Perhaps "developing country" might describe us better in this post cold-war era. We have issues that are definitely third-world in nature (huge divide between the rich and poor, extremely low wages) and some things that run pretty well (education isn't bad, neither is health care - although it is a hot topic, the same as everywhere else).
I agree with your analysis on the reasons, although I wouldn't blame it all on the people behind it. It is much easier and more comfortable to be a sheep than a shepherd, and even a lot of people who have the capacity to do some critical thinking prefer not to. I see it here with other topics: I can never understand why otherwise intelligent people watch Big Brother, for example. I always thought vouyerism was only fun when it was done on the sly!
I guess it's just an extension of the Romans' "Bread and Circus" philosophy, but the bread and circuses they've chosen this time seem to have a huge risk of backfiring, as they stand directly in the way of progress in the information age. Probably not a good idea...
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2010-03-06 12:09 am (UTC)I agree with your analysis on the reasons, although I wouldn't blame it all on the people behind it. It is much easier and more comfortable to be a sheep than a shepherd, and even a lot of people who have the capacity to do some critical thinking prefer not to. I see it here with other topics: I can never understand why otherwise intelligent people watch Big Brother, for example. I always thought vouyerism was only fun when it was done on the sly!
I guess it's just an extension of the Romans' "Bread and Circus" philosophy, but the bread and circuses they've chosen this time seem to have a huge risk of backfiring, as they stand directly in the way of progress in the information age. Probably not a good idea...