We drove again today, for the second day in a row. That is, I drove, and my parents rode. Yesterday was singularly uneventful -- a little road construction here and there, nothing major. Today was all about the rain, as we made our way down I-77 to Columbia, SC, from Parkersburg, WV. The sky spit, it drizzled, the valleys filled with fog, and then sometimes it poured for long stretches, and the semis kicked up so much water that it was difficult to see anything.
We are now safely in Columbia with my Aunt Marty and Uncle Dave at their senior residence, Still Hopes. It's a really deluxe place, with a superb dining room, where I had Steak Diane with asparagus and a baked sweet potato for dinner this evening, followed by (I know!) a scoop of mocha ice cream. Since I keep forgetting to take my herbs before and after meals, I had more ice cream later so I could take my evening herbs before and after the ice cream. (I know!)
I have worked out some details for seeing Jennifer Austin and Carol Janssen in Asheville tomorrow afternoon, and Ben Schweizer (I hope) on Friday morning, before driving back to Columbia.
My thinking today about the current election cycle goes something like this:
It occurs to me that the failure of this election cycle may be a failure of media, news media in particular, to maintain integrity over the years. Now, when someone presents facts, people choose to believe them or not to believe them because facts, "truth", and statistics have been so manipulated, and most people don't know where to begin to sort out fact from fiction.
As our education system fails to help students learn to think for themselves and teach them how to seek out facts and verify them, more and more American citizens are unable to ferret out the truth beneath the falsehoods, fake-outs, and downright lies that they hear on a daily basis. If even a small nugget of truth is presented that counters their opinion, they simply say, "You're wrong," or "That's a lie," and that's the end of it. No matter how many articles are written with references to statements by people who were there, no matter what was actually said, what they think was said, what they were told was said, becomes the truth because it supports what they believe.
I have no idea how to change this. I, too, am media-weary. I even turn off NPR if my BS-detector goes off. I didn't watch any "debates," because they're not debates, really. And I didn't watch either convention. All that stuff just makes me want to scream. I'd like to be informed about world events, but I'm so tired of hearing everyone's opinion that I end up turning off the unending stream.
It is my fervent hope that many people will read information from both sides of the various candidates (not just presidential) and issues that they must vote on in November, and that they will think hard about whether the person speaking is really capable of doing what s/he says, given the Congress and others that s/he must work with. Also, think of the consequences of any given actions taken -- there are many. None of these things is black and white, with one simple choice and an obvious consequence.
Your vote matters. Your ideas and opinions matter. Be articulate with them. Be thoughtful with them. Screaming, "You're lying," is not a constructive way to learn more about the issue or situation, nor to convince anyone else of your thoughts. Blessed be.
We are now safely in Columbia with my Aunt Marty and Uncle Dave at their senior residence, Still Hopes. It's a really deluxe place, with a superb dining room, where I had Steak Diane with asparagus and a baked sweet potato for dinner this evening, followed by (I know!) a scoop of mocha ice cream. Since I keep forgetting to take my herbs before and after meals, I had more ice cream later so I could take my evening herbs before and after the ice cream. (I know!)
I have worked out some details for seeing Jennifer Austin and Carol Janssen in Asheville tomorrow afternoon, and Ben Schweizer (I hope) on Friday morning, before driving back to Columbia.
My thinking today about the current election cycle goes something like this:
It occurs to me that the failure of this election cycle may be a failure of media, news media in particular, to maintain integrity over the years. Now, when someone presents facts, people choose to believe them or not to believe them because facts, "truth", and statistics have been so manipulated, and most people don't know where to begin to sort out fact from fiction.
As our education system fails to help students learn to think for themselves and teach them how to seek out facts and verify them, more and more American citizens are unable to ferret out the truth beneath the falsehoods, fake-outs, and downright lies that they hear on a daily basis. If even a small nugget of truth is presented that counters their opinion, they simply say, "You're wrong," or "That's a lie," and that's the end of it. No matter how many articles are written with references to statements by people who were there, no matter what was actually said, what they think was said, what they were told was said, becomes the truth because it supports what they believe.
I have no idea how to change this. I, too, am media-weary. I even turn off NPR if my BS-detector goes off. I didn't watch any "debates," because they're not debates, really. And I didn't watch either convention. All that stuff just makes me want to scream. I'd like to be informed about world events, but I'm so tired of hearing everyone's opinion that I end up turning off the unending stream.
It is my fervent hope that many people will read information from both sides of the various candidates (not just presidential) and issues that they must vote on in November, and that they will think hard about whether the person speaking is really capable of doing what s/he says, given the Congress and others that s/he must work with. Also, think of the consequences of any given actions taken -- there are many. None of these things is black and white, with one simple choice and an obvious consequence.
Your vote matters. Your ideas and opinions matter. Be articulate with them. Be thoughtful with them. Screaming, "You're lying," is not a constructive way to learn more about the issue or situation, nor to convince anyone else of your thoughts. Blessed be.
No comments:
Post a Comment