Yes, I've known this for a very long time, and was guilty of it myself years ago. But the recent events of the Bradley Manning injustice and the Edward Snowden fiasco really brought it home. Well, it was the reactions of so many "patriots" that really brought it home.
It reminds me of a bunch of angry baboons- ruled by their aggressive emotions, and loyal to the troop "leaders" no matter what they are doing. It's really sad. Humans should be smarter than this. We have brains. Use them.
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And please don't forget.
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Years ago, during the Viet Nam (not a) War (because Congress didn't declare it a war) I had an argument with my father, a WWII wounded veteran. He said "my country right or wrong." So I proposed a scenario in which the "country" (government) would actually violate the rights of the citizens. He couldn't believe the FedGov would ever do that. He grew up in a simpler, less complicated time... although the FedGov was violating rights of the citizens even then.
ReplyDeleteP.S. "My country right or wrong" taken to its logical extreme means that even if the FedGov is openly and admitedly in the wrong a person will still support its evil-doing. That is an emotional reaction rather than a logical action. And it is indicative of a subject not a free citizen.
ReplyDelete"We have brains. Use them."
ReplyDeleteMost unfortunately my friend, with the demise of critical thinking and common sense in this country (in this world!) most mental capabilities atrophied as people found it easier to just go along to get along. There's an addictive comfort to not standing out, being part of a crowd and not drawing attention to self and family -- like heroin, it leaves a potentially troubled or conflicted mind wrapped in a warm, though delusional, sense of safety and security.
I really enjoy thinking through the hard stuff. I can keep my body busy with some mindlessly repetitive task and let my mind go on whatever it wants to delve in to. And it is very satisfying to visualize and understand something that I didn't before. At least, for me it is.
ReplyDeleteYeah, sometimes uncomfortable realizations result, but I'd rather be right- be able to separate reality from fantasy- than comfortable.
I have a hard time relating to people who won't even think through the simple things, such as those I talked about above. But even that is one of those "hard things" that I let my brain explore so that I can better understand it.