Maybe I am in a bit of a mood today, but I can't help but be disdainful of those who live in a news void. Even if you don't subscribe to a newspaper, there are plenty of sources that can keep you reasonably well-informed, be it Google News, the CBC website, The Guardian, etc., etc. And I have no patience with the excuse that people are too busy making ends meet to know what is going on around them. To live in ignorance is to live in a void, one that can be unscrupulously manipulated by others.
What prompts my criticism today is the rail lockout that has affected commuter lines, most notably seen in the cancellation of the Go train on the Milton line. Apparently, many were caught unaware.
Some commuters arrived Thursday morning at GO Transit stations along the Milton line, which cuts through Mississauga to Toronto's Union Station, only to learn service had been suspended.
"This is completely unacceptable, and we should have been informed earlier, said Om Sangekar, speaking outside the Cooksville GO station. "I'll definitely be late for work."
The larger point here, of course, is that if people cannot even keep themselves informed about events that have an immediate and local impact, what hope is there for them when it comes to issues that affect all of us?
The spread of misinformation, whether through AI or fake news, is facilitated when one has no context by which to evaluate it. In our country, little PP exploits the void relentlessly and sometimes skillfully. To accept his version of 'reality,' we are a highly taxed and failing nation that has been led to the brink by Justin Trudeau and his merry band of men and women. Only PP can save us from falling over the edge, because he will surely "bring it home."
To a much worse degree, the same is happening in the United States. To hear Trump and his minions tell it, only he can save America from the abyss that awaits it should they choose the "radical Marxist" Kamala Harris.
Again, if you live in a void, defining the country in stark and absolutist terms has much appeal, especially since it saves you from the hard work that real, critical thinking entails. But in my view, you are a citizen in name only, since you choose to excuse yourself from any real participation in the duties that real citizenship requires.
That's the end of my little screed. Regular programming will resume soon.
Back many years ago I was working in a by-election in London. The town was plastered with election signs, newspaper articles were written, there was stuff on the TV and the radio. Not everybody seem to have noticed.
ReplyDeleteI was working on a sign crew and my partner and I stopped in a corner store to get a cold drink and we mentioned that we were working on the election. Clerk: An election? She hadn't seen or heard anything about an election. Argh.
Of course I suppose even worse was something on the Usenet years ago when some young man was saying in surprise, " We are in monarchy"? The somewhat dry response was, "Whose picture do you think that is on the dime"?
A great tale that demonstrates my point well. Thanks, Anon.
DeleteThe world is becoming black and white .
ReplyDeleteYour with us or against us etc.
This is ignorance and willfull ignorance is a disease.
Social media soundbites are the theme of the day as the masses flock to some celebrities boob job , new shoes or extramarital affair!
We have become shallow , inconsiderate and selfish.
Why do you think the western world is in such a mess?
FWIW many of my 39 year old daughters dont even vote!
So much for the wonderful next generation..
TB
I hear you, TB. Non-participation is made easier by social media bits and bites, but it is a form of surrender that does none of us any good.
Deletemake that my daughters friends dont vote!
DeleteI assumed that was what you meant, TB.
DeleteThe wordsmith in me twigged to "living in a void"
ReplyDeleteThe void your referencing I understand but
"avoid" verb
1.keep away from or stop oneself from doing (something) (in this case politics). is where so many are
In manys' defence life is so taxing that it is sheer survival day after day. Politics is not a dimension that puts bread on their table. Therefore why stay , keep away.
I live in a political stronghold riding and even with knowledge and voting I have never had any influence in Canadian politics as I have never voted for the stronghold party; never backed the winner.
So I get it when I say vote and the response is ( under fptp ) "Why? my vote won't matter" and in truth, it doesn't.
Representative democracy is no better than the horrible "isms" and our parties run by corporations are exactly what fascism was described as . Never been any difference really just the euphemism "democracy" and the brainwashing of "of the people ,by the people , for the people" democracy gave the illusion of any control by the population.
You certainly make some valid points here, lungta. That our vote doesn't seem to matter in many instances is certainly a disincentive to participate, but if the majority chose that route, I think things would get much worse much more quickly.
DeleteOne of the things I have never been able to forgive is Justin Trudeau's betrayal of his promise that 2015 would be the last election under the FPTP system. He advocated for a ranked ballot which, to me, would have encouraged more participation in the politics that influence our lives in so many ways. Unfortunately, as you know, once he secured office under the old system, he quickly abandoned electoral reform.
/So I get it when I say vote and the response is ( under fptp ) "Why? my vote won't matter" and in truth, it doesn't.
ReplyDeleteAS a rabidly political friend once told me: "The vote count is key".
One may get nothing but one must establish the party's existence if on is to go on to win later.
Said friend only held 2 provincial ministerial posts later.
Point well-taken, Anon.
Delete