Look up stats on levels of adult literacy in the US or in the west more broadly. Critical reading of material, the kind of thing necessary to recognize and internally refute propaganda, is a skill that well under 10% of people have.
Okay, people bring this up a lot, but I'm curious, who are we comparing the US to here? Yes the US public education system sucks ass compared with other first world nations, but a lot of first world nations are going through their own far right anti-immigration brainworms rn, some worse than the US so idk if this can be blamed on public education being shit. Also as bad as it is I don't think it can be argued that US public education is worse can a lot of developing countries, many of which just straight up don't have it at all.
So what is US education in a weird place where it's just good enough to make you smart enough to embrace your brain worms but not good enough to lead you to challenge them? That's the only explanation I can muster.
I'm not comparing the US school system to anything, just saying that the vast majority of people do not have the level of literacy skills necessary to recognize propaganda and deprogram themselves. Literacy isn't the only method of recognizing propaganda and deprogramming oneself, but it is a pretty darned important one in an atomized society where there all institutional pressure is working in favour of propaganda. My point is that the 30-40% estimate earlier in the thread is uncharitable to people.
Okay, I just see people attributing it to poor education a lot when... like the two most successful communist revolutions ever happened in countries where most people were illiterate peasants who thought the Czar/Emperor was ordained by God? Idk, as dumb as burgerbrains are I kinda thing a person who can read and has an internet connection should be a bit more capable than a cabbage farmer who can't count past 10
Look up stats on levels of adult literacy in the US or in the west more broadly. Critical reading of material, the kind of thing necessary to recognize and internally refute propaganda, is a skill that well under 10% of people have.
Okay, people bring this up a lot, but I'm curious, who are we comparing the US to here? Yes the US public education system sucks ass compared with other first world nations, but a lot of first world nations are going through their own far right anti-immigration brainworms rn, some worse than the US so idk if this can be blamed on public education being shit. Also as bad as it is I don't think it can be argued that US public education is worse can a lot of developing countries, many of which just straight up don't have it at all.
So what is US education in a weird place where it's just good enough to make you smart enough to embrace your brain worms but not good enough to lead you to challenge them? That's the only explanation I can muster.
I'm not comparing the US school system to anything, just saying that the vast majority of people do not have the level of literacy skills necessary to recognize propaganda and deprogram themselves. Literacy isn't the only method of recognizing propaganda and deprogramming oneself, but it is a pretty darned important one in an atomized society where there all institutional pressure is working in favour of propaganda. My point is that the 30-40% estimate earlier in the thread is uncharitable to people.
Okay, I just see people attributing it to poor education a lot when... like the two most successful communist revolutions ever happened in countries where most people were illiterate peasants who thought the Czar/Emperor was ordained by God? Idk, as dumb as burgerbrains are I kinda thing a person who can read and has an internet connection should be a bit more capable than a cabbage farmer who can't count past 10