Bad Guys, Good Guys, and Critical Thinking
The only bulwark against that is critical thinking. Experiment, observation, reason. Not a preacher's authority, not what "feels right".
And, most definitely NOT authority.
We can get the Bush White House telling us Hussein was part of Al Quaida, and that cutting taxes on "job creators" is the route to a strong economy.
BP can run all the ads they want about how they're helping the Gulf come back, but they're doing everything they can to not spend a penny more than they're legally obligated to unless it's in PR dollars. When they do their job right, you almost forget that the damage was due to their criminal negligence.
The Koch brothers can hide all their ads and propaganda in shell groups, like think tanks and industry groups and PACs, but they're still trying to limit their liability in criminal activity. And stop progress in energy they don't have their hands in.
Pat Robertson can sell you the glory of god, and tell you all the good he's doing around the world, but he's still a lying bigot lining his own pockets. The Catholic Church can tell you all about god's love, but they're absolutely no better than Robertson, and in many ways, much worse.
It's critical thinking. Observation. Reason. The only tools to see through the fog that religion and right-wing "libertarians" shower us with purposefully.
If you really think we need prayer in school, you've been taught to think that, by people that have something to gain if you believe it. If you think solar power and wind, and bio-fuel will never work, there's a reason you think that. And it's not reason, no matter how badly you want to convince yourselves. Hell, the Kochs are buying Universities, just to be sure they can control the content and conversation.
We need people to think. We can't afford to have other people do it for us. Even if we think we're thinking for ourselves.
Comments
Nameless for now.
Not sure which group I belong in. :-)
There are good guys in the religion biz. Or those trying to be. Overall, though, the basis is a lie. And lies of that magnitude are bad. Obviously, there are shades of gray in almost everything. Not in religion. Religion is harmful wherever it goes, whatever it does. I stand with Hitchens on this. Religion poisons EVERYTHING.
Read Harris. I think you'll see it is what "feels right". If what is moral to live by is not the most important thing, then what is? We can be really fooled by our thoughts can't we. Haven't you noticed that by now?