Poisoning the well

Biological Parallel

Cuckoo chicks evict host eggs before they hatch, eliminating competition before it can present arguments for resources. The pre-emptive strike is evolutionarily stable because once competing chicks establish themselves, they're costly to remove. Poisoning the well exploits the same principle: establish negative priors before counter-evidence appears, because changing first impressions requires overcoming confirmation bias and status quo bias—both metabolically expensive cognitive processes.