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Give light and they will find their own way. [1]

['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']

Date: 2025-01-23

Scripps Howard newspapers said it in 1923 when they rebranded the Cleveland, Ohio daily newspaper, “Give light and the people will find their own way.” Unfortunately, our reelected leader and his rightwing Henchmen crew of politicians, media people and MAGA leaders provide only darkness, excuses, misinformation and outright lies.

There is much disbelief on this site and elsewhere in progressive circles that people are ‘just so stupid’ by voting for what clearly is against their own interests. Its already clear that recent actions in Washington will not benefit rightwing supporters nor anyone else, and will likely make people look much more stupid than they probably are. But, the stupid part may be just that they listen to the media and self-interested political bs to begin with.

This is not a new concept.

I had extensive discussions with my father in the 60’s and 70’s about how ‘stupid’ his employees were for demanding things that would serve only to bankrupt the company and eliminate all of their jobs. This is actually what happened. But, I had worked with the workers elbow to elbow for a while and can say that they were quite normal, nice people in most ways. But, they believed all kinds of irrational things told to them by a handful of self-interested Union leaders.

This concept applies to all people, not just rightwing or leftwing, but to all wingnuts. There is also a third group who don’t care to learn about much of anything about the society they live in, or who decline to participate in societal decision making (voting) at all. Perhaps, that is not so smart of a course.

But, I also saw that over the so-called arc of history, positive decisions managed to be made across a whole range of progressive matters from environmental protection, to educational and civil rights, to public health and safety, and more. I have come to believe that somehow, people are capable of making good decisions even if their IQ’s and their education are not optimal if they are just given Light.

But, people are also susceptible to lies, distractions, emotional influences, and, the Media itself actively work to take advantage of this. So, the people’s decisions often reflect more than just how stupid or smart they are but rather by what they are told by leaders and Media.

Marshall McLuhan's famous 1967 book, "the medium is the massage", highlights that the form of a medium itself, rather than its content, is what profoundly impacts society and individuals on an emotional and sensorial basis. McLuhan:

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[1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/1/23/2298635/-Give-light-and-they-will-find-their-own-way?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=latest_community&pm_medium=web

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