Talking to ourselves - L.A. Times

[madmusic]

Americans are increasingly close-minded and unwilling to listen to opposing views.

By Susan Jacoby
April 20, 2008

As dumbness has been defined downward in American public life during the last two decades, one of the most important and frequently overlooked culprits is the public's increasing reluctance to give a fair hearing -- or any hearing at all -- to opposing points of view.

....

Richard Hofstadter, in his classic 1963 work, "Anti-Intellectualism in American Life," argued that among "the major virtues of liberal society in the past was that it made possible such a variety of styles of intellectual life -- one can find men notable for being passionate and rebellious, for being elegant and sumptuous, or spare and astringent, clever and complex, patient and wise, and some equipped mainly to observe and endure. ... It is possible, of course, that the avenues of choice are being closed and that the culture of the future will be dominated by single-minded men of one persuasion or another. It is possible; but insofar as the weight of one's will is thrown onto the scales of history, one lives in the belief that it not be so."

Hofstadter was of course using the word "liberal" with a small "l," in the sense that the term had been used in the past -- as a synonym for open-mindedness and concern for liberty of thought instead of as the right-wing political epithet it has become during the last 25 years.

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It is past time for Americans to stop attributing the polarization of our public life to the media, the demon entity "Washington" or "the elites." As long as we continue to avoid the hard work of scrutinizing public affairs without the filter of polemical shouting heads, we have no one to blame for the governing class and its policies but ourselves.

Like Hofstadter, I yearn to live in a society that values fair-mindedness. But it will take nothing less than a revolutionary public recommitment to the pursuit of fairness, knowledge and memory to halt, much less reverse, the trend toward an ignorant single-mindedness that threatens the future of democracy itself.

Susan Jacoby is the author of "The Age of American Unreason."

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-op-jacoby20apr20,0,5722702.story

[alarimer]

1. I DO blame the right-wing media

The removal of the fairness doctrine is what allowed Limbaugh, etc to emerge. THEY are the closed-minded ones, not us. The ones who have demonized the word liberal to the extent that actual liberals are not willing to use it. Most people hold fairly progressive views on things (according to polls) but they will NOT call themselves liberals. The right-wing does not argue things on the merits. They bash and slander and out-and-out LIE to win (or steal) elections.

The discourse these days is NOT about substantive issues (about which we may legitimately disagree without resorting to name-calling), it is about stupid shit like flag lapel pins or bowling scores or whether or not someone might have smoked pot once. It's just bullshit. And the way the media goes after the Democratic candidates but gives Bush and McCain a complete pass, despite the fact they are liars, it is clearly a media problem. It is no wonder I hate Republicans- the lied about Kerry's service while ignoring Bush's lack thereof.

[Demeter]

2. I Blame the Liars

When people speak truth to power, other people listen. When Some corporate shill spews corporate propaganda, America tunes out (with some 28% unable to tell the difference, alas).