[O]n a routine day, many Americans, for as much as they will say otherwise, really don’t want to be informed so much as to be confirmed in their political biases, in the partisan version of truth that explains the world to them while making the fewest demands on intellect - and conscience. They need the “death panels” and “anchor” babies, the birther controversies and supposedly rampant voter fraud, the “threats” of sharia law and Obama-caused Ebola, the whole rickety structure of falsehood and fear upon which conservatism has built its alternate reality. That’s the whole reason Fox exists - and CNN barely does…. It’s not that we can’t handle the truth. It’s that some of us prefer the lie.
It’s been said that a for a democracy to function well, it depends on an informed and thoughtful electorate. Anyone can vote, but when those doing the voting don’t understand the issues or the personalities or really ANYTHING important, what you have is an idiocracy. Yesterday, Americans demonstrated that our idiocracy is alive and well by voting against their own best interests for the umpteenth time. Instead of evaluating the candidates and issues with an eye towards who would best serve their interests, the American electorate was once again captivated by shiny things- fear mongering, lies, character assassination…the usual staples of modern political campaigning.
Why think critically when you can react angrily?
Turns out that when it comes to being informed consumers of news and information, most Americans would rather have their preconceived notions and prejudices confirmed than be educated about what’s really happening. It’s not about education and understanding the issues; it’s about having your beliefs affirmed and validated. Two of the news sources that Americans find the least trustworthy (Fox News Channel and Rush Limbaugh) are also the most popular. What does that tell us about ourselves? Nothing good, to be certain. We’ve become a nation of reactionary, brain-dead anti-intellectuals who are quite comfortable being told what to think and who to hate. Evidently, thinking is just too damned much work.
From Texas to Colorado to Wisconsin to Iowa to Kentucky to Floriduh to…pretty much everywhere, Americans voted for thugs, ideologues, hypocrites, and moral midgets. Between Voter ID suppression laws and Democratic voters staying at home in record numbers…well, nice work, y’all….
I could go on at length about how Americans treat their democracy…and themselves…so shabbily, but the truth is that we chose exactly the quality of leadership we deserve. We elected criminals, pinheads, and zealots, and we’ll spend the next two years pissing and moaning about their corruption and incompetence. What will be roundly ignored is our culpability in electing them in the first place.
Evidently, personal responsibility is a quality we demand only from others, because it’s just too damned hard to own up to what we’ve brought on ourselves. The worst hypocrisy and ignorance is our own…because we can’t be bothered to think. What we excel at is reacting…and looks where it’s taken us.
Nice work, America.