No Facts? No Problem!
an opinion
On Monday, September 9, 2002, astronaut Buzz Aldrin was approached by Bart Sibrel, a filmmaker from Tennessee. The two were far from strangers: Sibrel was an outspoken in his determination to prove that the moon landings were a hoax perpetrated by the U.S. government. Aldrin was well aware that Sibrel had approached other astronauts, trespassing in their homes and verbally assaulting them. Sibrel had publicly called Neil Armstrong a liar. He walked up to Aldrin with a film crew and a bible, asking him to swear that he went to the moon. Buzz Aldrin, a true American hero, punched that fucker.
In America, we make a big deal about public education. We drive around with bumper stickers that say "My Child is an Honor Student at". We celebrate our high standards of education, and the high rate of high school graduates that go to college. But many of these students are leaving school without the ability to think critically about the world they live in. The ability to evaluate the possible or likely truth of a statement is becoming a lost art in this country.
If you ask the average 18-24 year old in America about current events or issues, you’re likely to get a strongly argued opinion based on vaguely remembered facts, often misinterpreted and inaccurate. Rarely will you get an opinion that hasn’t been promoted on television, even rarer will you get an opinion that differs from the opinions of their peers. This behavior, in my experience, is currently the norm for America.
The result can be seen in the paradox that is the United States - the most technologically advanced nation in the world. While NASA and the space program look toward a manned Mars mission, the American public searches for space ships in Area 51. While the science of practical genetics is growing in leaps and bounds, a growth that should be diligently monitored by the people that it will affect, the U.S. media have provided volumes of information on "Raelian" aliens and their sex cults. Even as the Hubble Space Telescope peers deeper and deeper into the past, John Edwards eases(?) the pain of millions of TV viewers. Welcome to the 21st Century.
Bill Lyons
