We are truly in an "Age of Ignorance"

[Domingo Tavella]

74. Ignorance is in!

Ignorance in America today reaches much deeper than the list above. Among other pearls, 30% of Americans believe the Sun rotates around the Earth and about 40% don't know the name of the US Vice President. In the last 30 years, the ignorant have successfully claimed a place of prominence in American life and have managed to turn ignorance into a cool quality, something desirable and to be aspired to.

If you want to find a culprit, consider Ronald Reagan. With his charisma and charm, Reagan openly acknowledged that he didn't know Latin America consisted of nations (apparently he believed Latin America was a big country, just like Palin's Africa.) That marked the beginning of ignorance as cool. The tipping point beyond which ignorance became a matter of pride was the election of GW Bush, who was cheered when claiming that even B- students (namely himself) could become presidents - twelve years later this is echoed by Santorum mocking Obama for wishing everyone were one day college educated.

Ignorance feeds on itself as the march of technology hollows out the American working class - left to witness skilled jobs fleeing because higher levels of skills and more advanced technology are now available elsewhere at reasonable cost (the Bay Bridge made in China is one of many instances of this) the working class clings ever more tightly to church, guns, and ignorance. Viewed from some distance, cherishing and embracing ignorance has some charm, but is very bad news for America's future.