Comment by gen220

I usually think of "red pill" as "You learn some piece of information, the implications of which lead to your perception of the world expanding in a large and meaningful way that belies your earlier perception of the world and forces a reassessment of prior experiences".

I think of "black pill" as a GMO'd red pill designed to nudge the "learner" into a position of learned-helplessness.

Take a common aphorism around here: "99% of startups fail, so you shouldn't bother trying". The red pill is "failure is the most common modality for new ventures", but the attached advice makes it a black pill.

In a meta way, the linking of the term "red pill" to misogyny/misandry turned the red pill concept itself into a black pill (why bother seeking "red pills" if the "community" most identified with them is so disturbing?).