Reply #4: Attention Deficit Democracy...

[madame defarge]

Just heard an interview with James Bovard, the author of "Attention Deficit Democracy" talking about how we Americans suffer from "battered citizen syndrome."

Much of what he was saying -- and what looks like his book discusses -- addresses what you're talking about.

Here are a few paragraphs from an essay he recently wrote...

Another poll has confirmed that most Americans are constitutionally without a clue. Americans’ political illiteracy is good news for Washington politicians hungry to seize more power. But this ignorance is one of the most perilous elements of attention deficit democracy.

The McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum poll, released last month, found that barely a quarter of Americans could name more than one of the fundamental freedoms recognized in the First Amendment. Far more Americans could name the characters on The Simpsons than could recall the provisions of the First Amendment. Three-fourths of Americans recognized two of the product brands connected to five popular ad slogans, while only 28 percent could name two or more freedoms cited in the First Amendment.
--snip--

America is becoming an attention deficit democracy. The government is still nominally democratic – elections are boisterous events accompanied by torrents of dubious ads and mass rallies. But after the election, the president returns to his pedestal, congressmen return to their free lunches, and most people ignore political life.

Because so many people are so ignorant, it becomes easier each decade for politicians to seize new power and decimate established rights. But the fact that most people are politically negligent does not entitle government to trample their rights.

--snip--
Attention deficit democracy lacks the most important check on the abuse of power: an informed citizenry resolutely defending their rights. But no amount of popular ignorance can legitimize political absolutism. The government must respect the Bill of Rights regardless of how few Americans understand the highest law of the land.

Read the whole article here ==> http://www.lewrockwell.com/bovard/bovard28.html