Those Rusty Brains

Anonymous says:

I have seen examples of this over and over again. It’s just pure ignorance and it is kind of sad. This is also part of the reason why politics is so messed up. Why do people follow politicians and how do people decide who to vote for? All last year during the presidential election these were questions running through my brain. I would say I am someone who knows a good amount about politics, or at least more than the average (that does not really say a lot). For example, before I vote for someone I look into their foreign policies, what they have done in the past, immigration views, fiscal policies, etc. I do not get how other people decide who to vote for. That video posted on the blog says it all. Last year when we were going through the presidential election time many people were talking about politics and their views. I would take part in these conversations probably about every day with adults and students. I knew what I was talking about, I knew what Obama stood by and what McCain stood by, but most people I talked to did not have a clue. I do not want to say it is this generation because who knows if fifty years ago it was the same way. Moreover, I completely agree with Sam, people are not being asked to think. People just hear things from the screwed up media, their friends, and their parents and so on and they believe it. Nobody asks questions, like why I should believe this or what could this lead too. This kind of ticks me off when I see it happen. Actually it really ticks me off. It makes me feel like people don’t care anymore and they do not want use their own brains to think. So if they hear something from any source they will trust it without any questions. What is the point of having a brain if we are never going to use it and ask questions? What makes me even more mad is when someone tries to tell me something they heard on the news or from another source and automatically tell me it is correct. How ignorant are people that they do not realize everyone is biased, especially the media. People will only tell you the facts or falsify the facts to make their own case look better. Therefore, you cannot trust anyone’s opinion besides your own. But people do not live this way and it is a problem. It is hard to find people that really think for themselves and fully interpret what they hear. And if people think that it is only Palin’s followers that do this, they are very wrong. If anything Obama’s supporters are even worse.

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503 says:

On the topic of being ignorant about political and social issues, it’s easy for everyone to point a finger and say “you don’t know anything.” It seems everyone nowadays is “anti” something or “pro” something, but can never back it up. During the 2008 elections, many college students nationwide became highly involved. All over campus, people saying things like “Obama is a socialist” and “McCain is going to ruin this country,” etc. etc. No one could back it up. People around me would get into arguments daily about the elections, but none of the talk was about their platforms or policies, it was all about age, race, and sex. Everyone is so quick to jump on a bandwagon and go along for a ride, when they actually have NO idea where the wagon is going. The majority of people get their facts from someone they heard it from, or some unreliable source. I have met very few people on campus that have actually done the research themselves and know what they are talking about, so that when they do have an argument, they can back up their statements. Alas, it becomes a battle of 2 idiots shouting back and forth about absolutely nothing of importance. How are we to blame though, when every step you take someone else is trying to shove propaganda down your throat? Like on voting day, if you’re on your way to the HUB to vote for Obama, and people are outside trying to give you a McCain pin, as if that’s going to change your mind. But then again…does it?
I didn’t vote. Purposely. And everyone immediately wanted to know why. “You didn’t vote!? What? Why!?” It’s not because I’m lazy, it’s because I knew very little about the candidates policies and hadn’t spent the time to research them to formulate a vote. I also don’t pretend to know things about politics. I’m a bio major, and have very, very little interest in politics and elections. So no, I didn’t vote, and when people say you should have voted just to say you voted, I look at them in awe. I think you should have to take an exam on the candidates to be eligible to vote. So Sam says we don’t think enough, and I completely agree. The clip on Palin showed a group of people ready to vote Palin into office in a heartbeat, but didn’t know a thing about her policies. When did choosing the president of our country become a popularity vote? Before Obama, I don’t remember the last time our president was on the cover of every celebrity magazine, following their lives as if they were the Osbournes.

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The Iron Lion From Zion says:

I don’t know that much about politics but…… no I’m just kidding I’m not going to start like that after reading the update. However, the fact that people feel the need to say that is enough of a phenomenon on its own. One would think that in stating an opinion, an individual would want to sound as educated on the subject as possible in order to sound credible. Of course, maybe “I don’t pay attention to politics” is a way to lower expectations for that individual’s ideas so their ideas are looked at less critically.
I understand Sam’s concept of fast food news, because whenever I try to debate politics with my dad he asks me, “And what channel did you get that from”. More times than not he’s right, I find myself quoting things I hear in popular media and not searching for more information. I would imagine that I am not the only one with this problem. In the Sarah Palin book signing video, the people that did respond to questions seem to spout of talking points directly from fox news friends or Sean Hannity. I’ll stop myself from ragging on the “fair and balanced” news network, but I think anyone who gets their news from only one place is at risk of receiving bias.
This is going to get a little political which is not the point of this journal, but I was thinking about what some of the other journal entries were saying and wanted to put a point out there. On one hand, Democrats saw Obama as the face of change in the presidential election. By contrast, this would mean that McCain was more old fashioned or that he wanted to keep things the same. By contrast, people are now complaining that Obama hasn’t made any significant change. This could possibly be attributed to the weak unity of the Democratic Party, they are having trouble voting together to outnumber the near unanimous decisions of Republicans. Now, looking at these facts, who are the good guys here? The ones who can’t get their act together long enough to pass a bill, or the ones who choose not to change anything with the power they have. Now, this is all speaking in generalities and my perception of how people view opposing parties, but it does seem to come down to “the lesser of two evils”, which isn’t ideal by any standard.
In the eyes of the founding fathers, being an educated voter is the duty of every American. This is one thing that surprised me about the video of flag waving Palin supporters talking about back-to-basics values that they couldn’t explain. In a time when the internet is at your fingertips I find it rather bothersome that someone couldn’t be bothered to look up the facts. Overall, it is not only the republicans or Palin supporters who are to blame, but all parties are guilty of uneducated voting.

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Mr. Pay Per View says:

Those Rusty Brains
As I am watching the video of the Sarah Palin fans being interviewed I couldn’t help but remember all of the bickering that went on during the last election about the two candidates Obama and McCain. People who were uninformed and were simply being utterly un-insightful to the conversation with their remarks were speaking out and trying to get their voices heard, which led into more of a who can yell the loudest battle rather than an actual political debate. Nobody knew what they were talking about, not a single person could declare more than one policy that their candidate or their opponent represented. It was embarrassing and was futile to try and have a legitimate conversation with somebody else. Much like the man who accused Obama of outlawing abortion, people were building up stories that they wanted to hear so that they could justify their beliefs in their candidate. People are too selective when it comes to gathering information, and I don’t believe that this selective hearing has anything to do with a person’s characteristics. It doesn’t matter what state you are in, what religion, race or creed you follow and it doesn’t matter how old you are, we are all somewhat if not completely selective listeners. At the age of the average voting college student we seem to base our political opinions off of the ideas and words presented to us by others around us, especially our parents. Though we don’t want to admit it we still listen to what our parents are saying and more times than not the first time you vote, it is for whatever party your parents are for due to the fact that this is the party you have been hearing about how great it is and how the others are the enemy of the nation for most of your adult life. People are letting others decide for them, which eliminates the whole concept of free choice completely. Why are we so susceptible to being brainwashed by the people and media around us? Everyone thinks they know what is right because all they have been hearing is the same nonsensical drivel from the same uniformed people. If you want proof just watch the people in the video. Nobody really has a good answer let alone are close to having the ultimately correct answer. Opinions are like noses ever ones got one and they all smell. People love to be right and what better way of convincing ourselves that we are right then talking out of our asses and nobody telling us that our opinions are skewed from the truth. People are so ill informed that they can’t disagree with your opinions because they themselves don’t know any better. All we are spewing out is our own personal rotten opinions. So who do we blame for our lack of knowledge? We surely can’t point the finger back at ourselves; because then somebody would have to admit that they weren’t the second coming of Christ that has been sent from heaven to help America out of its dark times. As Sam said in class earlier in the week we all see ourselves as the special little guy or girl that our parents told us we were when we were little. Nobody in regular society is the almighty genius that is going to lead America to the promise land, if you were then somebody a long time ago would have told you that you really have good ideas and you would be talking on TV, but if that is not you than do yourself a favor and actually research topics before you form and blurt out your insane opinions. Twenty minutes of research will not only make you appear smarter but may actually help you pick a leader for our country on your own, rather than having to fall back on meaningless stereotypes and accusations.

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kellypost says:

Reflecting upon Sam’s post, I am intrigued and embarrassed to know that I too fall under the category of non-thinkers. In typical human fashion, I like to view myself as more informed than others and relatively intelligent. However, my innate ability to perform cognitively does not reflect my ability to actively think and engage in what is going on around me.
Listening to conversations is very telling about how and what people are thinking about. It is actually quite disturbing to overhear conversations going on among my peers. When eavesdropping, I am often astonished to overhear the asinine conversations revolving around superficial drama void of any inkling of current events. If current events are discussed, they are often filled with misinformation and loosely based viewpoints made into pseudo opinions. Generally, I laugh or roll my eyes as those I find less scholarly. Yet, I now realized that I am indeed a perpetrator of this intellectual crime.
Now that I think of it, I have not had any sort of intellectual argument in quite some time. And while I wish that I could engage in more, I am also hesitant to do so because I know that I am uninformed in most topics. I have not paid attention enough to be armed with the ammo to have an effective and well-formed argument with anyone on a variety of topics. And that makes me feel dumb. It is rare for me to ask what people think about certain topics or for me to even ask myself what I think about certain topics because I am so concerned with where I have to go and what I have to do next. I don’t bother to deal with things irrelevant to my life. However, upon reflection, I realize that it is all relevant to my life. International politics, global warming, H1N1 and so much more have the potential to have dramatic events on my life, yet I am completely unaware how they are affecting me.
Yes, it is certainly much easier to blame my ignorance on everything that is going on around me in terms of today’s societal values instead of my own laziness. The “fast food” ideology we have embraced in the United States transcends from the news into education. In today’s education world we are simply dumping knowledge into students with the hopes that they will be able to repeat knowledge on the assessments we deem important. We have come to associate knowledge and skill with the ability to repeat facts and perform repetitions of the skills the government and society have deemed important. We no longer ask students to think and form opinions, in fact public and private education values conformity over individuality and the exploration of other viewpoints.
While this may seem to be a reasonable explanation, there needs to be a level of personal responsibility. Although it is embarrassing to reflect about how little I know about what is going on around me and how much great information there is that I am missing out on, I cannot pass this ignorance onto the faults of society. In the self-absorbed pattern of life that I have developed, I feel like I do not have the time to devote to such petty principles such as knowledge. But if I could take my time away from the wasteful uses of my time, I feel that I would find the fruits of enlightenment and knowledge.
Taking the time to reflect on what Sam wrote, I can acknowledge what I am doing wrong. I feel a certain way about being compared to the people in the video who sound stupid. But I know that if I was put in the same position, people would probably say the same about me. I think there is something very powerful in comparing our lack of thinking with riding a rusty bike: we do not pay attention to our unmotivated and insincere efforts to think, and when asked to do so, we realize we cannot and fail with all eyes upon us.

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Spongebob says:

There are always people that are going to fit this mold and people who actually care about the people they are voting for and will make an effort to find out about them before choosing to support them. There are plenty of people in this world, democrats and republicans who take a stand or opinion on a candidate, donate money to their campaign but couldn’t name one policy of theirs. I’m not saying I am some big political activist but before I do anything I make sure I know enough about it so I am able to make an informed decision. I don’t think it’s our generation that this problem started to occur. I think this had always been a problem and probably will always be a problem. There are always going to be people who jump on the bandwagon even though they have no idea what the meaning is behind it. Because their will always be people who are lazy and just don’t care. Some of the youths are more educated than most adults so it’s ridiculous to say the youths are the ones who are bringing this about. Obama won the election because of the youth vote I am not justifying this because I think more than half of these people should not have even voted because they know nothing about the candidate and only voted for him because he’s an African American. The you tube clip of the Sarah Palin’s book signing showed how stupid her supporter’s looked. They are almost as stupid as her, they have no idea what she stands for or any of her policies. Everyone has different passions and things they are interested in. Some favor politics but those people should know something about it to form an opinion on it. I think there is a lack of good conversation between people. Its so on the surface and people just spit out opinions with nothing to back it up. If people took the time to learn about what other people really had to say and other cultures they would be able to make informed opinions and not look like such an idiot when trying to support something that they think they believe in. I think rusty thinking happen quite often because many people don’t know a lot about anything but that doesn’t make them stupid. As long as they have knowledge about things that are important to them that’s all that really matters. We talked about in class how people don’t try to obtain more information on things because they think there better than other people. This may be part of the reason but this is not necessarily true all the time. There are many reasons why people are not knowledgeable and why conversations are on the surface.

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Ms. Penguin says:

The level of knowledge demonstrated by the majority of the people being interviewed was not only unimpressive but an embarrassing testament to how fervently some people will back ideas, people, or policies that they know nothing about. I by no means claim to be an expert on politics, or to understand all the policies being debated on Capitol hill. But I’m also not standing in a line in support of some politician, clutching their book, which an outside observer would assume had been read, and arguing that they are the change our country needs. To find me waiting in the cold in such a line just to meet some figure for probably thirty seconds of generic conversation, would mean that I was passionate about the topic, and would understand it!
It’s disturbing to think of how the masses, demonstrated by this sampling of average Americans, grant power to people and provide the public support for policies they do not understand. It doesn’t seem like much of a stretch to compare such actions occurring now, to those that allowed such crazed individuals as Adolf Hitler to assume power in the past; people desire their problems to be fixed, and in their need turn to an amiable public figure or politician, whose motives, goals, policies, and ideas are unknown. The ignorant masses, using the power granted to us all by our own Constitution, give power to someone they do not understand, and as history demonstrated, will bring down upon us all the consequences and undesirable results of such inattention. It happened in Germany, whose population suffered unemployment, inflation beyond anything else seen in this century, food shortages, lack of resources, and the humiliation of a once powerful empire reduced to shattered country put on parole by the rest of Europe. While comparing the atrocities of the Third Reich to our current political theatre is overdramatic and entirely inaccurate, the methods by which the former gained power are echoed by the attitudes of people such as those in the video. And the possibility of who or what, in terms of policy, could come to power because of such ignorance is frightening.
Part of the problem in why people might back politicians or policies they don’t understand is the sheer amount of knowledge thrown at us in this ‘information age’. The amount of current issues being debated, which span the gamut of conserving the rain forest, to stopping starvation in Africa, to the possibility of a nuclear Iran, to unemployment, to finding another habitable planet, each have their own public ‘flag-bearer’ and endless amounts of research, news, changes they are striving for, and political advancements to keep track of. Being interested and following the updates of even a few of these issues demands an enormous amount of time, attention, and focus on the part of the individual. And many people simply do not have the time. So they do what they can to support their cause, and perhaps that manifests itself in the form of providing support to those figures who we perceive to support our beliefs, and who devote their time to advancing such beliefs or issues.

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Sugar Sweet says:

After watching this video I was very surprised to see the little people know about people and politics. Many of these people standing out there were just voting for the fun of it. When they were asked questions about Sarah Palin, they really didn’t know how to answer they were just there for the book signing. This is very sad because like Sam said people are just fed things, and most people believe it and they do not do their own research. This is how many people are convinced into doing many things that they don’t even have a clue about. This in other words is just saying that people are just taking advantage of the ignorance of the other people. This is very sad especially to the United States and the society because if people are just voting because other people are telling them to vote; how do we know if whoever is winning is really the best person that is supposed to be winning. This not only effects them but it effects the whole country. For example when we vote for the president we usually do our research before voting to see who Is the best candidate for our presidency. Obviously we are going to vote for the person that will do the most positive changes to our lives. But if we have people like these on the video voting without knowing anything, this could really be a problem with the society, they might be voting for the wrong person. So in my opinion I think people should stop jumping on the band wagon and stop following other people just because they might sound convincing. People everywhere are always going to do whatever it takes to win a competition. So I think that these people should start doing some research that way they will prevent other people from taking advantage of them and also by doing this they will be able to make the better choice which would benefit the society. Much of these people don’t use their brains because of laziness fo doing their own research. Many of these people relay on the media such as the television, the newspaper and or the radio to do their research for them. But how many times have you actually stopped and thought about that if the information that this being displayed is actually real? Many people usually never stop to think this way; they just take in whatever they are told. In my opinion people should be more questionable about everything they hear because now a days you never know who is actually telling the truth or who is lying. And the only way to prevent this from happening like I said is doing the research and actually finding the facts by yourself and stop believing everything people say.

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ReMa says:

After reading the journal, I skimmed through some of the posts to see how some of my peers had interpreted that data. I was kind of shocked to the responses. I believe Sam did a pretty good job and disclaiming that this video was not posted as an attack on Sarah Palin but instead picked to highlight the lack of knowledge so much of the United States has in respect to politics and hot topic issues. The fact is that people on both sides of the political spectrum fall into this, regardless of who they are backing. Being affiliated with a political party makes people think that the work is done for you when a candidate is picked to represent it. However, that is far from the truth. Just because you tend to agree with most of the issues of a party does not mean that you will agree with the issues of the candidate selected. I have met many people who consider themselves either Democratic or Republican and have beliefs or ideals different than other people in their party. Not everyone is going to agree on everything which is one of the reasons why people should really inform themselves about the views and ideals of the candidates to see who really stands for what you believe, not just looking for the (D) or (R) at the end of their name. The likelihood of people doing that though is very, very slim. Present day media makes it so easy to not think about candidate’s ideals, especially since all of it is usually skewed towards one side of the spectrum. Obviously, the conservative is more likely to watch Fox News since it solidifies what he or she believes. I think it would be more beneficial to watch the station opposite of what you believe to get a more rounded view on topics, instead of watching a program where you would not question the thoughts or ideas of the person in charge or someone you are thinking about voting for.
However, with all of this being said, I really do not think that people really care too much about these “hot topic” issues to study the candidates and delve into the reasons behind their beliefs. Take abortion for example. How much does abortion really affect our daily lives? I’m sure we could all find someone we know who has had some experience with abortion, but how does that really impact our lives? Most people have very heated opinions about it, regardless of which side of the issue you stand on. There was one group who came up here this semester and set up a huge display about abortion outside of the Forum and protested it. People say they feel strongly about it, but for most of them, I’d like to call a bluff. Yeah, you may feel one way or another but you do not care enough to know what the current laws are or what changes are being proposed by different parties or candidates. This happens with all issues, and I think it is because most people are just fine with how things are. They are fine with the overall government and how it is run. Sure, people will always want to change things but not many people want some sort of drastic change. So to them, it does not matter on a day to day basis whether a specific spending measure is cut or the abortion law is altered or some illegal immigrants are granted citizenship. People will always disagree with certain government aspects and there are always those people who just love to argue, but I think that overall, most people are satisfied or content with the current situations to not learn more about it. This would then be why they can just follow someone without really knowing what he or she stands for or plans to do. If the person’s place on the political spectrum matches yours, there is no thinking required. I don’t think we just care enough to learn more about it. We’re content with our rusty brains.

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Paul McCartney says:

There is a funny youtube video that shows uninformed people, most of them black but that is not really important, and they are asked “What do you think of Obama’s vice president, Sarah Palin?” Their responses were comical. “Oh she is awesome! She will make a great leader!” and some responses similar to those. I find it quizzical that these people automatically proclaim she is great because she has the Obama label. I’m sure if you asked them “Who is Joe Biden?” they wouldn’t have an answer. A lot of “I dunno’s”.
People say that Fox news should be ashamed because they pre-meditated the questions. DUH that was the point. Nobody seems critical of CNN or CBS or NBC or ABC or almost every other media station that does the same thing to non-Obama supporters (like me). That’s ok. But when Fox News questions Obama, it’s the anti-Christ.
Obama’s policies are different, yes, but he has yet to prove anything. But that is not the topic. People throughout the country do not know Obama’s policies. They are under informed and support him for all the wrong reasons. They support him because he is black, which is fine, but that shouldn’t be the reason he gets votes, just like people shouldn’t vote for McCain because Obama is black. People need to look into his policies and make a decision based on that. Is his healthcare idea going to benefit you? Is his tax increase going to benefit you? Do you agree with his stance on the War on Terror? If yes, then vote for him, if no, then don’t. If you agree with some but not all, prioritize what you think is important and make a decision based on that, not because he is black or good looking or has a beautiful family, because McCain has a good family too and can stand on a stage and read a teleprompter also.
But, Obama is our president because the people spoke. We must support his decisions because we are Americans and we always have stood behind our country first. However, we cannot let him go unregulated. We must challenge him, not to defeat him, but to strengthen him. Challenge the healthcare bill, not because we don’t need it, but to point out scenarios that it needs improvement, or if it is even the best possible thing for our country’s health system. I do not agree with almost everything Obama stands for or is promoting. But am I going to undermine his presidency like so many people did to Bush? No. He is my president just as much as he is anyone else’s in this great country, so for now Obama is my homeboy just like he is yours.

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Rocky02 says:

I know that the update says about not knowing much about politics but I am just like everyone else. I do not know nearly enough about Obama’s ideas and policies. I am embarrassed about it too. I do not even know that much about the topics that matter to me, like animals rights. The only reason I did not like our past president George Bush is because my dad told me some facts on his treatment of animals, like how he let some rich business men he was trying to influence hunt endangered animals. I also know that he does not care about protecting the environment; he is more concerned with oil drilling and money. I always tried to tell myself that I knew enough to justify opposing him and to being a Democrat. Deep down though I know that this is not enough, I need to go home and do my own research to discover what I like and dislike about Obama’s policies. I need specific facts so I can make an educated decision. Despite knowing that I am ignorant when it comes to our president and our government I know that it will probably take me a long time to actually sit down and look at the facts.
I am a vegetarian and I have been for seven years. It is a huge part of my life, the rights of animals and the treatment of them in slaughter houses. Despite this it took me years and years to get the facts so that I could have an educated argument with the people around me. And still, even though I know all these facts on why its better to be a vegetarian: the unethical treatment of animals, the grain used to feed cattle that could be used to fight world hunger, even the pollution caused by all the transportation, I still rarely prove my point to my opponents. This is because no matter how much my facts make sense the ignorant meat eater always thinking they have a good point. What is infuriating is that these points are always misinformed! The meat eater spits out a dumb response because they know nothing about the topic and when I have no immediate response they believe I was proven wrong. This always leaves me fuming and the other person smug. Unfortunately, there are worse responses. A lot of my friends decide to choose ignorance. They say the do not want to know. They like the taste of meat too much. Not until I wrote this did I realize that that is who I am when it comes to politics. I choose to be ignorant because it is the easy route. Now that I have finished writing this I am going to go and look up Obama’s policies. Thank you for opening my eyes.

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Ada says:

In the blog titled “Those Rusty Brains,” it mentions how people generally do not use their brains when they think or converse. Many people are disillusioned and think that they are using their brains, but if one truly listens or analyzes any of the conversations she hears during a day, it would not be hard to make an argument for the lack of brain activity that is taking place. It seems today that many people base their own opinions on the opinions of others or on what they have seen or heard on television, the radio, and the internet. People are not thinking critically or making their own opinions but rather spit out often misinterpreted and paraphrased opinions and statements they have heard from others. It would be interesting to see how many people could make a legitimate case for something as simple as why they belong to a particular political party. I would like to see a study that shows how many kids belong to the same political party as their parents or guardians. To me, it seems that part of the problem about the lack of critical thinking skills is a result of people not wanting to offend others. Some of the topics that would require the most analytical and critical thinking skills are typically deemed not appropriate to talk about in the social realm. These topics are typically reserved for classrooms and political debates and talk shows on the television and radio. How many times does the typical person hear in a lifetime to not talk about religion, gay marriage, politics, and abortion? It is a shame that people get so fired up and aggressive about these topics that they are not supposed to be talked about. It is situations like these that have forced the general person’s critical thinking skills to be placed on the back burner. Everyone has to resort to general mind-numbing topics such as the weather, sports, and little happenings. It is hard to use analytical and critical thinking abilities when one has to resort to talking about those mundane topics. Another reason this occurs is that people just generally are not interested in learning about topics that require those thinking skills, so then they do not have to use their brains. The majority of the population would rather focus on the status of Jon and Kate rather than the current state of the economy. It is a shame that is has come to this, but that is the truth. Without any genuine interest in topics that require thinking skills, it is hard to use them. Until people start to get involved and interested in the topics that really do matter and require thought, it is safe to assume that this sad state of underused brains will continue indefinitely

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Spicy Salsa says:

Well in today’s world of technology, internet, and fast news, people tend to go by what they hear on a regular basis. If you go around hearing the same thing all over the place, you are eventually going to start thinking is true. People are no longer take the time to do their own research to back up the things that believe to be true. The go with what they have heard and speak as if that’s all they need to know. Information is so easily available these days that people tend to assume that what they have heard is coming from a person that has researched what they are talking about, so they don’t take the time to do it themselves. An example of this is illustrated in the video posted on the blog. You can clearly see that the people interviewed at the Sarah Palin book signing, did not know what they were talking about. They went with what they believe she would do but when asked about her policies, they were not able to describe them. The interviewer even went as far as asking about the policies that the Obama administration has, and asked the crowd what they didn’t like about them. They were not able to detail them, but yet they were confident that they did not support them. How can these people back a candidate if they are unsure of what policies their candidate has or what changes they could make? I personally am not very politically active, I really don’t follow politics, however, whenever a topic interest or intrigues me I try to research the topic so that I would be able to discuss it with confidence if I ever was asked about it. I don’t like giving people information I don’t feel confident on. If I do give them information I am not too sure about, I make sure to say the phrase “I am not too sure about it” and that if they are interested on the subject that they should also research it themselves. Many people, as I said earlier, tend to go by what they hear, and if they hear the same thing over and over again they would assume it is true, without ever taking the time to do some research themselves. These kinds of people are exposed when they are asked questions about the topic that they seem to know much about and yet are unable to answer them. In a world where information is so easily available, asking questions to other individuals seems almost pointless. One could just as easily type the question on the internet and find the answer themselves. The people that do stay well informed and speak with confidence on their subject, the people that don’t just go by what they heard. The story goes gets shrunk down and changed as it is passed from person to person until it no longer resembles the original.

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Anonymous says:

Fast Food News Media

I often wonder where our nation is headed if the information on the most pressing issues that all Americans are facing is preferably absorbed through the so called “fast food news” media. It is utterly appalling that even some Americans that are considered to be educated, that one would naturally accredit with the ability to question things and think for themselves, are on the front line of the fast food news media. For God’s sake, how would you explain the fact that even individuals with college degrees wait for political pundits to spit out their political views, obviously infused with their own opinions and biases, to catch upon what is going on in the political realm! No wonder the line separating the former republican vice president candidate Sarah Palin, and The comedian Tina Fey gets blurred at the point where no one can distinguish who said what and when! I am sure everyone remembers during the last US presidential election, Tina Fey, on Saturday Night Live, impersonating Sarah Palin, said that she would be an expert on foreign related policies because she can see Russia from her house! The famous line took life of its own at the point where most people thought that Sarah Palin actually made that statement.

Where people are we going as a nation if we cannot even understand or at least make an effort to learn about issues that the nation is facing. These political issues, such as health care bill that is being worked on by both house of representatives and the senate, international trade policies, Afghanistan war policy put forth by President Barack Obama… affect all of us on the daily basis. It is critical for all Americans to join their efforts and vote into political offices leaders who will steer this country into the direction dictated by all Americans. This goal can only be attained if everyone started thinking for themselves by reading different news articles from different sources especially from non main-stream media. That would allow Americans to synthesize their own opinions on the most important issues that our nation is dealing with. Democracy is shaped by the people; we are the ones who vote our leaders into their policy making offices. Is it not sad to realize that millions of people who voted in the last presidential election would not be able explain briefly what are the positions of their preferred candidate on the most important issues that our country is or was facing! How can we cast our votes without knowing the candidate’s agenda! This lazy and ridiculous mentality has to change if we want our country to make steps in positive direction. All Americans must be proactive in learning and understanding 21st century problems that we all have to solve. By all Americans, of course, I include Sarah Palin! If she ever wants to run for the Presidency office, she better be able to answer when she gets asked what she reads to learn and understand current issues.

Fast Food News Media

I often wonder where our nation is headed if the information on the most pressing issues that all Americans are facing is preferably absorbed through the so called “fast food news” media. It is utterly appalling that even some Americans that are considered to be educated, that one would naturally accredit with the ability to question things and think for themselves, are on the front line of the fast food news media. For God’s sake, how would you explain the fact that even individuals with college degrees wait for political pundits to spit out their political views, obviously infused with their own opinions and biases, to catch upon what is going on in the political realm! No wonder the line separating the former republican vice president candidate Sarah Palin, and The comedian Tina Fey gets blurred at the point where no one can distinguish who said what and when! I am sure everyone remembers during the last US presidential election, Tina Fey, on Saturday Night Live, impersonating Sarah Palin, said that she would be an expert on foreign related policies because she can see Russia from her house! The famous line took life of its own at the point where most people thought that Sarah Palin actually made that statement.

Where people are we going as a nation if we cannot even understand or at least make an effort to learn about issues that the nation is facing. These political issues, such as health care bill that is being worked on by both house of representatives and the senate, international trade policies, Afghanistan war policy put forth by President Barack Obama… affect all of us on the daily basis. It is critical for all Americans to join their efforts and vote into political offices leaders who will steer this country into the direction dictated by all Americans. This goal can only be attained if everyone started thinking for themselves by reading different news articles from different sources especially from non main-stream media. That would allow Americans to synthesize their own opinions on the most important issues that our nation is dealing with. Democracy is shaped by the people; we are the ones who vote our leaders into their policy making offices. Is it not sad to realize that millions of people who voted in the last presidential election would not be able explain briefly what are the positions of their preferred candidate on the most important issues that our country is or was facing! How can we cast our votes without knowing the candidate’s agenda! This lazy and ridiculous mentality has to change if we want our country to make steps in positive direction. All Americans must be proactive in learning and understanding 21st century problems that we all have to solve. By all Americans, of course, I include Sarah Palin! If she ever wants to run for the Presidency office, she better be able to answer when she gets asked what she reads to learn and understand current issues.

Fast Food News Media

I often wonder where our nation is headed if the information on the most pressing issues that all Americans are facing is preferably absorbed through the so called “fast food news” media. It is utterly appalling that even some Americans that are considered to be educated, that one would naturally accredit with the ability to question things and think for themselves, are on the front line of the fast food news media. For God’s sake, how would you explain the fact that even individuals with college degrees wait for political pundits to spit out their political views, obviously infused with their own opinions and biases, to catch upon what is going on in the political realm! No wonder the line separating the former republican vice president candidate Sarah Palin, and The comedian Tina Fey gets blurred at the point where no one can distinguish who said what and when! I am sure everyone remembers during the last US presidential election, Tina Fey, on Saturday Night Live, impersonating Sarah Palin, said that she would be an expert on foreign related policies because she can see Russia from her house! The famous line took life of its own at the point where most people thought that Sarah Palin actually made that statement.

Where people are we going as a nation if we cannot even understand or at least make an effort to learn about issues that the nation is facing. These political issues, such as health care bill that is being worked on by both house of representatives and the senate, international trade policies, Afghanistan war policy put forth by President Barack Obama… affect all of us on the daily basis. It is critical for all Americans to join their efforts and vote into political offices leaders who will steer this country into the direction dictated by all Americans. This goal can only be attained if everyone started thinking for themselves by reading different news articles from different sources especially from non main-stream media. That would allow Americans to synthesize their own opinions on the most important issues that our nation is dealing with. Democracy is shaped by the people; we are the ones who vote our leaders into their policy making offices. Is it not sad to realize that millions of people who voted in the last presidential election would not be able explain briefly what are the positions of their preferred candidate on the most important issues that our country is or was facing! How can we cast our votes without knowing the candidate’s agenda! This lazy and ridiculous mentality has to change if we want our country to make steps in positive direction. All Americans must be proactive in learning and understanding 21st century problems that we all have to solve. By all Americans, of course, I include Sarah Palin! If she ever wants to run for the Presidency office, she better be able to answer when she gets asked what she reads to learn and understand current issues.

[Reply]

Anonymous says:

When I was searching the race relations blog earlier today searching for a journal topic I stumbled on the post entitled “Those Rusty Brains” and I began to read it. As I read though the post I began to realise that it brought up a very clear problem in America. It showed us what many of us refuse to admit and that is as a country we are largely a very uninformed people when it comes to voting. A lot of the time what happens in these situations is that people simply vote based on a candidate’s particular party or by the way the candidate is portrayed in the media. I believe the ladder has happened in this situation. In the media particularly in the right based media such as Rush Limbaugh and on FOX news Sarah Palin has been brought to the forefront of the Republican Parties attempt to regain some ground in the battle for political dominance. The media has attempted to portray her as a smart, strong, and, decisive woman that people can count on to run their country. This is precisely where these people began to like Palin. The media often does no discuss a candidate’s issues rather they focus on personal attributes as is evident in this case. It appears that these people at the book signing really voted for Palin based on these factors and not on her issues. This is clearly evident in their response to the interviewers questions. We need a serious change in this country. We need to become more educated in the area of politics. What these people are doing is wrong and quite simply appalling. There is absolutely nothing wrong with supporting Sarah Palin but it should be done for the right reasons. I’m not saying that there is anything wrong with saying a candidate has strong leadership qualities but they are only useful when used to carry out promises on key issues. These people need to learn the issues that Sarah supports such as outlawing abortion, drilling for oil, and not nationalizing health care and vote for her based on these issues on top of her positive personal attributes. The freedom to vote is one of the most beautiful things about being an American citizen. It is sad that so many people take it for granted and misuse it or don’t even exercise it at all. There are countries in the world were people are forced to vote for things that they don’t want to under the threat of death. It doesn’t take much to be an informed voter either just a little time to take a look at some issues and it can make a huge difference.

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Brock Smash says:

2009 the age of reason and enlightenment. Well not actually. When a person that exhibit’s the sheer ignorance of Sarah Palin can be within a heart beat of the vice presidency and George Bush can be elected not once but twice, we are truly living in a society that has had its brain eroded by constant electronic stimulation and the twenty four hour news cycle of misinformation. And the sad thing is, it is only going to get worse as time marches on. Children being born today will look to electronic sources for truth and comfort and only find fear mongering and misinformation. Truth is rather difficult to find and its starting to become ever more difficult to find. When only a hand full of corporations control the vast majority of media, these corporations only let you know what they want you to know. As the blog post claims we are asked not to reason but to just go with the flow and accept what is presented by the media, until our brains become rusty and dilapidated. Also we are told by the media to pick a side of the political debate in such a way that if we even hear the views of the other side we should become violently ill and angry that someone would have the temerity to have different views. We need to stop and think about all sides of issues instead of falsely thinking that we have all the answers to every problem and that the other side is completely wrong. We need to reason through problems instead of just standing behind the dogma of party lines. People have certainly lost their curiosity with the world and are just too lazy to really dig deep to expand their minds and really attempt to find out how the world works. Perhaps if our brains are rusty for too long we as a society will completely lose the capacity to reason and innovate and we as a people will go through a process of devolving. Not to the level of primitive man but to the point that we will no longer be able to appreciate thing such things as a good debate or a fine piece of cinema unless its been sanitized by our corporate masters.

The conversation is dead, I’m not sure who killed it but it is certainly dead. We have no meaningful conversations, debate and or relationships anymore. The conversations were so inane and useless during the Thanksgiving holiday at my home that I wanted to drill a hole in my rusty brain. The whole conversation was based around the useless crap that my family was going to buy on black Friday and the difference between a tivo and a dvr. No thinking required to take a seat at my families table, and the sad thing is my mother has a masters degree.

Palin is a monster, but we the people created this monster. We created the monster by being complacent and not urging the media to ask politicians tough questions and helping to elect officials that aren’t even qualified to run a Dairy Queen, let alone this country.

[Reply]

Ya Girl! says:

Unfortunately, this affects everyone, from students to people working full-time. We consider the things that used to be expected of everyone now to be extraordinary. It’s interesting to see how children are raised now to jump through the hoops, as we discussed in class. They want to do the bare minimum, because we all learn that Cs earn degrees. It is not common to see children raised to be extraordinary. They don’t get taught to question things like they did in more revolutionary times. We are way past the times of protests conducted by the youth of this nation. My mother participated in a sit-in at her high school so the females would be allowed to wear jeans to school. I feel like that says a lot about the times of the late ‘60s or early ‘70s. Something that seems small like whether female students could wear jeans versus being required to wear skirts to school every day was protested by a large group of students. This event was significant enough to get the administration of the school to change the policy. I know that such an event would not be as common now. I recall in my high school, the female students being against certain dress codes but rather than taking initiative to do something about it, they would just complain about it to those around them and break the rules anyway.
Now I may not know a lot about political issues, but it does not mean that I’m completely ignorant of the world around me. When I have the opportunity I do my fair share of reading, but I get frustrated when I hear things about current political issues. I like to read about history and make connections to what I do know about current issues. However, I took this class because I have a strong interest in social issues and a bit of an obsession with race and its connections to other topics.
As a member of the hip hop community, we are always listening to different artists and exploring dance moves, clothing, and lyrics to see how all these things connect with how they change. We discuss all the different racial and gender barriers to the community.
However it’s also interesting to me to push the limits and be somewhat of a sociopath and ask those difficult questions, because I would really like to know the answers. Though sometimes we all have those sophomoric conversations about our favorite beer or who has the cutest shoes, just recently we caught ourselves in a conversation questioning our guy friends about certain sexual acts they were bragging about and how it degrades females. We turned something shallow and maybe common for college students to discuss into something more, because life will be a much more fulfilling experience if you surround yourself with people who will have those discussions with you.

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Cucci Mane says:

I do agree that one of our major problems in 2009 is indeed the fact that people today don’t think the way we should. Personally, I believe that technology is responsible for many people to be lazy today. Sure many technologies make people lazy, but when you think about it, people even take laziness as far as to not be able to form an opinion for themselves. A lot of times, people will just believe whatever they hear and people are shallow minded to believe one thing a person says and takes it as actual fact. They never try to do the research themselves, until they are later proven wrong.
When Sam talks about “Fast food news”, I assume that he is talking about how quick people are to believe what they hear. Headlines also contribute to a lot of the fast food news because people unfortunately take the headline in without reading the article. Most people that browse the internet don’t take the time to read it and just skim the first paragraph, assuming that’s what the headline is about. We must be smarter and take the opportunity to earn as much knowledge as we can, thus making reading the article beneficial. If we read it, we would be able to have something to talk about to others and we could even help form our own opinions and views.
Obama is a good example of this issue, because most people know who Obama is, but don’t know Obama well. Even many of those that voted for Obama don’t truly know what Obama is about. I am sure that most people that voted for Obama voted for him because he is Black. If you had to ask most people about Obama’s policies or any specific question regarding the president, most people would give you a one word answer or a half-assed response. Why? Because they only base their views on Obama on what they hear or they didn’t take the time out to do their own research and educate themselves. It is laziness, but naturally most people just accept it and don’t do anything about it.
One thing I like about this post is that it caused many people, including myself to always keep an open mind. Critical thinking is very important and its one of those things that help make us well rounded people. This has taught me that its important to use my brain and that its good to have an open outlook on the world, because most people only know their country and their customs. Most of these people have never made an attempt to understand or try to become part of another culture. The internet is only a start and a small step bringing people around the world together. From there we must continue our journey and put ourselves out there.

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Fantasia says:

I’ll be the first to say I have a “rusty” brain when dealing with politics. It’s all so shady and blurry that hearing different things from different people it makes it hard to ever know what’s really going on so I don’t like to speak my opinion or support things im not educated enough in. I didn’t want to vote not knowing all the facts and not having a strong feeling of support, since it’s the election of the president I didn’t feel justified voting not being fully educated. That being said seeing other clearly un educated people preaching obama’s “change” and buying into trendy appeal from celebrities it almost made me not want to vote knowing they were just doing it because everyone in college has to show our “knowledge”. I just can’t believe people waiting for a book signing for Sarah Palin’s new book couldn’t even answer in the slightest what she supports. If im going to read a book on someone and support them enough to go to their book signing then im going to defiantly know what their views and ideals are. The people were not only speechless for many of the questions but some even thought they knew what they were talking about and continued by bullshitting incorrectly about things they clearly don’t know. I feel like this uneducated bullshitting happens all the time around us and is increasingly more widespread. I’m pretty sporadic and enjoy the randomness the world around us holds but some people won’t even put out the effort in trying to have a creative random conversation. Maybe it’s because people are content enough with “talking” to people through phones and computers from texting to facebook but how socially stimulating is that? People are content enough with what they know and don’t need to establish with others so communicating is easy enough through technology. Communication alone is bad but it’s only getting worse seeing little five year olds getting cell phones, for what? I know in our generation video games and technology were up and coming but by the time it really exploded we had already experienced the creative mind expanding days playing outside and playing with actual toys having to socialize with other children now a days children are brought up surrounded by high tech video games and computers, you don’t even have to go out to go bowling anymore you can play it by yourself in front of your home television. It’s even bad that playing a multi player video game has turned into microphone headsets talking to each other. This social dysfunction is turning peoples mind to mush and crushing our social society.

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Aesthetic says:

I also agree that people do not talk about situations like they are suppose to.
I also believe that these days people as a whole do not talk about situations
thoroughly. I feel that we do not speak about how we truly feel about topics that affect our lives. We just go with flow and express how we feel about situations. Maybe certain
situations we should just go all out and really talk about how we feel but in
reality, its not that simple.
Now, lets talk about the real stuff, let us be real. People talk a lot of SHIT!! And I am not saying that at times I do not talk things that do not really know about but it is kind of ridiculous. I feel as though people as a whole do not investigate and try to find out what topics actually mean. For instance when they were talking about Sarah Palin and her running for the presidency a lot of people did not know what they were talking about. It amazes me how much crap we talk. And where do we get our information from? Why cant we explain the reasons why we feel the way that we do? Its amazing that we take what other people say and run thousands of miles with it. Maybe its our way of conforming to something that we are suppose to believe in.
For instance, a lot of people that were talking about Sarah Palin and her representation of what “America” is suppose to be is a whole lot of crap. I didn’t know that America is suppose to be conservative, I thought America is suppose to be the land of opportunity were everyone is expected to keep their culture but openly live in a new one. They did not know what were the policies that she stood for. They did not know what she said she would change or if she said she would change anything. What cracked me up was the one guy who spoke about the two books that President Obama wrote but did not have one clue about what the book was about. AMAZING!!!
I am not trying to be judgmental because in actuality, in some instances I do the same thing. And probably many people in the world do the same, in which they discuss not what they know but what they were told. I think about many stereotypes that I believe just because I heard someone say it. And believe it or not, people sometimes believe things just because they train themselves to. I am happy that I took the time out to do this particular blog because it forces me to try and find out how I feel about things rather than believing what others want me to.

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Skeeter Valentine says:

“Stop the spending… All of it.”
“Drill baby, drill!”
“Suppose we drill for oil. And not just for oil, but for gas.”
“Well, I watch FOX news a lot.”
“We need people like her to speak up for reality.”

I think that if we knew what area of the country this was it would shed some light on the issue of where the rusty brains most likely come from. But in my opinion I think that more than two thirds of Americans would give similar answers if they were posed similar questions. I think that the quote, “well, I watch FOX News a lot,” epitomizes our middle-American conservatives. That’s exactly the product of our “drive-thru news” channels these days. It’s not responsible or healthy to listen to only one side of the political spectrum on issues or policies. You can’t have opinions based on one perspective, and we’ve seen what that does when people ask you to explain yourself. I liken it to static stretching; just sitting there and trying to touch your toes isn’t going to help you prevent injuries or improve your flexibility, whereas if you warm-up and prepare your muscles for the stretch you’ll accomplish both.

I’m not versed on foreign policy, or the war in Iraq, or taxes, or government spending. So I don’t talk about those issues. But honestly, I’m okay with being glib for now because I don’t feel the impact of those issues. I also am insensitive to potential criticism that might come my way because I don’t expect to put myself in a situation where I don’t have something to add to the conversation. Granted these people feel strong about their support for Palin, but their support doesn’t come from a desire to have the best possible person take the helm of our nation, rather it comes from the “feelings” they get from her. These people are “feelers,” not “thinkers.” They may listen to the right wing bias to “educate” themselves on issues, but its more to reaffirm their beliefs than anything. Politicians know this, and that is why they kiss babies, and the reason they go to small towns in America; to appeal to the feelers. Their stance on politics isn’t going to win them those votes, but rather what they say in “between the lines.”

To Sam’s suggestion to take ownership and describe what it’s like to be ignorant, honestly, I don’t do a lot of “feeling” on issues, I’m a thinker; I have to have facts. I think that’s how many people who take pride in their education approach this issue of ignorance. I understand that I can’t be versed in everything, and I don’t want to be. I’d much rather engage in discussions about European soccer or finance or girls. So ultimately, to answer the question; It rarely enters my conscience. And I’m not judging these people on their knowledge, or lack there of, but their thought process is suspect. This way of thinking about politics permeates much of America and because these people rarely “stretch” or “flex” their brains (because who are they going to talk to?), these “opinions” reciprocate and thus get acceptance amongst their surroundings. It’s a cycle. A cycle that I’m proud I don’t participate in.

[Reply]

Dwight K. Schrute says:

I am really happy Sam posted a blog about this, because I think about it and am reminded of it daily. Stupid people are everywhere. Some of them were not always stupid, except I guess when they were babies, yet they have found it very suitable. Somewhere throughout their lives they might have figured out they could get pretty far in this world by doing the bare minimum or simply not trying to expand their perspective, while other are too stupid to even think of that. My point is stupid people are everywhere, including positions of authority and power. Take Sarah Palin for example. She may not be the dumbest, although I think she is, yet she still managed to acquire a position of power and was even a potential vice president. How could someone manage to succeed so much in life, in terms of the typical standards, even though they clearly are not the sharpest tool in the shed. My point is we are all a product of our environment, and our environment allows us to be stupid and yet still successful in our lives. I honestly feel that this applies to way too many people, including those who hold positions in our government and on TV. I’m not saying these people aren’t or weren’t smart, I’m just saying they do not have to be, at least not in our modern world today.
Surprisingly enough, TV shows like the Daily show are what really brought this to my attention. It consistently points out just how dumb some of the people who the general public listen to really are. Like some of the news anchors on CNN or Fox News. Who make absurd and inappropriate comments on a daily basis, yet remain successful and are watched daily by thousands of people. A great example in my Opinion would be Nancy Grace. This lady could honestly be called one of the dumbest, yet in reality she is very well educated. If you watch her on TV you wouldn’t think she could have passed the third grade, for instance she didn’t know what a CZAR was. Yet in real life she’s college educated and even spent time studying in Oxford. I think it’s safe to say she has taken it to the next level, pretending to be dumb in order to be successful.
Take a good look at the way our language has progressed throughout the history of our country. We used to have such passion and make use of a huge vocabulary, yet we have only dumbed it down in the past hundred years.
Another example, George W. Bush, I rest my case.

[Reply]

lauriemulvey Reply:
December 16th, 2009 at 4:08 am

Going Without Brains

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thecanary says:

Just testing out the site…

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dancinqueen says:

While reading this post, I couldn’t help but stop and think, “Yeah, we really don’t have conversations with people around us.” Everyone’s minds are so stuck in high gear that we rarely take a second to stop and think about what we are actually saying. I know I do it. I’m already planning what to say next while I’m talking to someone else. I’m probably not even listening to what they are actually saying, and then again, are they even listening to me?
I believe our society is so caught up in technological and psychological demands that we are more robotic than anything else. We are programmed to follow social cues. But now when I reflect, I rarely see people exchange meaningful conversations or even act well mannered at that. It is pretty rare to see students hold the door for other students; maybe they do for elders but rarely for peers.
I have to be honest, I too find myself too worried about where I need to be or what I need to be doing, but I have taken some time to have real conversations lately. About a year ago, I started spending more and more time with a few girls from my hall. We would just hang out, get ready together, go eat at the Commons, you know the normal things friends would do. It’s pretty funny because whenever we would be eating over the weekend, we would always get into an hour long debate over something. We still do this all the time; it’s never forced or interrogating, just our thoughts on whatever comes up. And we have talked about everything; religion, politics, race, gender, homosexuality, how we feel about abortion. And we don’t always agree, but that’s what makes it fun.
I think what I’ve come to realize in all of this is that you probably really need to feel comfortable with people and confident in your perspective to engage in these types of conversations. I think that’s why we aren’t thinking, we are either too nervous to put our feelings out there too early in an interaction or we just never formed an opinion in the first place. It’s true, school doesn’t really teach you how to learn or think, and it’s pretty much expected. I want to be a teacher some day, yet school doesn’t really promote thought anymore. Education values accuracy and quantity over quality; I guess basically everything contradictory to what teachers say they want. So, what I get out of this is that I may not know more than those around me or even know the right answer, but I have been occupying my time with enough thought provoking conversations to keep my brain working and I hope that I can challenge my students to interact with one another and society in a similar way.

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eds5092 says:

I have no idea why many people, and personally me, do not know a lot about politics and current events. My lack of knowledge on everyday subjects really makes me feel stupid and embarrassed. As a well educated human being shouldn't I know about what is going on around me? Instead of discussing politics with others I simply do not give any opinion because I am afriad I will sound dumb and also because I feel like politics is such a touchy subject and I do not want to argue about it. Me being afraid of expressing my opinion, however, has led to me not exactly knowing how I feel. Ever since I was young I always took on my parent’s point of view as the “right” way to think without ever stopping to ask myself my own beliefs. Looking at it now I still cannot make my own decisions because I feel in order to make one I have to know all the facts. With all the technology out there today it is easy to get information on the latest events but sadly me, and most of my friends, do not even have the passion to take time to look at what is going on around us. I do feel that since I am an adult now I should be interested in our country’s policies however since I have never looked into it before it has been hard for me to get started. I really wish that I took the time to learn more about politics but I do not make it a priority and maybe that is beacuse I cannot see how it directly affects my family and friends as well as myself. When news is put in front of me I do take interest and feel good about being able to discuss and know what is going on when I hear the topic brought up. For example, as I was waiting to go into a meeting, CNN was on and they were discussing the Hati disaster. I found myself very interested in how these people were going to be helped, but at the same time when I turn on the television I turn right to MTV and skip over the news because I have a preconceived notion that news is boring. Personally, I would think there was something wrong with me for the fact that I rather watch snookie being punched than hear about the new health plan, except most other people I know and hang out with do the exact same thing. So is it possible that my generation just was never taught to take interest, or is it merely the environment that I was brought up in? My parents, however, are always talking about the latest discovery or wildly arguing about their health care policies. Maybe it is the fact that because my parents take care of everything and understand what is going on I have not had to think for myself or even learned how. Growing up in a small neighborhood I have never been tested or questioned why things are the way they are. I feel as if I have a lack of experience in life and even though I was "well educated" during high school I learned nothing about life in general even with all the resources I have been given.

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