Millions of Americans Are Embarrassingly Ill-Informed

He looks toothlessly' stupid.



reva

 

A touchy question for me Durandel, because I find it completely hideous and a betrayal of the people.

I like to think of it as an illusion of democracy. I remember reading Zbigniew Brzezinski a long time ago. He's a leading Trilateralist, besides being an "adviser" to Obama. In one of his books he said that (I'm paraphrasing - it was a long time ago) that democracy was dangerous and had to go. So it's gone.

Plato's allegory of watching shadows in a cave is about right these days.

 

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Since 2003, I get none of my news from television and all my news from internet sources. It allows me to compare, research and dig deeper into events. No celeb news.
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You post the question "what to do about this". My answer is that it all needs to start with education which would have to come from some kind of grass roots movement.

People have to stop voting for Red and Blue as both are guilty of trampling all over the constitution and using fear to take away rights and freedoms.

Both are equally guilty of propping up the Oligopolies at the expense of the workers.

 

flamebait

 

But these aren't a realistic beginning. You - we - will only be able to "educate" so many people, and we certainly have no control over the two party system and how it affects people's voting.

Something actionable might be putting together a viable alternative platform, but that will be a long, difficult, spendy fight.

 

A viable alternative platform is a form of education. This platform could easily come from a grass roots movement.

Folks do not generally change until "not changing" becomes very uncomfortable. I am not sure whether or not we are at a this point yet but I think we are on out way there.

History tells us that change can be very rapid once movements take hold. Unfortunately this change is often not so good as it can lead to dictatorship or totalitarianism but not always.

 

It is the tragedy of one of the most brilliant minds of the times that his appearance does not match that of the talking "heads" preferred by the major TV outlets.

 

some choose to not be well informed.

but, would it be any better if each government had to have its own discussion board for ease of discussion like it is on here?

 

I know what you mean, but that is a strange way of looking at it.

 

I'm on rather the opposite side here. The Constitution is a living document and was written as one. As such, its interpretation is not a matter to be done lightly, that's why the SCOTUS took over that function very early on and the Founding Fathers, being mostly still alive, approved. (To an extent, the fact that they never really agreed entirely on much is another sign of how truly wise they were)

If we went back on the gold standard our economy would collapse, as would the rest of the world's. There simply is not enough gold at any value to support all the money now in existence. Full Faith and Credit is a much more realistic standard and, in fact, is all standards, since only faith is what gives precious metals the value we assign them anyway.

Why shouldn't the government tax all transactions? Guaranteeing transactions is their main function, and that's from the redoubtable Rand herself.

 

If a man is ignorant, I can't see how he can blame another man for not educating him. Ignorance is the consequence, the consequence of not learning.





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Its not true most are narrow focused as in issues that affect them and not other issues, and many things are complicated, I don't get all issues either then one must trust the government experts and leaders to run things. For me SSI, Medicaid, social welfare and economics as in good jobs to raise the tax base to pay for my welfare from others working are important. Mass transit is important. My feeling safe is important. Food costs are important. Disability rights are important. So I focus on those when I vote.

 

All of the post about are about politics.

The people in the united states are both uninformed and living in a dream world.

They believe what they want to believe.

They care nothing about facts and truth.

What you would expect in a nation determined to become a third world state.

It is not the fault of politicians and government,, though both should share the blame.

The responsibility for being uninformed and a dying america is on the people.

 

People don't have a right to be kept. If they can't be bothered to find their own food, booze, and happiness they don't deserve it.



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You have to read the post of the person I was answering to get the full drift.

Think FOX.

 

Somewhat of a misnomer as "About 1 in 4 Americans can name more than one of the five freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment (freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly and petition for redress of grievances.)" does not mean that they are not aware that we have "freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly and petition for redress of grievances." A thorough working understanding of American government and history is not a perquisite for understanding our rights. I agree that we as a society need to be more informed, but calling others stupid because they do not have the same level understanding as I is just silly IMO. I argue that most Americans understand their freedom of speach, even if they do not know what it is based upon.

 

Far too many people cannot seem to differentiate between ignorance and stupidity.

 

How were you educated?

Was your prenatal, birth, and early childhood care such that you were adequately healthy, immunized, well nourished, and stimulated sufficiently for your brain to develop normally?

What kind of school/s did you go to? How knowledgeable were the teachers? Did they have any real understanding of our society beyond the school system itself?
Were you rewarded or punished for your curiosity?


Did you have a public library accessible to you as a child? Were you allowed to go to it? Could you afford the transportation costs?

What clubs were you able to join?

Were the people around you knowledgeable about the world?

Did you have access to radio, books, and magazines in your home? What kind?

Were you allowed reading and thinking time growing up, or did you have repetitive chores to do? Were you allowed to help maintain the family vehicle, etc?

Where did you live--in a sterile crackerbox suburb or inner city ghetto with no escape?

Some do escape from early inhibiting situations, but many do not.

 

"When replying to a post, your own post must be about the post to which you are replying, not the poster themselves."
PoliticalForum.com RULE #2


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you just answered his question, you werent educated at all

 

*shrug* Then it seems lack of "being educated" isn't much of a hardship.



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Perhaps the ignorance starts with the dumbing down of our schools over the last 40 or so years. I am old enough to remember when America was number one in science and math. Today where are we, something like 28th and 32nd.

Then when it comes time to vote, how many decide whom to vote for based on a political slogan?

I suppose one has to be pretty ignorant to vote for those we have in Washington, so maybe to keep their jobs they have to keep the American people ignorant and in the dark as to what is really happening.

 

It was intended to be a rhetorical "you", not directed at you personally.

It really was intended to answer your post.

Sorry for the confusion.

 

Understood; all good. To address your question then, I do understand that some folks may have more opportunities to learn than others. We do a lot in this country to offer folks more than they might otherwise have.

But we don't guarantee people will have all the same opportunities or end up with all the knowledge they might want. If folks want more, they need to strive for it. And I think most of us hope our neighbors succeed in any honest attempts to better themselves. When they do it makes the whole country stronger.



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