It’s no secret that America is in a state of chaos right now. Every day seems to bring another shooting or story of violence and hate. It seems that as time goes on, the situation is getting worse and worse with no end in sight. Sadly, there’s no way to save the US without first putting it under a microscope and understanding the root of the problem.
The issue right now is far more complex than just hate, bigotry, or lax gun laws, and it’s destroying the US. This is the end of America – anti-intellectualism is killing a once great nation, and it’s only getting worse.
Feeding Ignorance
Unlike how it sounds, anti-intellectualism is not about running after smart people with torches and pitchforks. Instead, it’s the acceptance of widespread ignorance. Even worse than that, it’s the celebration of ignorance, idiocy, and spreading false beliefs.
There’s no arguing that America is a prime example of this. One notable account of this was when the chairman of a Senate environmental panel, brought a snowball into the Senate. He called it “proof” that global warming doesn’t exist. Ridiculous situations like this are happening every day. They are fuelling people’s desire to throw away scientific facts and instead believe whatever they want.
It’s About the Loudest Voice
Americans are no longer encouraged to pursue knowledge, consider facts, and question what people are telling them. Instead, it’s all about listening to whoever is screaming the loudest. It doesn’t matter how ridiculous what they have to say is.
If someone can shout loud enough that the Earth is actually flat, some people out there will believe it. If someone screams that the Big Bang never happened, you can be sure that people will be preaching about it all over social media.
The Facts
There are some hard truths that need to be accepted by the nation. The American education system likes to preach about abstinence instead of giving real sex ed. Despite this, the US has the highest teen pregnancy rate in the industrialized world. Maybe we should consider giving teens a proper sexual education.
Although many Americans have taken patriotism to an absurd level, the numbers prove the US is not superior. The quality of life in America ranks 16th (no, not 1st, 2nd, or even 10th). There are also more people in prison than in any other country and 14% of the population can’t read.
Ignorance and Violence
We may laugh at people with ridiculous beliefs, but it can quickly become sinister. No one is laughing when someone’s ignorance leads to a violent crime. This is the case with many mass shooting and terror attacks.
In many cases, it’s found that the offender held a hatred for a certain group of people. This hatred is almost always fuelled by their lack of knowledge on the subject. Lies and rumors are being spread about different races, ethnicities, sexual orientations, and genders. Because of this, people are quick to despise and attack them.
This doesn’t mean that people shouldn’t be asking for stricter gun control. However, it’s arguably more important that we stop idealizing ignorance and start focusing on proper education and respecting of facts.
Who Wins
It’s not fair to say that no one wins in the game of burying the truth and spreading lies. In fact, there are a lot of people who have something to gain from it. Large corporations win by getting away with whatever they want by making Americans believe that they’re not doing anything wrong. The military-industrial complex wins by being able to spend an absurd amount of money without people ever questioning it.
Breaking the Cycle
Ignorance breeds ignorance. The more that it’s spread around, the more people will be affected by it, causing the American people to suffer. Don’t buy into this trend. Focus on encouraging intellectualism and teaching people the truth on important subject matters.
If you want to help, then listen to facts when they’re presented to you. Respect science and listen to experts. Question everything that is being said and don’t blindly listen to whoever has the loudest voice or most interesting ideas.
It’s true that anti-intellectualism is destroying America. That doesn’t have to be the end though. If every citizen of America stands up and fights it, there could be an end to the ignorance that’s killing the nation. There could be an end to the violence, hate, and destruction that’s being caused by this phenomena.
Do you agree with that anti-intellectualism is killing America? Share your thoughts with us.
