Your apathy is appreciated

a reply to: elysiumfire

Spot on

a reply to: 19Bones79

It seems we agree on more than we disagree... I can't argue with your observations, I can only say that critical thinking skills are such that most people cannot reasonably and rationally look at a situation and apply basic general principles and truths to come to a reasonable and rational opinion.

I will add one more attribute that I believe explains much in our current society: Ego. It is ego that allows people to mistake their opinion or beliefs for facts and truth. It is also ego that says "my truths" must be everyone's truths and their only truths. It is ego that lets people believe some are "deserving" and others are not "deserving". It is ego that presumes to know what other people really think or feel (and tell them so!). It is ego that demands labels both for others and for one's own self. It is ego that separates us and encourages the hating and fighting and finger pointing.

All of which just feeds the ignorance, bringing me back to my original point. People don't listen when they think they already know everything. So they have to learn the hard way -- if they learn at all.

It also brings us back to your original point, because it also feeds the apathy of those who tire of others who just refuse to think and believe like they do, so they're just going to keep their heads down and take care of themselves. But it seldom works out well. They may not care about politics, but politics cares (cough!) about them.

a reply to: Boadicea

We do seem to agree.

We can lay the blame for ego and the sense of entitlement that goes with it square at the feet of the education and entertainment industries.

It was engineered over the course of decades.