People who think critically are treated as misfits, and outliers as well. People do not want to be challenged or have their little reality bubbles burst.
People who think critically are treated as misfits, and outliers as well. People do not want to be challenged or have their little reality bubbles burst.
The story of my life. My family always blazed its own trail and I was told to have the strength of my convictions. Family dinners are great opportunities to enforce these sorts of values.
Linda, lucky you. My parents wanted me to do well in school, so I had their support in that way. My mother and aunt were worried that i was a voracious reader and not that social until they found out through the daughter of a friend that I was a bit of a card at school.
I went back to school and took a critical thinking class in my '40s and it changed my life. If high schools taught critical thinking skills, I suspect that most people would actually enjoy having the ability to see when they are being misled. But by adulthood, apparently most people are deeply entrenched in a belief system which is failing them and leaves them vulnerable to conmen of every sort, including our leaders. Most people have no idea how gullible they are without critical thinking skills.
Craig, I wish there were a way to "introduce" critical thinking into messages for adults without them realizing that is what it is. Maybe it could be a scavenger hunt like Pokyman Go where a series of critical thinking type questions answered after having thought it through can get you the prize. I don't know what that would look like, but I know smarter people than I could figure it out.
I agree that education could be made fun. I used to enjoy watching "Where on Earth is Carmen San Diego" on PBS. It was a a geography class in the form of a game show for kids. I don't see why education for adults couldn't be presented in entertaining TV shows. Surely there is enough imagination in America to present civics in an entertaining way.
In my classes, we read strong and weak essays from a textbook and analyzed what made them work or not. And we learned how to write our own. They taught me what to look for when someone is trying to convince me of something. Are they backing up their argument with proof? And when I'm not sure, I can look it up. Now days, I can quickly and easily Google it. I know that lots of MAGAs parrot "Do your own research," but in many cases, they use poor sources. I recall hearing one woman telling a reporter that her proof of something Trump said was from Q! Not everyone wants the truth, but from my experience, facts and honesty make life much less confusing and stressful. I am definitely happier.
Craig, I enjoyed Carmen San Diego too. I watched it with my nieces and nephews when I was their nanny and we all loved it. OK, we really liked the group Rockapella that sang the theme song. During the Bicentennial, yea many years ago, I think it was CBS that presented pieces of history from the time of the country's founding. The pieces were about 5 minutes long or so and had a "celebrity" presenting the information and the bits were accompannied by photos and sometimes music of the time. Maybe for the semiquincentennial, in two years, a network could present points of citizenship in similar bite-sized pieces on TV networks and on the internet on a variety of platforms. It would be worth a try.
Terry, this is even worse during an entire lifetime if one is a woman and it is also difficult for in school for males perceived as nerds. This is one of the reasons I have mixed feelings about sports as the be all in the educational setting.
Actually I do too especially now as college sports has become bribery, inc. Personally, I would have sports as clubs and not part of the school day. I could write a book on how sports screws up schools. I knew we were in trouble when they became co-curricular rather than extra-curricular.
Terry, alas, sometimes bubbles need to be burst, possibly deflated a bit before the final pin is pushed in, because keeping people in their bubbles is not good for anyone except in rare situations and mental health workers know what that is. Maybe people need to see that what Trump has done by permitting some people to become outrageously rich while others struggle just to pay rent and eat could change some minds. Like JD Vance, they blame people for their situations when in reality, the rich often get rich through luck while they claim it is their own skills and intelligence; sometimes it is, but mostly it is luck. Poor people are where they are sometimes from bad luck, but that bad luck is often generational and a result of racism, classism, poor health, hopelessness, and the like. Implying if not outright claiming that poor people are lazy, ignorant, or uncaring las JD Vance and others do is another "big lie" that we haven't begun to tackle. Yes, gently pop some bubbles and be there to support the former inhabitants of those bubbles.
I agree but getting magats to listen is impossible. I have a maga brother and he's really lost his mind. He used to be a smart guy but I don't even recognize him anymore. Totally down the q- anon rabbit hole...
Terry, I am so sorry to learn about your brother. My sister married a guy who turned out to be a MAGA. It was terrible. She changed so much, hardly did anything with our family anymore, was verbally abused by him even though she took care of him as he was dying. She passed away last November and we didn't have a chance to fully reconnect after his passing 6 months earlier. It is so sad what Trump has done to this country and to families and friendships. Trump is simply evil! He surrounds himself with people equally evil and they have no positive ideas, even positive thoughts, just more hatred, distrust, fear, anger, resentment, and more. Why anyone listens to or follows them is truly a mystery to me, but they do and without some serious intervention, they are lost.
Thank you Ruth. And IтАЩm sorry to hear about your sister. That sounds horrible. I went to visit my brother and kept telling him for 4 years that he was more important to me than politics but he didnтАЩt feel the same. He attacked me and told he i wasnтАЩt allowed to speak in his adopted state of Texas. I left and havenтАЩt spoken to him sinceтАж very sad indeed. The convicted felon adjudicated rapist has been a disaster for our country.
Terry, your brother told you that you had no right to speak in Texas? That is crazy and demonstrates clearly that the Trump cult is not healthy for anyone. I remember what happened to my mom when her husband, my stepfather said they would listen to Rush Limbaugh every day, having it running in the background, and keeping Fox Not Nearly News on TV. She started spouting the lies, misinformation, conspiracy theories, and other crap she heard. My mother was a thinking caring decent person but she was becoming something else under the influence of Limbaugh and Fox (it sounds like a corrupt law firm). We finally had to tell her that we would no longer visit if she planned to have that crap running while we were there. Thankfully, she turned it off when we were around, and when my stepfather died, she stopped listening to it altogether, which was great. She returned to her old self for which we were grateful! That garbage can really mess with a person's mind. Everyone with any sense needs to boycott Fox and the other similar platforms and to vote against Trump and the entire ballot of Republican candidates who, like Limbaugh and Fox care only that they are influencing for the benefit of their handlers, corporate owners, donors, paycheck writers, not for the American people. So, the lies roll out and people are convinced they are truths. It's pretty disgusting!
Sadly peopleтАЩs personalities do change based on who they hang out with in person or online or through media. My brother used to be a sweet guy now I donтАЩt know him and sadly donтАЩt really like who he has become. I just pray when the convicted felon adjudicated rapist ceases to exist maybe some people will come back to their former selves like your mother.
Terry, unfortunately hate and the other negative emotions resonate with people even more than love, caring, joy, and the other positives. I think when Christianity is followed, its message is to scrap the hatred, anger, fearmongering, resentment, greed, etc. and move into the realm of love, caring, justice, peace, and joy. Why people would prefer the other crap is beyond comprehension.
Those that have the personal courage to speak up and offer their countervailing views based on fact more often than not prevail. However, that requires those of opposing views no matter how acquired to be open minded, emotionally intelligent and responsible to suspend their beliefs. Sadly, there are many, many Americans who do not have that fundamental capacity.
People who think critically are treated as misfits, and outliers as well. People do not want to be challenged or have their little reality bubbles burst.
The story of my life. My family always blazed its own trail and I was told to have the strength of my convictions. Family dinners are great opportunities to enforce these sorts of values.
Linda, lucky you. My parents wanted me to do well in school, so I had their support in that way. My mother and aunt were worried that i was a voracious reader and not that social until they found out through the daughter of a friend that I was a bit of a card at school.
I went back to school and took a critical thinking class in my '40s and it changed my life. If high schools taught critical thinking skills, I suspect that most people would actually enjoy having the ability to see when they are being misled. But by adulthood, apparently most people are deeply entrenched in a belief system which is failing them and leaves them vulnerable to conmen of every sort, including our leaders. Most people have no idea how gullible they are without critical thinking skills.
Craig, I wish there were a way to "introduce" critical thinking into messages for adults without them realizing that is what it is. Maybe it could be a scavenger hunt like Pokyman Go where a series of critical thinking type questions answered after having thought it through can get you the prize. I don't know what that would look like, but I know smarter people than I could figure it out.
I agree that education could be made fun. I used to enjoy watching "Where on Earth is Carmen San Diego" on PBS. It was a a geography class in the form of a game show for kids. I don't see why education for adults couldn't be presented in entertaining TV shows. Surely there is enough imagination in America to present civics in an entertaining way.
In my classes, we read strong and weak essays from a textbook and analyzed what made them work or not. And we learned how to write our own. They taught me what to look for when someone is trying to convince me of something. Are they backing up their argument with proof? And when I'm not sure, I can look it up. Now days, I can quickly and easily Google it. I know that lots of MAGAs parrot "Do your own research," but in many cases, they use poor sources. I recall hearing one woman telling a reporter that her proof of something Trump said was from Q! Not everyone wants the truth, but from my experience, facts and honesty make life much less confusing and stressful. I am definitely happier.
Craig, I enjoyed Carmen San Diego too. I watched it with my nieces and nephews when I was their nanny and we all loved it. OK, we really liked the group Rockapella that sang the theme song. During the Bicentennial, yea many years ago, I think it was CBS that presented pieces of history from the time of the country's founding. The pieces were about 5 minutes long or so and had a "celebrity" presenting the information and the bits were accompannied by photos and sometimes music of the time. Maybe for the semiquincentennial, in two years, a network could present points of citizenship in similar bite-sized pieces on TV networks and on the internet on a variety of platforms. It would be worth a try.
Terry, this is even worse during an entire lifetime if one is a woman and it is also difficult for in school for males perceived as nerds. This is one of the reasons I have mixed feelings about sports as the be all in the educational setting.
I have strong negative feelings about sports being elevated above scholarship.
Actually I do too especially now as college sports has become bribery, inc. Personally, I would have sports as clubs and not part of the school day. I could write a book on how sports screws up schools. I knew we were in trouble when they became co-curricular rather than extra-curricular.
Terry, alas, sometimes bubbles need to be burst, possibly deflated a bit before the final pin is pushed in, because keeping people in their bubbles is not good for anyone except in rare situations and mental health workers know what that is. Maybe people need to see that what Trump has done by permitting some people to become outrageously rich while others struggle just to pay rent and eat could change some minds. Like JD Vance, they blame people for their situations when in reality, the rich often get rich through luck while they claim it is their own skills and intelligence; sometimes it is, but mostly it is luck. Poor people are where they are sometimes from bad luck, but that bad luck is often generational and a result of racism, classism, poor health, hopelessness, and the like. Implying if not outright claiming that poor people are lazy, ignorant, or uncaring las JD Vance and others do is another "big lie" that we haven't begun to tackle. Yes, gently pop some bubbles and be there to support the former inhabitants of those bubbles.
I agree but getting magats to listen is impossible. I have a maga brother and he's really lost his mind. He used to be a smart guy but I don't even recognize him anymore. Totally down the q- anon rabbit hole...
Terry, I am so sorry to learn about your brother. My sister married a guy who turned out to be a MAGA. It was terrible. She changed so much, hardly did anything with our family anymore, was verbally abused by him even though she took care of him as he was dying. She passed away last November and we didn't have a chance to fully reconnect after his passing 6 months earlier. It is so sad what Trump has done to this country and to families and friendships. Trump is simply evil! He surrounds himself with people equally evil and they have no positive ideas, even positive thoughts, just more hatred, distrust, fear, anger, resentment, and more. Why anyone listens to or follows them is truly a mystery to me, but they do and without some serious intervention, they are lost.
Thank you Ruth. And IтАЩm sorry to hear about your sister. That sounds horrible. I went to visit my brother and kept telling him for 4 years that he was more important to me than politics but he didnтАЩt feel the same. He attacked me and told he i wasnтАЩt allowed to speak in his adopted state of Texas. I left and havenтАЩt spoken to him sinceтАж very sad indeed. The convicted felon adjudicated rapist has been a disaster for our country.
Terry, your brother told you that you had no right to speak in Texas? That is crazy and demonstrates clearly that the Trump cult is not healthy for anyone. I remember what happened to my mom when her husband, my stepfather said they would listen to Rush Limbaugh every day, having it running in the background, and keeping Fox Not Nearly News on TV. She started spouting the lies, misinformation, conspiracy theories, and other crap she heard. My mother was a thinking caring decent person but she was becoming something else under the influence of Limbaugh and Fox (it sounds like a corrupt law firm). We finally had to tell her that we would no longer visit if she planned to have that crap running while we were there. Thankfully, she turned it off when we were around, and when my stepfather died, she stopped listening to it altogether, which was great. She returned to her old self for which we were grateful! That garbage can really mess with a person's mind. Everyone with any sense needs to boycott Fox and the other similar platforms and to vote against Trump and the entire ballot of Republican candidates who, like Limbaugh and Fox care only that they are influencing for the benefit of their handlers, corporate owners, donors, paycheck writers, not for the American people. So, the lies roll out and people are convinced they are truths. It's pretty disgusting!
Sadly peopleтАЩs personalities do change based on who they hang out with in person or online or through media. My brother used to be a sweet guy now I donтАЩt know him and sadly donтАЩt really like who he has become. I just pray when the convicted felon adjudicated rapist ceases to exist maybe some people will come back to their former selves like your mother.
It has happened with my son and grandson, too. As you know, Terry, it is so painful.
Sorry to hear Hope, it is so painful and just a shame, not necessary. That disgusting creature has sown so much hate.
Terry, unfortunately hate and the other negative emotions resonate with people even more than love, caring, joy, and the other positives. I think when Christianity is followed, its message is to scrap the hatred, anger, fearmongering, resentment, greed, etc. and move into the realm of love, caring, justice, peace, and joy. Why people would prefer the other crap is beyond comprehension.
Pitiful.
Those that have the personal courage to speak up and offer their countervailing views based on fact more often than not prevail. However, that requires those of opposing views no matter how acquired to be open minded, emotionally intelligent and responsible to suspend their beliefs. Sadly, there are many, many Americans who do not have that fundamental capacity.
Indeed