In Defense of Knowledge

Since the devastating events of the Sandyhook shooting several weeks ago the government, NGOs and the people themselves have started speaking out and clamoring for change. The prominent democratic view currently is a series of strict gun control laws that will presumedly inhibit more massacres like Virginia Tech, Aurora, Colorado, Sandy Hook Elementary, the mall shooting in Oregon, and the countless other massacres that occur on a daily basis. Nongovernmental Organizations like the NRA are doing what they do best, feeding spun information to the public (mostly their constituents), just as the democrats and republicans are battling in the House, Senate, and press. The press is, as always, spending an undue amount of time on these massacres, potentially instilling a sense of stardom associated with them (to be explained later). Finally, the people of this fair democracy are also sharing their opinions in a multitude of ways. Posts of pro- and anti-gun images and literature litter social media. Rallies are occurring throughout the states, men and women exercising their right to bare arms and free speech are marching on their state capital waving "Don't Tread on Me" flags. Then there is one of the newest developments: the government conspiracy video that has exploded on YouTube, reaching over ten million views.

Every time I see our democratic institution work on the political, private, and personal level, I am overjoyed. To see all of the actors of our government flexing their muscles and being proactive in what they can do and say is something rarely seen. Very few times does this nation ever experience a tragedy that is able to grip all spectrums of life, moving people who not normally are activists to participate in their government. Aside from my own beliefs, I am glad to see all cogs of political life in progress.

Unfortunately, a byproduct of all of this involvement in political institutions leads to the sullying of information networks with falsified information, conspiracy theory, and misdirections cause by these main political actors: the press, the government, NGOs and the people.