To better understand the political landscape in North America now and in the last fifty years, there is a concept that will thoroughly explain it: anti-intellectualism. It is that feeling of hostility and dislike towards intellectuals and intellectual activities. Totalitarian regimes have historically used this form of antagonism to learning, education, and the educated.
The author argues that American politicians have grown increasingly allergic to knowledge, and mass media have encouraged the election of ignoramuses by elevating candidates who are better at performing than thinking. Starting with Ronald Reagan’s first campaign for governor of California in 1966 and culminating with the [re]election of the Chief Executive. [Per amazon review].
In this funny but serious book (don’t forget that the author is also a comedian) three stages of ignorance (the force that fuels anti-intellectualism in order to promote, in turn, the ignorance of the populace) are discussed: ridicule, acceptance and celebration. The latter, the stage that is mostly favored by some political circles.
A withering mockery of 21st-century authoritarianism. And, as we know, there is nothing more serious than humor, more impactful than other forms of communication.
Profiles in Ignorance : How America’s Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber. Andy Borowitz. New York: Avid Reader Press, 2023.
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