Thursday, November 24, 2011

The War of Ideas - Survival of the Fittest

Dr. Rob Kelley came to speak to us today.

While I would have loved to have gotten more into his thesis, we did watch a very thought provoking movie on diplomatic relations with the middle east.

The movie made me realize that so many people out there just refuse to hear anything different than their own beliefs. It's the stuff of late night comedy, but this movie drove it home. Smiling stupidly was one buffoon proudly explaining that because this was America, he had successfully blocked the broadcast of Al-Jazeera English within the states. If I'm not mistaken, there was some spittle coming from the right-hand corner of his mouth.
How can we be so dumb as to fall for that? First, even if you are convinced that it is propaganda, wouldn't you rather listen to it so as to win an ideological battle with the enemy? Simply listening to an enemy message will allow you to build up your own defenses while taring the opposite to the ground. Second - doesn't the absolute ban just insult the very beliefs you're trying to protect? By blocking a certain point of view, how can you possibly be upholding democracy (considering some of your own people can understand this "foreign" message)? Third - you show the world that you have no confidence that true democracy will prevail in the face of tyranny. If the message says "suppress a community" then play it and see what the people think. That's right; the people.
Sorry, this guy was just a prime example of what is wrong in the nation and the communication rhetoric. His simple actions conveyed a flawed picture of what he thinks he stands for.

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