Weiss_Yohji wrote:
What the hell went wrong in our society that people believe mommy instincts, hearsay, chit-chat, chemophobia, and fear-mongering over actual science? What does it take to remake human nature to correct these flaws?
The way i see it is that people take the easy route. They buy into the easy to believe story that feels right. It's hard to investigate the facts, sorting out real evidence from biased reporting. But it is easy to accept a story that has an emotional "correctness"
It is far more convienent to simply decide that the FDA is in the pocket of big business because there is probably a bit of truth to that idea, but also it's a simpler story than the FDA is a complex organization run by a variety of people with competing interests and some of what it does works well and other things are dysfunctional. It is easier to decide that GMOs cause cancer and Monsanto is evil and not have to consider the complexities of the good and the bad aspects of the technology and the way some companies run their business.
I think most people will gravitate toward the simple solution because they don't want to bother with the uncertainty of a complex problem. Most people can see complexities within their own field of interest but often are blinded by a lack of information or an ideology in other fields.
I agree it is deeply frustrating when people refuse to consider the complexities of an issue and insist that an over simplified interpretation is acceptable. I think the only solution is an improvement in education. If people have a better understanding of their world, they may be more capable of seeing complexities and less gullible when it comes to a good sounding story.
_________________
Never let the weeds get higher than the garden,
Always keep a sapphire in your mind.
(Tom Waits "Get Behind the Mule")
13 May 2014, 4:35 pm
