Contrary to Popular Belief, People Are Not Stupid

Dear Go Gonzo Journal:

I am a twenty-seven-year old male sitting in front of a twenty-first century typewriter, penning down my thoughts through a keyboard to digital paper at two in the morning wondering why there is no female at my side and why the only thoughts dancing in my head involve political and sociological issues.

Like many journals/websites out there today, Go Gonzo Journal seems to offer an admittedly biased approach to news and debate. I respect that and agree that the notion of objective journalism is bullshit. I wish not to suck Go Gonzo’s dick however, as many of my views and opinions directly conflict with beliefs spewed forth by other contributors to this digital journal. First off, claiming that all news, be it print, web-based, or word of mouth is fake is simply untrue. News is out there and it is not especially hard to find if you know what you’re looking for (Democracy Now for example). Mainstream media like anything else in a capitalistic society is driven by money, so the news laid out by such media will always placate to the interests of the bourgeois elite – capitalists, industrial and corporate giants, and a small minority of the privileged who benefit at the expense of the majority, be it the middle or lower classes.

I will continue this nonsensical essay, or whatever you want to call it, with another misinformed belief by many that the “average citizen” is an idiot. These “normal people,” the folks who actually work for a living, the middle class and poor, may be misinformed, but are not dumb. Secondary education or even international travel frees one from the constraints of American forms of intellectual control. International travel and, more importantly, college, are still a privilege, and one cannot look down on those less fortunate who cannot partake in these experiences and luxuries, but instead are forced to worry more about putting food on the table, paying rent or a mortgage, in a system that keeps them subservient. It is quite egotistical to claim that people who wake up every morning and bust their backs for a living are somehow less intelligent than you because they don’t have some professor telling them what books to read. This type of arrogance is essential to keep actual social change from ever taking place. Remember that these same average working-class and poor people have inspired actual change throughout history. Who dies in war? Who is constantly being asked to sacrifice for the betterment of society? Who, time and time again, has stood up against big business for better wages, working conditions, and the ability to make an honest living? Who has fought against racial, social, and religious prejudices, insisting that the words “all men are created equal” is not just a line in a historical document?

I agree that the majority of society is misinformed, as they constantly vote against their own interests for candidates in a two-party system that offers them no true betterment or sustainable relief. Democrat or Republican (and moreover most independent parties) offer no change that will help level the disparity of wealth in this country. Can you blame them though? Public education, like religion, indoctrinates the masses and pushes forth a society which robs human beings of necessary human experiences. Imagine a society centered more on the experience of life and less on the accumulation of property and capital, where the mind is free to expand, learn and appreciate what it means to live, instead of what it means to own. Well I suppose I should stop typing, as this essay is beginning to sound like a John Lennon song.

Sincerely,

Johnny Debbs, a.k.a. The Preacher