लक्ष्यभ्रम (Lakṣyabhrama): Shifting Goalposts
Moving the Target
"Prove destruction" becomes "Even if destroyed, forget it." Standards change whenever they're about to be met, ensuring the target can never win.
The Unwinnable Game
Imagine playing a game where the rules change every time you're about to win.
You score the winning goal, but the goalpost has moved. You meet the required standard, but the standard has changed. You provide the demanded evidence, but now different evidence is required.
This is not a game designed for you to win. It is a game designed to exhaust you into giving up while maintaining the appearance of fair play.
This is Lakṣyabhrama, target confusion, the shifting of goalposts. A tactic that makes victory impossible not by overpowering you, but by ensuring that whatever you achieve is never enough.
The Anatomy of Shifting Goalposts
Shifting goalposts operates through several mechanisms:
1. Conditional Acceptance
"We would accept your position IF you could prove X."
The condition seems reasonable. You work to prove X. When you do:
"Well, X alone isn't sufficient. You also need Y."
You prove Y.
"X and Y are fine, but without Z, we can't be convinced."
This can continue indefinitely. Each condition, when met, reveals a new condition that wasn't mentioned before. The implicit promise, that meeting the condition would lead to acceptance, is never honored.
2. Standard Escalation
"Your evidence doesn't meet scholarly standards."
You provide peer-reviewed research.
"Those journals aren't rigorous enough."
You publish in top-tier journals.
"Academic publications don't reflect real-world consensus."
You show widespread expert agreement.
"Expert consensus doesn't determine truth."
The standard escalates until it becomes impossible, and the escalation always happens just as the previous standard is about to be met.
3. Definitional Drift
"We support democracy."
You hold free and fair elections.
"Elections alone don't make a democracy. You need press freedom."
You have a vibrant, critical press.
"Press freedom isn't enough. You need to protect minorities."