If I Wanted America to Fail....
S&R did a fantastic post today, with several of us pitching in, called "If I wanted America to fail...." It's one of the best things I think we've ever done. Check it out.
Here was my contribution:
If I wanted America to fail, I’d opiate the masses through entertainment and media-anything to circumvent the kind of free thinking necessary for responsible, effective self-governance.
I would use the media to turn governance itself into a form of entertainment, distracting the majority of potential voters and disgusting the rest-creating the impression that governance is irrelevant and not worth participating in, thereby disenfranchising them.
I would encourage a media environment that promoted financial incentive over public trust, sacrificing what people need to hear in favor of what they want to hear.
I would encourage uses of technology that allowed us to work more instead of just working better, emphasizing quantity of work rather than quality of life.
Here was my contribution:
If I wanted America to fail, I’d opiate the masses through entertainment and media-anything to circumvent the kind of free thinking necessary for responsible, effective self-governance.
I would use the media to turn governance itself into a form of entertainment, distracting the majority of potential voters and disgusting the rest-creating the impression that governance is irrelevant and not worth participating in, thereby disenfranchising them.
I would encourage a media environment that promoted financial incentive over public trust, sacrificing what people need to hear in favor of what they want to hear.
I would encourage uses of technology that allowed us to work more instead of just working better, emphasizing quantity of work rather than quality of life.