The Many Faces of US Politics...

[Hardy]

One failed attempt at a shoe bomb and we all take off our shoes at the airport. Thirty-one school shootings since Columbine and no change in our regulation of guns." -John Oliver

Two sentences that do as much as a PhD course in political science to explain the essence of politics.

[muppet]

This could go on the Policing Thread or even the Same-Sex Marriage thread, given the type of arguments put forward by some.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/our-humanity-naturally/201506/anti-intellectualism-is-killing-america

Anti-intellectualism Is Killing America

The tragedy in Charleston last week will no doubt lead to more discussion of several important and recurring issues in American culture—particularly racism and gun violence—but these dialogues are unlikely to bear much fruit until the nation undertakes a serious self-examination. Decrying racism and gun violence is fine, but for too long America's social dysfunction has continued to intensify as the nation has ignored a key underlying pathology: anti-intellectualism.

America is killing itself through its embrace and exaltation of ignorance, and the evidence is all around us. Dylann Roof, the Charleston shooter who used race as a basis for hate and mass murder, is just the latest horrific example. Many will correctly blame Roof's actions on America's culture of racism and gun violence, but it's time to realize that such phenomena are directly tied to the nation's culture of ignorance.

In a country where a sitting congressman told a crowd that evolution and the Big Bang are "lies straight from the pit of hell," (link is external) where the chairman of a Senate environmental panel brought a snowball (link is external) into the chamber as evidence that climate change is a hoax, where almost one in three citizens can't name the vice president (link is external), it is beyond dispute that critical thinking has been abandoned as a cultural value. Our failure as a society to connect the dots, to see that such anti-intellectualism comes with a huge price, could eventually be our downfall.

In considering the senseless loss of nine lives in Charleston, of course racism jumps out as the main issue. But isn't ignorance at the root of racism? And it's true that the bloodshed is a reflection of America's violent, gun-crazed culture, but it is only our aversion to reason as a society that has allowed violence to define the culture. Rational public policy, including policies that allow reasonable restraints on gun access, simply isn't possible without an informed, engaged, and rationally thinking public.

Some will point out, correctly, that even educated people can still be racists, but this shouldn't remove the spotlight from anti-intellectualism. Yes, even intelligent and educated individuals, often due to cultural and institutional influences, can sometimes carry racist biases. But critically thinking individuals recognize racism as wrong and undesirable, even if they aren't yet able to eliminate every morsel of bias from their own psyches or from social institutions. An anti-intellectual society, however, will have large swaths of people who are motivated by fear, susceptible to tribalism and simplistic explanations, incapable of emotional maturity, and prone to violent solutions. Sound familiar?

And even though it may seem counter-intuitive, anti-intellectualism has little to do with intelligence. We know little about the raw intellectual abilities of Dylann Roof, but we do know that he is an ignorant racist who willfully allowed irrational hatred of an entire demographic to dictate his actions. Whatever his IQ, to some extent he is a product of a culture driven by fear and emotion, not rational thinking, and his actions reflect the paranoid mentality of one who fails to grasp basic notions of what it means to be human.

What Americans rarely acknowledge is that many of their social problems are rooted in the rejection of critical thinking or, conversely, the glorification of the emotional and irrational. What else could explain the hyper-patriotism (link is external) that has many accepting an outlandish notion that America is far superior to the rest of the world? Love of one's country is fine, but many Americans seem to honestly believe that their country both invented and perfected the idea of freedom, that the quality of life here far surpasses everywhere else in the world.

But it doesn't. International quality of life rankings (link is external) place America barely in the top ten. America's rates of murder (link is external) and other violent crime dwarf most of the rest of the developed world, as does its incarceration rate (link is external), while its rates of education and scientific literacy are embarrassingly low (link is external). American schools, claiming to uphold "traditional values," avoid fact-based sex education, and thus we have the highest rates of teen pregnancy (link is external) in the industrialized world. And those rates are notably highest where so-called "biblical values" are prominent. Go outside the Bible belt, and the rates generally trend downward (link is external).

As this suggests, the impact of fundamentalist religion in driving American anti-intellectualism has been, and continues to be, immense. Old-fashioned notions of sex education may seem like a relatively minor issue to many, but taking old-time religion too seriously can be extremely dangerous in the modern era. High-ranking individuals, even in the military (link is external), see a confrontation between good and evil as biblically predicted and therefore inevitable. They relish the thought of being a righteous part of the final days.

Fundamentalist religion is also a major force in denying human-caused climate change (link is external), a phenomenon that the scientific community has accepted for years. Interestingly, anti-intellectual fundamentalists are joined in their climate change denial with unusual bedfellows: corporate interests (link is external) that stand to gain from the rejection of sound science on climate.

Corporate influence on climate and environmental policy, meanwhile, is simply more evidence of anti-intellectualism in action, for corporate domination of American society is another result of a public that is not thinking critically. Americans have allowed their democracy to slip away, their culture overtaken by enormous corporations that effectively control both the governmental apparatus and the media, thus shaping life around materialism and consumption.

Indeed, these corporate interests encourage anti-intellectualism, conditioning Americans into conformity and passive acceptance of institutional dominance. They are the ones who stand to gain from the excessive fear and nationalism that result in militaristic foreign policy and absurdly high levels of military spending (link is external). They are the ones who stand to gain from consumers who spend money they don't have on goods and services they don't need. They are the ones who want a public that is largely uninformed and distracted, thus allowing government policy to be crafted by corporate lawyers and lobbyists. They are the ones who stand to gain from unregulated securities markets. And they are the ones who stand to gain from a prison-industrial complex that generates the highest rates of incarceration in the developed world.

Americans can and should denounce the racist and gun-crazed culture that shamefully resulted in nine corpses in Charleston this week, but they also need to dig deeper. At the core of all of this dysfunction is an abandonment of reason.

[Eamonnca1]

Quality!

[whitey]

Unfortunately much of that article is true

[J70]

Unfortunately much of that article is true

Its all true!

And the internet and proliferation of niche news is only exacerbating the problem. You can get all of your news and opinion today filtered through whatever poticial or social lens you prefer and never be exposed to contradictory or opposing opinions. Jingoism and scientific illiteracy are rampant. I see it even in work colleagues who are otherwise fine intelligent people.

And its no accident that formerly impressive channels such as the Discovery Channel and History channel etc. have embraced this anti-intellectual approach in their offerings, with bilge about ancient aliens, big foot, mermaids, ghost hunters and so on and on.

[whitey]

Unfortunately much of that article is true

Its all true!

And the internet and proliferation of niche news is only exacerbating the problem. You can get all of your news and opinion today filtered through whatever poticial or social lens you prefer and never be exposed to contradictory or opposing opinions. Jingoism and scientific illiteracy are rampant. I see it even in work colleagues who are otherwise fine intelligent people.

And its no accident that formerly impressive channels such as the Discovery Channel and History channel etc. have embraced this anti-intellectual approach in their offerings, with bilge about ancient aliens, big foot, mermaids, ghost hunters and so on and on.

Well if it's all true it's also incomplete

There are as many Fvckwit low information voters on the left as there are on the right

And the UNIONS have absolutely destroyed great cities such as Chicago

Career politicians have pandered for generations for Union votes, and that's  equally as abhorrent as big corporate money being pumped into every election cycle

[The Iceman]

Unfortunately much of that article is true

Its all true!

And the internet and proliferation of niche news is only exacerbating the problem. You can get all of your news and opinion today filtered through whatever poticial or social lens you prefer and never be exposed to contradictory or opposing opinions. Jingoism and scientific illiteracy are rampant. I see it even in work colleagues who are otherwise fine intelligent people.

And its no accident that formerly impressive channels such as the Discovery Channel and History channel etc. have embraced this anti-intellectual approach in their offerings, with bilge about ancient aliens, big foot, mermaids, ghost hunters and so on and on.

The irony is you are looking through a lens of humanism, atheism, naturalism. This is the author of the blog:
Our Humanity, Naturally presents issues of life, society, and philosophy from the naturalistic standpoint of Humanism. A progressive philosophy of positive values without dogma and superstition, Humanism is becoming more prevalent among those concerned about anti-intellectual and dysfunctional trends in modern society. Our Humanity, Naturally applies Humanist concepts to a wide array of personal and social issues, demonstrating that there are pragmatic answers to many of the big (and little) challenges of contemporary life.

Your lens is just as guilty as everyone else is for spinning bias. Just because you say we are not biased, everyone else is not intelligent doesn't give it anymore weight than anyone's opinion?

[whitey]

Unfortunately much of that article is true

Its all true!

And the internet and proliferation of niche news is only exacerbating the problem. You can get all of your news and opinion today filtered through whatever poticial or social lens you prefer and never be exposed to contradictory or opposing opinions. Jingoism and scientific illiteracy are rampant. I see it even in work colleagues who are otherwise fine intelligent people.

And its no accident that formerly impressive channels such as the Discovery Channel and History channel etc. have embraced this anti-intellectual approach in their offerings, with bilge about ancient aliens, big foot, mermaids, ghost hunters and so on and on.

The irony is you are looking through a lens of humanism, atheism, naturalism. This is the author of the blog:
Our Humanity, Naturally presents issues of life, society, and philosophy from the naturalistic standpoint of Humanism. A progressive philosophy of positive values without dogma and superstition, Humanism is becoming more prevalent among those concerned about anti-intellectual and dysfunctional trends in modern society. Our Humanity, Naturally applies Humanist concepts to a wide array of personal and social issues, demonstrating that there are pragmatic answers to many of the big (and little) challenges of contemporary life.

Your lens is just as guilty as everyone else is for spinning bias. Just because you say we are not biased, everyone else is not intelligent doesn't give it anymore weight than anyone's opinion?

Well (a) I did actually say it was MAINLY TRUE, so I am agreeing with the BULK of what he/she is saying

And (b) there's two sides to every story-your opinion, my opinion and the truth lies somewhere in between

And (C) what made Bill Clinton and Ronald Regan such great presidents, was their ability to compromise and meet folks in the middle

[foxcommander]

Unfortunately much of that article is true

Its all true!

And the internet and proliferation of niche news is only exacerbating the problem. You can get all of your news and opinion today filtered through whatever poticial or social lens you prefer and never be exposed to contradictory or opposing opinions. Jingoism and scientific illiteracy are rampant. I see it even in work colleagues who are otherwise fine intelligent people.

And its no accident that formerly impressive channels such as the Discovery Channel and History channel etc. have embraced this anti-intellectual approach in their offerings, with bilge about ancient aliens, big foot, mermaids, ghost hunters and so on and on.

By offering different explanations to events the History channel is making people think a little more outside the box. Isn't that a good thing?

I think the ancient astronaut theorists are on to something....

[omaghjoe]

Don't disagree with much of that however I got worried there when I seen everyone agreeing with it, whats Muppet gonna do when he wakes up and finds that no one is vilifying his post? Muppet needs a rant like we all need a debate so at the risk of being the devils advocate here goes...

First up religious fundamentalism has virtually nothing to do with climate change, his link to some obscure politicians arguing that God said in the Book of Genesis take what you want from the earth is as laughable as that is eejit of a politician is himself, well maybe not quite nut but its very funny. Climate change is to do with the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere its an unfortunate consequence of our main energy source. Its directly proportional to consumption so if you want to link it to morals then Greed would have its part to play however most religions teach against this. American fundamentlists tho probably feckin teach greed TBF

Next he underplays the role of nationalism in the publics stupidity and again over plays the role of fundamentalism.

Also what wrong with having kids? Having weans means that society continues and reduces the requirement for immigration and all the social conflict and misunderstanding that comes with it.

Also to outline an unproven and abstract theory like the Big Bang as a given, in the same way as something as proven, relevant and accepted as evolution displays an attachment to the prevailing scientific fashion without any understanding of what it is, distinct whiff of dogma.

Also he talks about the needs of reason, but what is reason? To have reason some things need to be a given, in this case he is talking about America. But what is America? The land of opportunity, where anyone can make it, freedom of commerce, speech etc its all in the constitution. America is the constitution! So if he can't use the constitution as the base point for reasoning then what is he arguing for? A new constitution? It seems that is the case so he needs to outline what is base principles are, otherwise he is just arguing against society itself.

Over to you lads...

[muppet]

Don't disagree with much of that however I got worried there when I seen everyone agreeing with it, whats Muppet gonna do when he wakes up and finds that no one is vilifying his post? Muppet needs a rant like we all need a debate so at the risk of being the devils advocate here goes...

First up religious fundamentalism has virtually nothing to do with climate change, his link to some obscure politicians arguing that God said in the Book of Genesis take what you want from the earth is as laughable as that is eejit of a politician is himself, well maybe not quite nut but its very funny. Climate change is to do with the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere its an unfortunate consequence of our main energy source. Its directly proportional to consumption so if you want to link it to morals then Greed would have its part to play however most religions teach against this. American fundamentlists tho probably feckin teach greed TBF

Next he underplays the role of nationalism in the publics stupidity and again over plays the role of fundamentalism.

Also what wrong with having kids? Having weans means that society continues and reduces the requirement for immigration and all the social conflict and misunderstanding that comes with it.

Also to outline an unproven and abstract theory like the Big Bang as a given, in the same way as something as proven, relevant and accepted as evolution displays an attachment to the prevailing scientific fashion without any understanding of what it is, distinct whiff of dogma.

Also he talks about the needs of reason, but what is reason? To have reason some things need to be a given, in this case he is talking about America. But what is America? The land of opportunity, where anyone can make it, freedom of commerce, speech etc its all in the constitution. America is the constitution! So if he can't use the constitution as the base point for reasoning then what is he arguing for? A new constitution? It seems that is the case so he needs to outline what is base principles are, otherwise he is just arguing against society itself.

Over to you lads...

Back to the point which I think the link above makes well. Imagine if a Healy-Rae or a Wallace brought a snowball into the Dáil and claimed climate change was fiction because of it? The sad reality is that this level of 'debate' is extremely widespread in the States and the UK and we are seeing more of it here. Witness Pearse Doherty recently asking on twitter if Noonan is really representing Irish people by putting the boot into Greece. Like it or not Noonan certainly is representing Ireland's interests. Any default by Greece costs us money. But that isn't quite what Doherty asked. He played to the heartstrings and ignorance, but never mentioned any financial consequences of not putting the boot into Greece, of which he is most certainly aware. He would be doing the same thing as Minister of Finance.

But then every party nowadays has spin doctors whose only required skill is to be able to mislead without outwardly lying. Many companies also have spokesmen who's only function is to do the same thing.

The freedom of the press is a phenomenal privilege we grant one sector for the community. One of the reasons we do this is so that they will hold the spin doctors and bluffers accountable. Remember the beginning of the financial crisis here? Most of the accurate up to date info on Ireland came from foreign news agencies such as Reuters. Why was that?

Snowball man should have been laughed out of office. That would have been a good start.

[J70]

Unfortunately much of that article is true

Its all true!

And the internet and proliferation of niche news is only exacerbating the problem. You can get all of your news and opinion today filtered through whatever poticial or social lens you prefer and never be exposed to contradictory or opposing opinions. Jingoism and scientific illiteracy are rampant. I see it even in work colleagues who are otherwise fine intelligent people.

And its no accident that formerly impressive channels such as the Discovery Channel and History channel etc. have embraced this anti-intellectual approach in their offerings, with bilge about ancient aliens, big foot, mermaids, ghost hunters and so on and on.

The irony is you are looking through a lens of humanism, atheism, naturalism. This is the author of the blog:
Our Humanity, Naturally presents issues of life, society, and philosophy from the naturalistic standpoint of Humanism. A progressive philosophy of positive values without dogma and superstition, Humanism is becoming more prevalent among those concerned about anti-intellectual and dysfunctional trends in modern society. Our Humanity, Naturally applies Humanist concepts to a wide array of personal and social issues, demonstrating that there are pragmatic answers to many of the big (and little) challenges of contemporary life.

Your lens is just as guilty as everyone else is for spinning bias. Just because you say we are not biased, everyone else is not intelligent doesn't give it anymore weight than anyone's opinion?

I am not even sure what you are trying to say here Iceman.

That NO opinions are valid because EVERYONE has some biases?

If so, that is clearly not the case. Facts are facts.  If you dismiss them for no valid reason,  your opinion is clearly less worthy. Using a snowball to argue against climate change is clearly an anti-intellectual, dishonest, cynical,  pandering stance.

[J70]

Unfortunately much of that article is true

Its all true!

And the internet and proliferation of niche news is only exacerbating the problem. You can get all of your news and opinion today filtered through whatever poticial or social lens you prefer and never be exposed to contradictory or opposing opinions. Jingoism and scientific illiteracy are rampant. I see it even in work colleagues who are otherwise fine intelligent people.

And its no accident that formerly impressive channels such as the Discovery Channel and History channel etc. have embraced this anti-intellectual approach in their offerings, with bilge about ancient aliens, big foot, mermaids, ghost hunters and so on and on.

By offering different explanations to events the History channel is making people think a little more outside the box. Isn't that a good thing?

I think the ancient astronaut theorists are on to something....

If you're ok with pseudoscience or simply don't know any better, I guess it's a good thing.

One would be forced to question your critical thinking skills and science education, however.

[foxcommander]

Unfortunately much of that article is true

Its all true!

And the internet and proliferation of niche news is only exacerbating the problem. You can get all of your news and opinion today filtered through whatever poticial or social lens you prefer and never be exposed to contradictory or opposing opinions. Jingoism and scientific illiteracy are rampant. I see it even in work colleagues who are otherwise fine intelligent people.

And its no accident that formerly impressive channels such as the Discovery Channel and History channel etc. have embraced this anti-intellectual approach in their offerings, with bilge about ancient aliens, big foot, mermaids, ghost hunters and so on and on.

By offering different explanations to events the History channel is making people think a little more outside the box. Isn't that a good thing?

I think the ancient astronaut theorists are on to something....

If you're ok with pseudoscience or simply don't know any better, I guess it's a good thing.

One would be forced to question your critical thinking skills and science education, however.

And how do you know mermaids or aliens aren't real?

[J70]

Unfortunately much of that article is true

Its all true!

And the internet and proliferation of niche news is only exacerbating the problem. You can get all of your news and opinion today filtered through whatever poticial or social lens you prefer and never be exposed to contradictory or opposing opinions. Jingoism and scientific illiteracy are rampant. I see it even in work colleagues who are otherwise fine intelligent people.

And its no accident that formerly impressive channels such as the Discovery Channel and History channel etc. have embraced this anti-intellectual approach in their offerings, with bilge about ancient aliens, big foot, mermaids, ghost hunters and so on and on.

By offering different explanations to events the History channel is making people think a little more outside the box. Isn't that a good thing?

I think the ancient astronaut theorists are on to something....

If you're ok with pseudoscience or simply don't know any better, I guess it's a good thing.

One would be forced to question your critical thinking skills and science education, however.

And how do you know mermaids or aliens aren't real?

Oh, I would say there are or were possibly alien lifeforms if some kind out there somewhere,  given the size and age of the universe.

Their visits to earth and the existence of mermaids would require something along the lines of evidence to even begin to take seriously, however.