Half Grain of Salt
The rise of the internet has taken freedom of speech to a whole new level in America. Instead of mortals being presented two or three outlets by which to form an opinion about a particular subject, we are presented with tens if not hundreds of them. The diversity of these sources can prove to be great for those who seek to gain multiple perspectives on a single issue that may lend itself to a broader problem in society that needs to be addressed.
But with the rise of the internet, and with the rise of blogs in particular, a damning problem has quickly emerged - the warping of the American mind.
Instead of writing clearly written, objective, and accurately cited articles , bloggers throughout the internet world have assured the passage of oftentimes false history: history that is oftentimes not cited, but is all too often believed to be true by the unknowing and by those who feel the opinion of the writer fits their beliefs.
And it is getting out of hand.
For instance, last week while sitting at a restaurant I overheard an older couple talking about the War in Iraq. According to these people, per a blog they read, "President Bush is doing little to squash the violence in Iraq because, the less Iraqis there exist in the country, the more oil wealth Americans will acquire." By listening to these people, one may think Iraq will become Ameica's 51st state in the very near future.
We also see this problem in our young people. Go to any college campus today and you may be fascinated with the jaded opinions spewing from young people's mouth instilled in them by college professors, propaganda, and clubs advocating activism for stupidity. Talk to a student at the University of Maryland and you may think President George W. Bush is responsible for world hunger. Travel to Hillsdale College in Michigan and you may drive away with the impression that the Democratic Party seeks to drag America into the eternal inferno.
This type of behavior is going on in High School's throughout America as well. My fiances's little brother attends Baltimore Polytechnic High School. During the most recent September 11th Memorial Ceremony his English Professor stunned everybody in the audience to include the Principal, when he began rattling off his own political views about the War on Terror. This professor was reprimanded for his actions but it goes to show how some zealous people can be when it comes to spreading the word of the God of Politics.
Can this be stopped? Absolutely not because the First Amendment protects freedom of speech.
But this does not mean that one cannot become more educated in pursuing opinions of bloggers, many of which do not have insight into what is truly going on within the government to include intelligence agencies, nor insight into what is truly going on with the troops in Afghanistan, Iraq and abroad.
In other words, with regards to internet sources and blogging, it is essential to take the words of agenda seeking mortal with a half-grain of salt.
But with the rise of the internet, and with the rise of blogs in particular, a damning problem has quickly emerged - the warping of the American mind.
Instead of writing clearly written, objective, and accurately cited articles , bloggers throughout the internet world have assured the passage of oftentimes false history: history that is oftentimes not cited, but is all too often believed to be true by the unknowing and by those who feel the opinion of the writer fits their beliefs.
And it is getting out of hand.
For instance, last week while sitting at a restaurant I overheard an older couple talking about the War in Iraq. According to these people, per a blog they read, "President Bush is doing little to squash the violence in Iraq because, the less Iraqis there exist in the country, the more oil wealth Americans will acquire." By listening to these people, one may think Iraq will become Ameica's 51st state in the very near future.
We also see this problem in our young people. Go to any college campus today and you may be fascinated with the jaded opinions spewing from young people's mouth instilled in them by college professors, propaganda, and clubs advocating activism for stupidity. Talk to a student at the University of Maryland and you may think President George W. Bush is responsible for world hunger. Travel to Hillsdale College in Michigan and you may drive away with the impression that the Democratic Party seeks to drag America into the eternal inferno.
This type of behavior is going on in High School's throughout America as well. My fiances's little brother attends Baltimore Polytechnic High School. During the most recent September 11th Memorial Ceremony his English Professor stunned everybody in the audience to include the Principal, when he began rattling off his own political views about the War on Terror. This professor was reprimanded for his actions but it goes to show how some zealous people can be when it comes to spreading the word of the God of Politics.
Can this be stopped? Absolutely not because the First Amendment protects freedom of speech.
But this does not mean that one cannot become more educated in pursuing opinions of bloggers, many of which do not have insight into what is truly going on within the government to include intelligence agencies, nor insight into what is truly going on with the troops in Afghanistan, Iraq and abroad.
In other words, with regards to internet sources and blogging, it is essential to take the words of agenda seeking mortal with a half-grain of salt.
posted by James_Morisette @ 4:03 AM
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