end in PDF format and it has some spelling errors.]

At the dawn of the 20th century, the Progressive movement promised to uplift the American spirit through science, education, and reform. It was a time of optimism—of settlement houses, food safety laws, and the belief that enlightened governance could cure society's ills. But as I have said before, good intentions without humility can become a prescription for tyranny.

"Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive."—C.S. Lewis

That quote could serve as a keystone. Big Food, Big Pharma, Big Ag, and Big Insurance might be seen as the unintended heirs of Progressive paternalism. They do not bind us with chains, but with corn syrup, statins, and bliss-point engineering. They do not silence dissent but drown it in advertising and subsidized addiction.

An American market researcher coined the term "bliss point" in the 1970s—a point that refers to "the perfect ratio of fat, sugar, and salt" that triggers our brains to crave more. Essentially, the bliss point fuels food addiction, a major contributor to America's obesity rates and related diseases. And while the bliss point is a technological achievement, it undermines our autonomy, swapping discernment for dopamine. What is needed is the ability to act with moral clarity even when the system is stacked against you. Insurance algorithms prioritize risk over mercy. Food labels focus on grams, not grace—all driven by profit.

Early Progressives set out to protect the vulnerable, but the institutions that were created often manipulated those they intended to help, keeping them dependent on the system. What began as social uplift has morphed into behavioral control, often disguised as wellness, inclusion, or safety. In this transformation, the foundational values of spiritual and communal uplift, once rooted in traditions such as the Gospel of Christ, have been supplanted by a new guiding philosophy: the Gospel of Consumption. This modern creed encourages continual consumption, subtly shaping desires and behaviors, and reinforcing cycles of dependency that serve the interests of powerful institutions rather than the people they claim to protect.

What do you do when you have the Devil by the tail? Put on the armor of God and let go.