Information Age

The information Age is among us.  This is the age at which we can find answers to almost any question at a moments notice.  With smart phones, tablets, laptops, "smartwatches", and all of the other portable devices one can perform very in depth "google searches" from, we are the MOST INFORMED people in the history of human civilization.  Even with that being the case, there are a ton of people in the world who are simply not, either ill-informed.   It baffles me to see how many people are constantly wrong in the Information Age!

Outside of laziness, I feel the biggest issue keeping people in either of those two categories is their poor research skills and an over-abundance of naivete.  Simply because you read it on the internet does not make it true!  Reminds me of that all state commercial.

Proper research requires you to pay attention to who the author of your focused subject matter is.  And should this author be considered a reliable source?  Do they have an expert opinion or just an opinion.  Some people are experts at having opinions, but that does not give them an "expert opinion".   So, first step is acknowledging the author, second step is testing their creditability, which may require googling what you just googled.  It may even be necessary to google what you googled checking on what you originally googled!

Also, evaulate if the author may have reason to be bias.  This is extremely important!!!  People with bias agendas and a regular education can write a convincing argument that someone wanting to believe can be convinced by.  For example, a religious person may be able to write a very convincing article about god, a subject which there is zero proof of.  Not one single thread of proof can be offered, but on the basis of "faith" alone, millions will be convinced.  On a similar note, a Republican might be convinced that President Obama was snubbed by Russian President Vladimir Putin after watching a Youtube video of the incident.  See video below.

This is proof right???  Clearly the world hates our President.  You saw it clearly with your own eyes!

Republicans love this video.  I cannot count how many times my Obama-hating relatives and friends posted this "proof" of how the rest of our world feels about Obama.  Justifies their beliefs that he is a terrible person.  So consider them "convinced" by the person who posted this video to Youtube.  Or the news station that ran it in this light.  Only problem with the video is that IT STINKS!!!  Doesn't something stick out to you as wrong about it?  It should.  BUT IT WON'T, to someone who wants to believe the message.  If you want to believe that Obama got snubbed then the search is over.  Why would you look any further?  Well, maybe to find the truth?   Here is the same encounter not edited to make Obama look like a jerk.  Funny what a different tale it is telling.

Clever editing made Obama out to be the laughing stock of the world AGAIN.  Point being, this was done by someone with a bias objective.  And it was incredibly effective.  People believed it, because they wanted to believe it!  Is the guy writing the iPhone vs Android review being paid by someone to take the stance he is taking?   Did he just have a bad experience with one or the other?  Do his parents own stock in Google?  Was he raised by devout Mac fans, who live by Mac and only Mac products?  Who knows, unless you look into things a bit more.  Will you be able to find out the answers to all of those questions?  Probably not, but give it it's due diligence before claiming you know everything there is to know on that subject.  YOU MUST LOOK BELOW THE SURFACE!!!

Sound like too much work for you???  Then please do not have an uninformed opinion which simply adds to the rest of the sea of BS out there.  If discussing a subject you know nothing of, simply say that you are sorry, but do not know anything about this.  There is no shame in this.  In fact, it is better to admit not knowing, then to say dumb things and look stupid.  Kind of like the old adage,

Mark Twain