Ignorance is NOT bliss
So I have developed a theory. I call it the AIDS test theory or really Active Ignorance. I'm thinking of making this my psych dissertation (after I've seen if anyone else has studied it [in the way I intend to study it]). I've done the poor woman's copyright and everything. lol
I think many aspects of life can be encapsulated by the mental process some go through regarding taking the AIDS test (or not taking it.) A large reason why a lot of folks don't get tested for AIDS/HIV is the fear that they may find out they have it. Some even go as far as taking it and not getting the results. The mentality seems to be "If I don't know I have it, I'll be ok." Or perhaps "if I am to be made aware that I have it, the knowledge will be too much to handle." Of course, logically speaking, not knowing you have the disease will not stop it from killing you. It'll only make your death from it a surprise. And "surprise! You’ve got full blown AIDS with two months to live!" is much worse than the alternative.
And as I stated earlier, this phenomenon doesn't stop with getting tested for HIV. It has permeated many parts of our psyche. Like "if I don't see him/her cheating on me, it's ok." "If I don't see racism in action, then it doesn't exist" or "if I ignore all the bad things that are going on in the world, then everything will BE ok."
In most aspects of life knowledge is seen as empowering and beneficial. Yet recently it has began to be looked at as detrimental and even harmful. And more and more we're all running away from it in one way or another convinced that if we are ignorant we can "shield" ourselves from knowledge. And that it is the knowledge of the problem that causes the pain, frustration, etc. [Remember in the third grade when someone was telling you something you didn't wanna hear and you'd put your fingers in your ears and say," la lalala lalalalala I can't hear you!!!!" LA LALA LALALALALA!!!" ?? This is essentially what grown ass people do on a daily basis. lol]
But it is not the knowledge that is harmful. Noting has changed. Knowledge is still empowering and beneficial. We've only convinced ourselves that it isn't. What's harmful is not the information, what feels harmful is the helplessness we feel we are left with once we have the information.
Going back to the AIDS test, we currently [emphasis on currently] have no cure for AIDS so knowing that you have it would feel hopeless and helpless. No one had a hard time getting tested for gonorrhea or chlamydia because they know once they are diagnosed they will take some sort of salve and be rid of it and will not possibly die from it. Currently [again, note the emphasis], there is no cure for AIDS so the knowledge would leave most feeling there's nothing left, but to wait to die. The same goes for all of our societal problems. So informing yourself seems like it would only induce grief with no possibilities for a "cure." That life would be easier if you just remained oblivious. However, there is treatment for AIDS and HIV. And that did not come about mystically from the sky. No one dropped the HIV treatment from the heavens. Medicine was tested and in order to be tested folks had to take that test and live with knowing they had it. Similarly our societal problems are not gonna disappear if we aren't aware of them. And yes it is hard to live with being "conscious" of them knowing that the cure remains to be created, but it is only with acknowledgement that a cure will ever be made.
This is why I call it Active Ignorance. Because by definition we are all ignorant of many things. Ignorance itself is just the lack of knowledge in any particular area [I want to make it clear, that by using that word I'm not making any judgments because I don't view the word negatively. It's actually neutral]. The action comes in when people purposely avoid gaining knowledge (particularly in something vital to themselves). It's not simply not knowing. It's closing yourself off to knowing.
Ignorance is bliss, right? No, this is incomplete. Ignorance is either temporary and/or artificial bliss. For if a parasite is slowing eating away at your vital organs and you are ignorant of its existence that will not stop the parasite from slowly killing you. And ultimately you will be faced with the consequences of ignoring that parasite. The same goes for HIV, societal problems and virtual every unpleasant obstacle of our lives. They can be ignored and it will seem easier while they are being ignored. But that is just a facade and there will come a point where things will become so dire that ignoring is no longer an option. We can sit can wait patiently for that moment while the parasite invades us and eats us from the inside out. Or we can pay attention and work on the cure. Knowledge or A.I., the choice is yours. [lol@ my melodrama]
I think many aspects of life can be encapsulated by the mental process some go through regarding taking the AIDS test (or not taking it.) A large reason why a lot of folks don't get tested for AIDS/HIV is the fear that they may find out they have it. Some even go as far as taking it and not getting the results. The mentality seems to be "If I don't know I have it, I'll be ok." Or perhaps "if I am to be made aware that I have it, the knowledge will be too much to handle." Of course, logically speaking, not knowing you have the disease will not stop it from killing you. It'll only make your death from it a surprise. And "surprise! You’ve got full blown AIDS with two months to live!" is much worse than the alternative.
And as I stated earlier, this phenomenon doesn't stop with getting tested for HIV. It has permeated many parts of our psyche. Like "if I don't see him/her cheating on me, it's ok." "If I don't see racism in action, then it doesn't exist" or "if I ignore all the bad things that are going on in the world, then everything will BE ok."
In most aspects of life knowledge is seen as empowering and beneficial. Yet recently it has began to be looked at as detrimental and even harmful. And more and more we're all running away from it in one way or another convinced that if we are ignorant we can "shield" ourselves from knowledge. And that it is the knowledge of the problem that causes the pain, frustration, etc. [Remember in the third grade when someone was telling you something you didn't wanna hear and you'd put your fingers in your ears and say," la lalala lalalalala I can't hear you!!!!" LA LALA LALALALALA!!!" ?? This is essentially what grown ass people do on a daily basis. lol]
But it is not the knowledge that is harmful. Noting has changed. Knowledge is still empowering and beneficial. We've only convinced ourselves that it isn't. What's harmful is not the information, what feels harmful is the helplessness we feel we are left with once we have the information.
Going back to the AIDS test, we currently [emphasis on currently] have no cure for AIDS so knowing that you have it would feel hopeless and helpless. No one had a hard time getting tested for gonorrhea or chlamydia because they know once they are diagnosed they will take some sort of salve and be rid of it and will not possibly die from it. Currently [again, note the emphasis], there is no cure for AIDS so the knowledge would leave most feeling there's nothing left, but to wait to die. The same goes for all of our societal problems. So informing yourself seems like it would only induce grief with no possibilities for a "cure." That life would be easier if you just remained oblivious. However, there is treatment for AIDS and HIV. And that did not come about mystically from the sky. No one dropped the HIV treatment from the heavens. Medicine was tested and in order to be tested folks had to take that test and live with knowing they had it. Similarly our societal problems are not gonna disappear if we aren't aware of them. And yes it is hard to live with being "conscious" of them knowing that the cure remains to be created, but it is only with acknowledgement that a cure will ever be made.
This is why I call it Active Ignorance. Because by definition we are all ignorant of many things. Ignorance itself is just the lack of knowledge in any particular area [I want to make it clear, that by using that word I'm not making any judgments because I don't view the word negatively. It's actually neutral]. The action comes in when people purposely avoid gaining knowledge (particularly in something vital to themselves). It's not simply not knowing. It's closing yourself off to knowing.
Ignorance is bliss, right? No, this is incomplete. Ignorance is either temporary and/or artificial bliss. For if a parasite is slowing eating away at your vital organs and you are ignorant of its existence that will not stop the parasite from slowly killing you. And ultimately you will be faced with the consequences of ignoring that parasite. The same goes for HIV, societal problems and virtual every unpleasant obstacle of our lives. They can be ignored and it will seem easier while they are being ignored. But that is just a facade and there will come a point where things will become so dire that ignoring is no longer an option. We can sit can wait patiently for that moment while the parasite invades us and eats us from the inside out. Or we can pay attention and work on the cure. Knowledge or A.I., the choice is yours. [lol@ my melodrama]