Only 28 percent of Americans believe in evolution; 68 percent believe in Satan. Ignorance in this degree, concentrated in both the head and belly of a lumbering superpower, is now a problem for the entire world.
The Blog | Sam Harris: The Politics of Ignorance | The Huffington Post
Thanks to Amba for the link.
Ahem. How is it a problem to you whether average americans believe in evolution or not? It's not like they're trying to impose their views on anyone. I'm much more worried about those few extremist muslims who believe they must kill all infidels (and the massive backing they get from various governments)... THAT's the kind of criminal ignorance that creates problems.
Speaking of ignorance, what do all the pundits who promote various policies really know of economics? And I mean, real ("austrian") economics, not the fake stuff done in most universities.
Posted by: Faré | September 22, 2005 at 02:45 AM
"How is it a problem to you whether average americans believe in evolution or not?" Because having such a significant percentage of the most powerful nation in the world believeing in a pernicious fairy tale is deeply dangerous. You are also right though - having another significant percentage of the world's population believing in a different pernicious fairy tale is even more deeply dangerous. The fact that the two sides are now fighting over whose fictitious friend is better than the others' fictitious friend is completely fucking nuts.
You've lost me on the reference to "Austrian" economics though ....
Posted by: Euan | September 22, 2005 at 06:56 AM
No. Not all fairy tales are dangerous. A lot of them are quite benign actually. Creationism is one of them -- it bears no normative content. What matters is when those fairy tales bear a normative content. The "everyone MUST learn the same program established by a central education authority" fairy tale is much more disastrous to the education of kids in almost all countries.
Oh, and you just did the most grossly unfair characterization of the Iraq war I've ever seen. As if there were even one soldier in Iraq trying to convince any iraqi to stop believing in Quran and start denying evolution. Are you nuts?
Posted by: Faré | September 25, 2005 at 05:17 PM
I didn't say all fairy tales were dangerous - just those that encourage people to give up independant thought and perpetrate outdated views of the world.
Did I say US soldiers were trying to convert Iraqis?
Do, please, tell me the fair characterization of the war ...
Posted by: Euan | September 26, 2005 at 05:34 AM