But alas. For the vast majority of these men, the foundation on which the sum of their actions are based can only be classified as substandard at best. Only during their gradual ascent to power do they even so much as fabricate, let alone validate their supposed empathy towards societal perspectives. Once their influence is stabilized, such displays of compassion become politically superfluous, even detrimental, to the sustainment of the established order.
On a select few occasions, however, free societies have arisen and flourished, and their political systems have functioned primarily at the will and benefit of the citizenry. But over time, these systems begin to diminish in effectiveness. The very freedom by which the people live gives rise to the ironic. Immense apathy emerges, despite a vast assortment of strong, varying and conflicting opinions.
This seemingly implausible mixture of phenomena is what I consider the basis for all the traits that continue to inhibit America's capacity for critical thinking and problem solving in both daily life and political policy. It presents itself as the fact that Americans care just enough to have a strong opinion about something, but are too apathetic to take the time to analyze their views in a rational manner. It presents itself as the fact that they'll stand by their views unconditionally, yet when they're presented with a formidable counterargument, their responses are, to be blunt, unresponsive. It presents itself as the fact that America constantly assumes that freedom of belief and freedom of expression automatically implies an intrinsic equality of all opinions.
Before I proceed, I wish to differentiate between my use of the terms opinion and ideology. An ideology, in the sense that I use it, is a subjective philosophy shared by a group of individuals, while an opinion is the subjective viewpoint held by a single individual, including his or her reasoning for holding it. For example, socialism is an ideology. However, the statement "I think socialism is a good idea, because I like it," is an expression of one's opinion, an opinion that adheres to the ideology of socialism.
With that distinction made, it becomes necessary to explain the following: all ideologies have some degree of rational argument to back them up. Even communism can be supported in a logical manner. Opinions, on the other hand, aren't necessarily logical. In other words, someone who adheres to a particular ideology does not necessarily have valid grounds for doing so, regardless of what that ideology might be.
And yes, in a free society, everyone is entitled to their opinions (as they very well should be). However, the general assumption among the masses is that all opinions are inherently equal, merely because of this entitlement. Quite the contrary. A woman who believes she might have breast cancer would not go to her local bakery for a medical opinion; she would instead seek the opinion of a licensed medical professional at a local health facility. This is due entirely to the fact that such professionals have a greater scope of knowledge concerning the issue.
In theory, liberalism, conservatism and libertarianism are of undeniably equal legitimacy. However, those are ideologies, not opinions. An opinion, which adheres to any ideology, is easily capable of being inferior to opinions of other ideologies, and vice versa. So in other words, in contrast to conventional assumption, opinions can, in fact, be incorrect. It is merely the ideologies to which they adhere that are neither right nor wrong.
Unfortunately, in American society, most opinions can easily be classified as simplistic and juvenile, regardless of any ideology to which they might adhere. It's this cultural-wide, intellectual simplicity, as well as the aforementioned apathy, that makes America such a dysfunctional society. It's why, in America, people express their blind patriotism in the most conceded of ways, while ignoring the fact that the United States hasn't accomplished anything worth mentioning for almost seventy years. It's why, in America, a politician, simply by calling his opponent "communist," can actually win votes, despite the fact that his supporters haven't the slightest idea what the word means. It's why, in America, people can actually be inspired by the words "hope" or "change."
As an opening post, I hope to provide this bit of insight to the future bloggers of this site, insight that will encourage them to approach all issues in a rational manner, regardless of what their ideology might be.
