Collective Selectiveness

I am truly impressed by the resolve of the masses to accept something as truth even though they have been show significant evidence to the contrary. It seems that over the last 10 years that any thing one says can be considered the facts if they repeat if enough times and then get 2 or 3 others to repeat it. This is not exactly new to the nature of humans. It has, however, gotten to a point that makes my stomach turn. What is the motivation for altering the truth? More times than not it about greed or lust. To what ends people will go for self-gain deserves a little thought.

If a couple of brothers inherited several billion dollars and still don't have enough, they would like spend most of their time either trying to make more or trying to hang onto as much as possible. Unlike Warren Buffet, who buys a business that is doing good and let's it keep on doing what it does best, some of these billionaire types would rather spend money perpetuating lies and meddling in politics. Convincing those who will blindly follow the craziest of ideas that a health care plan is going to lead us to genocide or that our elected leader is of an origin and religion that he is not. I like a good conspiracy theory as much as anyone, but at least try to use an occasional fact or two in you pitch.

Falsifications seem to be coming from all directions lately, fueling the hate and mistrust that has been growing like a fungus for longer than I have existed. Throughout history there have been many examples that have served as a tutorial for the current mayhem. End of the world theology happens to be a favorite of mine. I find it very amusing how many times a religious fanatic will convince the flock that on some day in the near future the world will end so they should surrender their worldly possessions and gather around for the mass suicide. The inability for individuals to think for themselves astounds me.

One of the recent usages of untruth stems from some horrid greed. This is a little tricky to find the correct starting point but I will pick the privatization of government functions has lead to some of the worst deception I can think of. Privatization of various institutions and prisons have lead to some of the most evil motivations to lie that once can imagine. One contractor running the prisons in Arizona that has ties to the governor of that state has worked out a plan that if they are able to arrest more illegal immigrants then he will collect more government dollars for processing them for a profit. This has lead to numerous scare tactics about drug related beheading activities in the desert that have never happened. This has turned a large part of the population against a group of people that are so poor they are willing to risk everything to try to provide for their families.

Other types of long term stay facilities for the treatment and care for people with mental challenges that have been being transitioned from state run to private for profit run have some really sad stories as well. People being medicated to a point that they are in "cold storage" and don't require a lot of maintenance. Others being used as unpaid labor while their care is being sponsored bringing an extra cha-ching for the handlers. The neglect and abuse that results from underpaid staff at these facilities is really the worst crime imaginable. All of these things are happening while the public is being told that the people are receiving the highest quality are that can be afforded.

Book burnings are always a big party, almost as much as protesting doctors who provide treatments that some see as a sin. Where they find these mindless, line dancing idiots that will act out against something they don't understand mystifies me. I'm pretty sure if someone was to ask the attendees of a book burning how many of them had actually read and understood the book they were burning it would a very small number who had and the rest would be taking someones word for the contents being evil in nature. It is like there is a fear of education or individualism that has infected part of that population to the point that if a parrot said "I am God." they would start praying to the parrot.

Religions have a long history of claiming the only path to righteousness and suggesting all others will lead to damnation. These fall under a unique category because they require the follower to first believe that is a creator or supreme being that is responsible for everything just because until recently nobody has been able to explain our existence without the magical plot devise we call God. I have to tip my hat to Stephen Hawkings for having the bravery for claiming that the M-Theory has removed the need for a creator to explain our existence. I'm sure his latest book will reach 451 degrees in many neighborhoods for that one. I can understand how the average person would not have the desire to validate these concepts because it takes years for the best mathematicians to reach a point where they can follow along. The proof is there if one is ready to take on that challenge otherwise the topic will require believing someone without first hand knowledge.

The complexities of interaction within our society will forever be polarized between those who believe and those who question. The believers have created the collective selectiveness by choosing what they believe or disbelieve and are convicted to these beliefs. The questioners may still believe most of the best story going but they will try to sort out a few facts. I think that our society probably needs both camps to make a balance with believers taking to each extreme and the questioners trying to find a common ground for them. Democracy is a slow process and does not always lead in the right direction at first but it is so accurate in the way it projects the public opinions on just about every topic. If the physicist have found an equation to explain it all they are doomed because most people can't grasp algebra. M-Theory save us.