I've negotiated with armed men and terrorists. I've sat across from killers. I've learned that a gun to the head creates a simple, desperate equation: comply or die. But the most effective hostage-takers I've ever witnessed - and am witnessing today - don't carry weapons. They don't need to. They've discovered a more insidious tactic. On that's been around for centuries. These hostage takers carry narratives. They tell you that the threat is elsewhere, across an ocean or a border. They tell you that safety requires sacrifice—of your rights, your voice, your compassion for the stranger. They tell you that you must sacrifice more - that war is necessary, and that you matter none in their pursuits. They use fear to build the walls of a prisoner cell you can't see, shame and fear to keep you from calling them out, and isolation to make you believe you're alone in your doubt. This is how entire populations can be held captive without a single chain. It happens in abusive relationships, ...