by Rod Williams - Popular explanations of historical or everyday occurrences are so often just wrong. Accepted wisdom is often the result of an expression of faulty logic that is repeated over and over until everyone just knows it is true. It seems to me that most people do not think very deeply and are not very rational. Also, it seems most people seem to think that an uninformed opinion is as valid as an informed opinion. They don't trust or believe the experts. They tend to believe as fact things that conform to or support their faith, or values, ideology, or world view. They trust their prejudices. Many seem to take pride in their ignorance. "My mind is made up; don't confuse me with facts," seems to be their motto.
There are of course the conspiracy stuff such as the stuff believed by The Nation of Islam, Q Anon, the John Birch Society, or other cults. There are people who believe the government bombed the levies and caused the flooding in New Orleans, that the moon landing was staged, that 9-11 was an inside job. And, some people believe Marilyn Monrow, Elvis Prestley and JFK are alive and well living in some hidden location. We can dismiss this stuff as just extreme or delusional thinking. But believing wrong stuff is not restricted to the extreme wrong stuff. People believe that if you would just dredge the creek, that would solve the flooding problem. Despite no evidence to support it, many still believe the 2020 presidential election was stolen. While she is likely wasting her breath (or keystrokes) I was pleased to see Michael CF explain that the increase in coyote sightings is not because their habitat is being destroyed by development.
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