H/T Josephus who is blissfully informed.
90% of success is showing up. Getting the math right is the other 50%.
WASHINGTON—The less people know about important complex issues such as the
economy, energy consumption and the environment, the more they want to avoid
becoming well-informed, according to new research published by the American
Psychological Association. The more urgent the issue, the more people want to remain unaware, a lack of
knowledge about a specific sociopolitical issue will (a) foster feelings of
dependence on the government, which will (b) increase system justification and
government trust, which will (c) increase desires to avoid learning about the
relevant issue when information is negative or when information valence is
unknown. I found interesting about this study was the self-reinforcing "trust in government" part. According to various surveys I've seen, trust in government is at an all-time low. (Congressional job approval currently stands at 12.7%!) That's if you ask people whether they trust the government. However, at least 50% of them are going to vote in the 2012 elections, indicating that this substantial segment of the population does indeed trust the government to solve their problems. Individuals are often confronted with information that they do not know how to comprehend or evaluate, even though this information can be of critical importance to the self (or society as a whole). In the case of energy, nearly 40% of respondents in a Public Agenda (2009) survey could not identify a fossil fuel. Nearly one third could not identify a renewable energy source and incorrectly believed that solar energy contributes to global warming. This lack of knowledge should be of concern to these individuals, as 89% of respondents worry about increasing fuel costs, and 71% worry about global warming. http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2011/11/ignorance.aspx http://www.declineoftheempire.com/2012/01/ignorance-is-bliss.html
economy, energy consumption and the environment, the more they want to avoid
becoming well-informed, according to new research published by the American
Psychological Association. The more urgent the issue, the more people want to remain unaware, a lack of
knowledge about a specific sociopolitical issue will (a) foster feelings of
dependence on the government, which will (b) increase system justification and
government trust, which will (c) increase desires to avoid learning about the
relevant issue when information is negative or when information valence is
unknown. I found interesting about this study was the self-reinforcing "trust in government" part. According to various surveys I've seen, trust in government is at an all-time low. (Congressional job approval currently stands at 12.7%!) That's if you ask people whether they trust the government. However, at least 50% of them are going to vote in the 2012 elections, indicating that this substantial segment of the population does indeed trust the government to solve their problems. Individuals are often confronted with information that they do not know how to comprehend or evaluate, even though this information can be of critical importance to the self (or society as a whole). In the case of energy, nearly 40% of respondents in a Public Agenda (2009) survey could not identify a fossil fuel. Nearly one third could not identify a renewable energy source and incorrectly believed that solar energy contributes to global warming. This lack of knowledge should be of concern to these individuals, as 89% of respondents worry about increasing fuel costs, and 71% worry about global warming. http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2011/11/ignorance.aspx http://www.declineoftheempire.com/2012/01/ignorance-is-bliss.html
90% of success is showing up. Getting the math right is the other 50%.
-T
Aut viam inveniam aut faciamaut viam inveniam aut faciam.
-Hannibal
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