We
are in the midst of a propaganda war in this country where misinformation
abounds and credibility is being put to the test. We are all combatants in this
war and our brains are both the weapons we fight with and the targets we must
defend from attack.
Common sense,
back when it existed in meaningful quantities, gave us the simple axiom,
“Garbage in, garbage out.” This suggests that good things in, will result in
good outcomes.
Superior
education, research and technique result in superior products. Putting a man on
the moon began with an inspiring goal that was followed by gathering accurate
data, understanding it, analyzing it and building on it. Many would call this
the American way.
Conspiracy
theories are called conspiracy theories because they are based on—well they are
not based on anything. They are baseless. In the past, conspiracy theories
existed only in the world of cranks. Intelligent people looked down on both the
theories and the cranks, but fortunately, there were no enough of either to
threaten the rest of us.
Today,
we are living at a time where more and more people, especially people in
powerful positions—men and women in the Senate and Congress, governors, state
and local leaders are looking at nonsense and concluding that if it works for
them, it’s okay. The biggest piece of nonsense being floated is that the recent
election was corrupted by election officials, fixed to favor Democrats, and must be overturned. Mind you, they don’t
necessarily believe the nonsense. In many cases, they don’t. They are simply
evaluating nonsense in terms of how it works for them. They are even willing to
look like cranks themselves, if there is something to be gained for them
personally.
These
leaders are playing into the hands of people who would like to see our
government fall because if government falls, democracy falls. Thus far, too
many Republicans have refused to stand up to these conspiracist.
Our
country has always been able to deal with a small minority of cranks who were
out of touch with reality. It cannot deal with a sizable number of leaders
unwilling to stand up to them.
Republicans
don’t have to do much. They have to simply admit, publicly and en masse that
the last election was fair, that Trump lost, and that trying to overturn a free
election is the most un-American thing any individual, especially a president
can do.
They
have to use their brains to fight, not surrender their brains to
fear—especially the fear that Trump will somehow punish them for doing the
right thing.
Again,
our brains are the only weapon we have against ridiculous propaganda, and they
are the only things we must protect when they are being attacked. Propaganda is the enemy of democracy.
Accepting and promoting propaganda is no different than working with the enemy
in a hot or cold war. It is treasonous.
