When Will America Learn? Trix Are For Kids

Dear Followers,

For the sake of those who are less drawn to Nazi philosophical work, I have provided an alternative response to Noam Chomsky’s “Manufacturing Consent” that deals with a stance that many more people in the classroom and the world can probably relate to (abstract thought is present however):

These past few days I have had the chance to watch Noam Chomsky’s “Manufacturing Consent.” Chomsky’s criticism of the interplay of media corporations and government institutions is an extension, in my mind, to my groups BLA book, “Amusing Ourselves To Death” by Neil Postman. A link to the book’s overview can be found below.

http://www.intellectualconservative.com/article3933.html

Postman and Chomsky discuss the power of media in American society. They explain who the mass media and press shape our understanding, opinion, and view of the world. In short, the mass media shapes our epistemology as our top source of information. However, Chomsky and Postman diverge at some point. Whereas Postman is more concerned with the decline of relevant information, Chomsky is more concerned with the manipulation of relevant information.

The Soul Eater gang are horrified by the manipulative nature of the mass media.

Chomsky continues to discuss how governments, even democratic ones, exploit the media to “manufacture” the consent of the citizens through media that portrays the state as just. The government soon becomes an all-powerful entity that is not subject to question. “Criticisms” of the government that come from the mass media are rare and more often than not only propagate the state.

When one says something controversial, people will immediately demand evidence whereas otherwise they simply assume regurgitated information that they hear every day to be the truth because it conforms to media norms. Because the media is based on the concept of “concision,” the media can only express conventional thought. One cannot give evidence when stuck with a system of “concision,” thus dissenters are perceived as “people from Neptune.”

Nagi has decided to turn off the TV to avoid the accumulation of incoherence.

I could continue for hours on this topic, but I will stop myself and save some thoughts for my BLA group discussion. Because all of my fellow classmates have decided to discuss Chomsky’s arguments dealing with Cambodia and East Timor, and because I have already discussed military policy in my previous post, I will focus next instead on the manipulation of information as presented by Chomsky.

Chomsky discusses how information is presented to the American public in such a manner by media corporations that they perceive the information to be pertinent and important. Many citizens take pride in reading the paper every day and keeping up with current events. The example that Chomsky gives is the sporting event. Sporting events are a “training in submission to an authoritative figure” which leads to irrational behavior. Citizens rally behind teams without reason and devote themselves to the accumulation of sporting statistics that really mean nothing.

Haruhi is frustrated that she cannot even escape the mass media on her laptop.

This is comparable to the political system. American politics can be characterized as a system of corruption, swindling, and cheating. Mariah Donnelly is the only person who would not admit to this fact at some level. Don’t get me wrong, the United States has one of the freest societies in the world, but that doesn’t mean we can merely turn a blind eye to internal problems with our society.

The news is full of politics, giving citizens the false illusion that they are involved in the political process and that by keeping up with the “issues” as presented by the media they are well informed citizens. This is false. Politics as presented by the media is a load of junk. The amount of ignorant political commercials aired nearly 24/7 these days prove this fact. I came across the following article when researching updates for debate today:

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/indepth/2010-10/14/c_13557438.htm

The article describes how Republicans and Democrats have fallen back to a system of “China Bashing” in preparation for the upcoming midterm elections. This article demonstrates the misleading nature of politics by explaining how politicians have chosen to open fire on China to prove their loyalty to their own country. Democrats have accused Republicans of crafting policies that allow American companies to outsource jobs to China whereas Republicans blame Democrats for borrowing from China and supporting a bill that sends wind turbine jobs to China.

The mass media has taken another prisoner. Konata is now part of the system.

My favorite line would be “China becomes the scapegoat. Blaming China is easier than trying to restructure the US economy for long-term sustainable growth.” Politicians have chosen to exploit anxiety in times of economic uncertainty to get votes by blaming China and destroying its reputation. This has to be American politics and the manipulation of information at its worst. Are we really so ignorant that we believe these scams? Yep. Politicians that have adopted these new anti-China positions have seen voter increases in recent polls. Facepalm.

P.S. – Perhaps you noticed how I disjointed this post with random pictures. Thanks for the tip Postman.

I’m Cuckoo For Coco Puffs,

Noel