For the past couple of days, headlines have proclaimed some variation of the following headline, Obamacare Will Cost 2.5M Workers by 2024. However, if you read the articles, it becomes clear that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) did not conclude that the ACA was a causative factor in the decrease of workers. The CBO concluded the reduction in worker hours was almost entirely because of workers choosing to work less. According to the CBO report, “The estimated reduction stems almost entirely from a net decline in the amount of labor that workers choose to supply, rather than from a net drop in business’ demand for labor."
The problem is straightforward. A lot of people never read past a story's headline so their conclusions are based on a misleading headline. Some of those who read the article have poor reading comprehension skills and come away still believing that the ACA will cause 2.5 million people to lose their jobs. All of these misinformed people like to share their invalid information and the chain of people firmly believing information that is false grows by leaps and bounds. Couple that with the American belief in individualism and that all opinions are equally valid, and ill-informed opinion becomes fact for millions.
I think one of the dumbest statements that I see far too often is, "I'm entitled to my opinion." When people declare, "I'm entitled to my opinion," what they really mean is my opinion is of equal value to all other opinions.
There's no entitlement to be ignorant. If my opinion is that a giant turtle carries the world on his back around the sun, then my opinion has no value; it's worthless. Stating that I'm entitled to have it doesn't make it have merit. It's still worthless and of no value.
All opinions are not equal. We do ourselves a disservice when we pretend that they are. All we need do is examine how many publicly funded schools in multiple states are allowed to teach creationism under state science education standards as an alternative to evolution. Additional states are poised to pass legislation this year to expand the science curriculum to include creationism.
Replacing intellectual analysis with personal opinion undermines our ability to make decisions based on facts and knowledge rather than belief. Ethics play second fiddle to a mish-mash of personal beliefs and emotions about groups of which we are not a member. A key tenet of our constitution's Bill of Rights is that the government shall not establish or govern religion, yet hot button issues such as abortion and gay marriage that divide us at present, center around the attempt of some Christians to impose their belief system on our system of secular law.
We have many issues confronting us that we must address as a nation and as a part of the world. Climate change is a reality, not an abstract theory. Access to clean water, clean energy, and clean air are essential to the survival of all of this planet's inhabitants. Working together is necessary, but to do so we have to develop diplomatic strategies and policies for resolving our differences and not fall back on wars and police actions as problem solvers. We need to work collectively on solutions to these issues, not cling to opinions shaped by misinformation and narrow belief systems that we have elevated to the level of absolute fact.
Two news items this week put this post into perspective:
ReplyDelete1 - The debate between Bill Nye, the science guy, and Ken Ham, the Rannygazoo sham;
2 – And the CBO Report forecasting the impact of ObamaCare on ‘voluntary’ employment.
Of the first, I can build an entire ontology around nonsense words. Think of the Rannygazoo, a being greater than great of which nothing greater can be conceived. Since it is ‘greater’ to exist in reality than in the mind alone, I can prove the existence of the great and all-powerful Rannygazoo, who rules the Universe (and anyone who takes the name of Rannygazoo in vain is a blasphemer). The same logic applies to the great and almighty Ackamarackus.
About the CBO Report, ObamaCare will set you free, but not in the mind of Rannygazoo worshippers. Since ObamaCare will make people less dependent on employers for health insurance, they can retire early, start a business, pursue a degree, or spend more time with their families without the fear of losing health care coverage. OMG, “ObamaCare takes away the incentive to work,” claim the worshippers of Rannygazoo, Ackamarackus, and Taradiddle.
Methinks this sums up how opinionated ignorance sprouts legs.
Hells bells, your stalwart cephalopod can build an entire catechism around Fiddlefaddle.
ReplyDeleteWell, that's your opinion. Can't tell you how many times I've had that reply from believers of all stripes from "only God can change the climate" to " the death penalty prevents murders."
DeleteIt's simply an empty catch phrase and it refutes nothing and yes, it implies that all opinions are equal and if you insist that Pi is an irrational number, that's your opinion. It's just something one says when one is wrong but needs to say something to save face.
It's sister is "that's one theory" as though all theories are equal and as though wild conjectures and baseless assertions and demonstrably wrong explanations are equal to all theories and so I'm not an idiot for asserting the turtle theory of cosmology.
It's brother is "well it's spiritually true" but it's a large family with many siblings. Is "you have to believe to know it's true" part of the family or is it just a tautological cousin?
One has to be eternally vigilant that one is not using such devices because they seem to spring eternal every time one gets into hot rhetoric.
But, but, Captain ...
DeleteI have a spoof that can disproof the irrationality of pi. You see, pi cannot exist in the real world because the all-powerful, all-knowing Taradiddle, the Creator of All Creation and everything mathematical, is too rational to let anything irrational enter the world. Quod erat demonstrandumber-than-dumb!
Pythagoras thought numbers had mystical values. The Pythagoreans had a religion based on integers and prayers were said. . . Heretics were killed.
DeleteIrrational numbers are an offense to the gods of integers, therefore we Pythagoreans or People of Pythiness as we prefer to be called do not believe in them. Therefore heretics like Euler and maybe Planck are just giving us their opinions which the righteous just rightly laugh at.
Pyth on it, we say with righteous derision!
Sheria,
ReplyDelete"not cling to opinions shaped by misinformation and narrow belief systems that we have elevated to the level of absolute fact."
We sometimes elevate belief to a higher level than fact. A tirade appeared on my Facebook page recently - it claimed that we're all ashamed to recite the pledge of allegiance because of the God clause. Although we ought to be, I've seen no evidence that it's not alive and well and worming it's way into every crevice, nook and cranny of civic life. He and I both belong to an emergency communications group that recites this silly thing, intended for children, at every meeting. No one protests, not even me. I just say "Under Zog" because as everyone knows, Zog Rules.
Of course the lines he's parroting were written in 2008 when the Florida Supreme Court ruled that teachers can't force kids to say it nor ridicule them for nor saying it and so he believes we're being forced not to say it and hey -- all opinions are alike, right?
Well, you know that we've taken God out of schools and Christmas, so the Pledge of Allegiance was the next target! You are right, some have elevated belief as more significant than fact. In case you haven't heard, Obama plans to banish Christianity all together and make us all Muslims.
DeleteBtw, I like "under Zog." I may use that from now on. :)
Communist Muslims, that is. And then, of course he'll take everything from the 'real' Americans and give it to the greedy, lazy and mostly criminal "takers."
DeleteAs many say, "opinions are like assholes, everyone has one." Truer words have never been spoken.
ReplyDeleteNow if you'll excuse me I have an appointment to discuss this very with Zuess. :-)