Consider this paragraph by Rosenberg, from the Salon essay:
“Many people do not really understand what liberal democracy is and why it is important, so they ultimately end up choosing populist alternatives. Ultimately, that outcome is an ironic result of the greater openness of the public sphere and the democratic arena of ideas, where more people are empowered to make choices on their own. The gatekeepers have lost control.”
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Many people will reject that take because they will see it as promoting elitists(the gatekeepers). Yet, consider was has replaced human reason in a large segment of the American people. Consider the widespread rejection of authority(gatekeepers) in so many areas of human knowledge. People dismiss science, they dismiss accurate history, they reject intellectuals. They dismiss facts and embrace conspiracy theories.
Now, consider his thought further:
“Some of my peers rebutted my thesis. They said I was arguing that people are genetically incapable of democracy, I'm not saying that. My argument is that the educational system, in combination with the demands placed on citizens by the political system in Western democracies, have failed to educate the public to understand complex questions of society and politics.
Many people do not understand the importance of the rule of law or why the division of powers in government matters or why open and respectful debate is so important to a healthy democracy and society.”
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What could possibly be the solution short of education? IMHO, not only should Civics be elevated to the core of the core of our education, beginning in grammar school, but that education has to include teaching people how to recognize cynical opportunists trying to use human ignorance to advance agendas, by playing on human fear and anger.
It absolutely has to include education in how to recognize demagogues, right wing populists, and the severe limitations, and dangers, of simplistic emotive-based populist arguments.
But, such an education is long term, does not happen overnight, and is needed at a time when conspiracism, not rational thought, is becoming the default thinking mode, and when anti-elitism, anti-intellectualism is cresting like never before in our history. As Issac Asimov observed:
“Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that
'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.'”
Sadly, it just seems to me that Rosenberg is correct in pointing out authoritarian populism is something hard to avoid. We have had our spells of such in our history, just nothing like Trumpism in its present form. And with Trump now far more openly embracing QAnon, my response is WOW, are we ever in the deepest **** imaginable where irrational nonsense overcoming rationality is concerned. I understand many Americans despise elitism now, despise the idea of establishment “gatekeepers”, but good lord, where are we heading otherwise ?! Rosenberg may be right. A popular democracy like ours, where politicians vie for our votes and allegiance, will lead to simplistic and alluring populism without a rigorous education in civics from an early age.
We are in deep, deep trouble. That’s what I think….