He passed away…

I remember the last interview he gave that I saw…

He stated the American people were “dumb.” He blamed the media and not education, although I think they are both to blame…

He stated that the population and the media seem interested in the “spectacular” rather than the “relevant.” He said journalists were supposed to tell the public what they should know and not what they wanted to know.

This gets back to public opinion or the lack thereof…

Go read Public Opinion by Walter Lippmann (available free on-line).

You will see how presentation in the media and to the public affects public opinion.

Growing Up

I think Walter would say that youth today (those under 60) are not growing up. Rather, kids seem to continue to act like High School kids throughout their life…

Petty squabbles, jealousy, bullies, gossip, …

If we can all admit that High School was really our hormones running US around without clear thought, why would we want to continue acting like “kids?”

With shows like Real Housewives of (insert your county here), I see High School (or Middle School) activity by adults. No wonder our kids fail to learn to put away childish things when they grow up. Most parents don’t.

If we could just teach kids to think critically, they might be able to grasp what their parents do not… Of course, I don’t expect anyone wants to teach people to think critically…