Who could have guessed; The information age would lead to mass ignorance.

[shockey80]

We have the information from all the books, in all the worlds library's at our fingertips. Instead of searching for facts and the truth, millions of people go in search of propaganda that makes them feel good. This is the story of the Trump voter.

[empedocles]

1. ' . . . makes them feel' . . . strong!

[htuttle]

2. Aldus Huxley guessed this

From the introduction to Neil Postman's "Amusing Ourselves to Death" comparing 1984 to Brave New World:

What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one. Orwell feared those who would deprive us of information. Huxley feared those who would give us so much that we would be reduced to passivity and egotism.

Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us. Huxley feared the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance. Orwell feared we would become a captive culture. Huxley feared we would become a trivial culture, preoccupied with some equivalent of the feelies, the orgy porgy, and the centrifugal bumblepuppy.

As Huxley remarked in Brave New World Revisited, the civil libertarians and rationalists who are ever on the alert to oppose tyranny "failed to take into account man's almost infinite appetite for distractions." In 1984, Orwell added, people are controlled by inflicting pain. In Brave New World, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure. In short, Orwell feared that our fear will ruin us. Huxley feared that our desire will ruin us.

[gab13by13]

4. OMG htuttle, we think alike, scary.

I did my post before I saw yours.

[gab13by13]

3. I know that comparisons have been made

of Trump and 1984 and Farenheit 451 but I am reading Huxley's Brave New World for the third time and dammit I believe that the oligarchs who own our politicians would lead us down the path of Brave New World. Working class people are created in the embryo to be stupid, we have the MSM basically doing the same thing.

Every time I read Brave New World I get something new out of it. My Ford I need my soma after that.

[Johnny2X2X]

6. Agree

I might have to re-read Brave New World. I was thinking about it the other day when remarking how 119,000 Americans are dead and no one seems to care one bit anymore, it's just something that happens. People are numb to the death already, it's just numbers.

[honest.abe]

5. Social media allows ignorance to be supported and propagate.

Its a troubling and dangerous side effect of online technology.

[Chainfire]

8. Yes, and it is not just limited to one side.....

I find myself falling into the same situation. I take my daily news from BBC, Reuters, NPR and CBS. When I hear the term "Fox News" I turn my head and spit. Although I used to be one of the few liberal voices who participated on a conservative forum, I got to the point, after a few years, that I could no longer stand all of the darkness, lies and hate. So the bottom line is I only give credence to sources that I agree with too.

Intellectually, I know that there has to be some positive aspects to Donald Trump, and his administration, but I will not accept any of it; I have too much invested in hating the man and his party to give them the benefit of any doubt. So, in fact, emotionally, I am no different than the Trump 40%, just a mirror image; and I am unapologetic about it......

I suspect that, truth be known, a lot of frequent flyers here, feel the same way, whether they want to admit it or not.

[beachbumbob]

7. trump supporters need not work too hard at being ignorant

[ananda]

9. I guess we now have to call it The Disinformation Age.

..

[treestar]

10. bring to mind the saying

how it's not what you don't know, but what you do know that isn't true.

[onetexan]

11. I beg to differ. The ignorance was always there. The information age has only exposed & amplified it