Can people be blamed for not tapping into information sources that are available?

[Smith_3]

I really wonder wether in modern times, with google, wikipedia, libraries and newspapers, available anywhere in the civilized world, a person has any excuse of not knowing the history of his country, the larger perspective on political issues and so on. I mean, its a different thing in countries where all news sources are actively censored, but in countries like the USA, even if some sources of news are biased, it is always possible to access others. Even in the most remote areas internet access is available and affordable.

[skooooo]

1. Maybe it's more of a lack of curiousity..?

[ColbertWatcher]

5. Seriously...

...I posted a link to J.K. Rowling's commencement address to Harvard (here).

She talks about this.

[flor de jasmim]

2. One of the most important things to teach is HOW TO EVALUTE sources, because

you're right - there is a tremendous amount of information that was not so easily available even a generation ago. But it is overwhelming, and while some sites seek to inform, others seek to misinform.

[timtom]

17. Funny you should say....

A few years ago I worked as the Help Desk Coordinator at a private college. The faculty of the school of arts and sciences was having an internal presentation and discussion about the internet. I was invited (because I was perceived as a liberal arts person, regardless of my technological job. I sat quietly and listened intently. When the theme emerged that the internet was unreliable because of spurious information, I stepped into the conversation. I pointed out that "spurious information" is not the problem. The problem is training the students in discernment and critical thinking.

The only person who seemed to be on board with that was the Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences.

And I believe that critical thinking goes hand-in-hand with curiosity (which was pointed out in another post here).

[leftofcool]

3. There are many people who do not care for modern technology

My sister is one of those. A highly educated, well informed registered nurse, who you will never see behind a computer. She bases this on her own philosophies and values.

[aquart]

4. "Blamed"? And how do you plan to punish them?

[ColbertWatcher]

6. Put an idiot in the White House? n/t

[Smith_3]

7. Exactly.

:)

[ColbertWatcher]

8. The TV tells me who to vote for. n/t

[Skittles]

9. that requires research and reading, Smith

the sad fact is, many Americans are downright lazy and prefer their news in TV sound bites

[bean fidhleir]

10. Sure. Anyone can be blamed for anything. *Should* they be? Maybe not.

"When you're up to your ass in alligators, it's hard to remember that you're there to drain the swamp"

Most people live fully-burdened lives *by design*. Keep people desperately scrabbling and guess what - they have no time for anything else. If they weren't worried about the necessities of life, they'd have energy to put into becoming "better" people (whatever the hell that means).

[Smith_3]

12. See, I'm not so sure wether this is true.

I know alot of people who are "working class" (in the sense of working two shifts at Burger King or similar), yet, they always seem to find time and money to tend to lots of other hobbies (like collecting cards and swords, going to football games and car races, playing video games, going to church, drinking beer and firing their rifles), just never anything intellectual. Moreover, some of them take a certain pride in not posessing "book smarts". I don't think that anyone is actively "forcing" them to see it that way.

[bean fidhleir]

14. Big difference between something that's relaxing and something

that requires a lot of hard work for no obvious gain. How many people have hobbies where they have to work like hell just to come up to a basic standard?

[readmoreoften]

18. They're usually turned off to learned because people with degrees make them feel like shit.

The whole "I don't care about learnins'" is a crock. I find that most people are intimidated as hell about what they don't know. The way the college educated make fun of people without degrees it's no surprise they're not bright-eyed and inquisitive. I've got a lot of degrees and no one in my family or my partner's family went to college. None of my neighbors either. They are always, without fail expecting me to put them down. Always. Instead I talk to them about their lives and take interest and then when they ask me what I research there's always something that interests them that they've always wanted to read up about. Starting people off with documentaries is really good. People aren't intimidated about watching a movie.

For example: I've never met a working class, middle-aged man who doesn't care about frickin' history. It's hard to get started on a program of research when you don't know where to begin. The amount of info itself can be overwhelming.

[bean fidhleir]

20. Yep. Nothing makes a person feel like crap quicker than having some

pretentious pillock one-upping them. It would probably astonish a lot of "educated" liberals to realize how many people go through their whole lives in mourning for their wasted potential, stolen away by classist poverty.

[anniebelle]

11. Americans are too lazy and self-absorbed.

I've written letters to the editor trying to get people to go look up candidates' voting records, the lies they've spewed, facts about what's going on in Iraq and Afghanistan, and I still get letters to my home address from these knuckle draggers that are the readers of that rag, threatening me, calling me every name you can think of, but no luck getting them to ingest some knowledge. I don't know how you get facts into that universe they live in.

[rucky]

13. Wouldn't it be more interesting to educate them?

Or at least point them in the right direction, and turn them on to new things that they didn't know much about before?

[RC]

15. Getting facts and information is too much like school. Now if you will excuse me,

American Idol is about to come on.

[readmoreoften]

16. People should be blamed for everything. We don't work hard enough, exercise enough,

research enough, read enough, read enough of the RIGHT material, read to our kids, read the Bible before judging it, buy whole food, buy organic, buy local, buy American, sleep enough, take enough vacations, get to work on time, relax enough, get enough work done while we're there, go to bed at a reasonable hour, accept ourselves for who we are, accept others, forgive others enough, let go of our anger, help other enough, donate to charity enough, ever stop to think that maybe charity isn't the answer, think enough, have enough time to ourselves, spend enough time with our kids, have enough sex, compliment our partner, take time out for one another, answer our emails on time, find the lowest price on gasoline, care enough to buy green, put those god awful swirly bulbs in the bathroom, do home repairs, clean out our drawers, stick to a beauty regimen, take care of our nails, take our vitamins, vote, research who we're voting for, research local candidates, meet local candidates, run for office ourselves, help register voters, stop to say hello to the neighbors, recycle, reuse, call our mothers, read to our kids, read to other people's kids, have our legal documents in order because you never know what may happen, get the oil changed regularly, go back to school and finish that degree, pay the bills on time, apply for the new job, get the old computer fixed or just give it to charity, wash the car, mow the lawn, clean the fridge, check our posts for spelling errors, have enough enthusiasm, have enough empathy, wash the dishes, file the files, pay the taxes, fill the gas tank, go to the bank before it gets busy, take back the videos, call back that guy about the fence, make time for our annual check ups...read posts thoroughly enough....yes...

[bunkerbuster1]

19. Yes.

And as much as I want to condition that with the usual proviso that ordinary Americans are kept down and in a world-o'-crap in so many ways that maybe we who do bother to inform ourselves about the world around us should not be too judgemental, I can't.

I don't have a lot of sympathy for Americans who choose to remain ignorant and thus become easy pickings for some viral email campaign, or a stupid attack ad, or a ten-minute rant on Reich Wing AM radio.

That said, it is our responsibility to adequately fund the Democratic candidates who are in a position to run corrective campaign ads and push their message out on the TeeVee.

[magellan]

21. If they're forming an opinion without that information, yes

Sadly, in my 45 years I've found that being curious and actively researching a subject before deciding what to think about it is the exception, not the rule. Most people seem to be happy being told what opinion to hold, or base their opinions on the emotions aroused rather than dealing with underlying fact. That leaves them completely open to manipulation and propaganda, which the Repubs have used to their advantage for decades.

[BlooInBloo]

22. Americans LIKE being stupid, and take PRIDE in it....

There's no right they'll fight harder for, than their right to be stupid.

[readmoreoften]

23. Another thing: do all these "ignorant people" have access to google and wikipedia?

Or do they have one 10 year old PC with Windows 98 on it, dial up service, and no updates that their three kids monopolize for homework and MySpace?

What makes you think that people don't read newspapers or that it gives them accurate information? The information is no different than CNNs.

And then, when they hear that liberal-educated guy down the street complain about how much the MSM is full of shit, wouldn't they get more confused?

And plenty of poor and working people use the library, but usually when they're older because they couldn't when they were young and had kids and had to work all the time. When are they supposed to go to the library when it closes at 8pm?

When push comes to shove: the average poor person does the same thing in their situation that the average rich or middle class person would do if they were in the poor person's situation.

Yes, there are some poor people who "beat the odds" and achieve an upper middle class existence, but when was the last time you heard that an African American born in a public housing project was meeting with the Bilderberg group or sat on an executive board of a Fortune 500? Not a West Indian immigrant with a degree, but someone born into a housing project? How many children in Appalachia become neuroscientists?

In reality, there are either systemic problems related to our economy that need to be addressed or we're arguing for eugenics or we're making cultural excuses.

Free college in the US for everyone and the whole ballgame would start to change.