By Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
In yet another sign of the apocalypse by ignorance, a recently released poll by Public Policy shows that 29 percent of Louisiana Republicans believe Barack Obama was more responsible than George W. Bush for the inept federal response to the Hurricane Katrina disaster. The poll asked: “Who do you think was more responsible for the poor response to Hurricane Katrina: George W. Bush or Barack Obama?” The results were startling. Only 28 percent picked the right answer and 44 percent answered “Not sure.” Never mind that at the time of the great storm Barack Obama could only get into the White House by invitation or that he had barely a year under his belt in the U.S. Senate, the state with a quarter of its population being deemed functionally illiterate blames the current President.
Propaganda is the likely culprit. For years, Louisiana schools taught that the Great Depression was a “socialist myth” created by author John Steinbeck; that the Loch Ness monster is real; the KKK were actually social reformers bent on restoring morality; and that African-Americans can’t read because of communists. Bruce Wilson of Talk To Action has documented that three of the textbook companies — Accelerated Christian Education, A Beka Book, and Bob Jones University Press — have infiltrated Louisiana’s school voucher system with books advancing a conservative, religion-based public school agenda. This teaching of ignorance seems to have taken hold even among Republicans whose brain-washing is now complete.
Here’s a preview of the new documentary detailing how taught ignorance is the new weapon in the culture wars:
And how is the coiner of that epic phrase — “The Party of Stupid” — doing in his own state? Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindral’s popularity is sinking like a rock. In the latest scorecard for shot messengers, Jindral is polling at 28% favorable ratings compared to 59% unfavorable ones. That puts him at the dead bottom in popularity among Republican governors, and second only to Democrat Pat Quinn in Illinois.
Proof, I suppose, that no good deed goes unpunished and that the karma of ignorance is a B-word indeed.
Source: The National Memo
~Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
@OP – “For years, Louisiana schools taught that the Great Depression was a “socialist myth” created by author John Steinbeck; that the Loch Ness monster is real; the KKK were actually social reformers bent on restoring morality; and that African-Americans can’t read because of communists.”
I attended Louisiana public school system for 2 years. Never once did ANY of this come up. I think you are talking about Parochial Schools not public schools in LA.
Loch Ness monster is NOT real? Hmmmm… sounds like someone never looked at the forensic evidence that suggests otherwise. There are more lakes and swamps worldwide that support some sort of LIVING prehistoric lifeform(s) – i.e. Lake Tele/Likoula Swamp in Dem Rep of Congo, Lake Champlain Vermont (USA), etc.. Remember we found the once suspected extinct Coelacanth only to find it STILL swimming today in the Indian Ocean off Madagascar.
Try again, nick. Nothing in the “pending approval” folder from you.
Help, please. I had a comment eaten.
“If you look at the situation Obama put himself in over the Syria situation you would have to conclude that he is the most incompetent president ever.”
Bruce,
Were you being ironic in this remark? If you mean it seriously then one can say you prove Mark’s thesis about ignorance.How about the competence of the previous president George W. Bush, who got us involved in two unnecessary wars that did nothing to get those responsible for 9/11 and bankrupted the country in the process. Then too, it is his responsibility for the death and maiming of so many of our brave troops, not to mention hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians. Obama has certainly not been a great president, but your hyperbole regarding him shows incredible ignorance.
nick, I hope he doesn’t. We don’t need it. One of my friends is a psychiatrist, and a Muslim, from Syria. He has said fighting in the middle east has been going on for thousands of years and aren’t about to change just because western nations want them to. His observation was specifically about Afghanistan, but could apply almost anywhere in that part of the world. He added, “It’s a way of life over there.”
Additionally, I have to wonder just how many of the rebels are Taliban or al Qaeda who just want to substitute their own brand of tyranny instead of Assad’s.
OS, Obama was ready to go w/o the vote until the UK Parliament said no. Let’s be intellectually honest here. 18 presidents have asked for approval over our history, and they’ve gotten it every time. I wonder what will be said if Obama is the first to not get approval from Congress?
Bruce sez, “…Now he’s [Obama] trying to pass the buck on the red line comment he made so he can put blame on the congress one way or the other…”
****************************************
That is a steaming pile of that famous barnyard product. Congressional Republicans and some Democrats really don’t want to go on the record with a vote. It is a lot safer to hold press conferences, or go on Fox and complain about others not doing anything. This is about taking personal responsibility. Of course, every one of them knows their votes will be held up to a very large spotlight come election time. As they should be. They wanted the job, but don’t want the responsibility. There are ‘some people’ on this very site who complain about folks not taking responsibility for their lives and finances. OK, Rep. King and ilk, it is time to step up to the plate.
Like everyone who grew up in the deep south, I am quite familiar with cockroaches scurrying for cover when the light is turned on.
To paraphrase Albert Einstein ‘Two things are infinite: the universe and GOP stupidity; and I’m not sure about the universe.’
I may get it just for fun. People are always confusing me with his fan girl.
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
There is a new book out titled, Manson: The Life and Times of Charles Manson. I was going to kindle it but a couple reviews I read said there’s not much new in there, a lot of stuff from Helter Skelter and other books that I’ve read. If someone does read it, I would appreciate your take on it.
Squawky,
Has Charlie squeaked you this week?
Jim Hightower gives us another view of the dumberatti:
(Hightower Lowdown). Some of these luddites that deny global warming are on the congressional Science committees.
The Flat Earth Society has done a coup.
America
Historicallyhysterically 101.Democrats are the epitome of the Dunning-Krueger effect, where incompetent and stupid people have an inflated sense of their own competency.and intelligence. One mechanism through which this illusion perpetuates itself is feedback failure, where the incompetent fail to learn from their mistakes. Like voting for Obama TWICE.
Another is this post, whereby this particular incompetent group (Democrats) reinforce their illusory belief by smearing their opposition as stupid and ignorant. Even though over half of the members believe to some degree that Bush knew about 9-11 in advance and let it happen. Not to mention the atrocity known as Obamacare. And Syria, And others.
The truth is, both parties are chugging full of frigging idiots at all levels. For every dumb Republican who believes the Earth is 6,000 years old, there is a dumb Democrat who believes that Photo ID is “voter suppression.” For every stupid Republican who swallows the “poor home owners caused the financial crash” there is a moronic Democrat or two who swallows the Global Warming foolishness hook, line, and sinker and wants to put us all on bicycles.
The biggest difference I see, is that the Democratic idiots just have a more sophisticated presentation which tends to mask the idiocy better. You have to dig a little more to drag their nincompoopary out into the light. Which is why our country is probably doomed to disasters.
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
For years, Louisiana schools taught that the Great Depression was a “socialist myth” created by author John Steinbeck; that the Loch Ness monster is real; the KKK were actually social reformers bent on restoring morality; and that African-Americans can’t read because of communists.
**************************************
You have to be kidding me….. Next you’re gonna tell me we have to give them people books…. I’m sure they have plenty of booking papers…..
You mean there was a Great Depression…. When did it end……
The KKK are reformers of a sort….
In all seriousness…. Is this true… Or is it…. A myth…. I really can’t believe that these things would be allowed to be taught….
“If you look at the situation Obama put himself in over the Syria situation you would have to conclude that he is the most incompetent president ever.”
Hilarious. The Iraq war will cost those of us who were lied into it over $6 trillion by the time we finish paying the veteran health care and interest on the borrowed money. When Bush left office, GDP was NEGATIVE nine, and job losses were at 800,000 a month. We’re still digging our way out of his crater, and we will be for years. I’m astounded that in a post about the ignorance of right wingers, you would come in here and state something that is so far from the truth that it’s hard to classify it as a lie. Liars care about what is true and what is not. Bullshitters*, in the philosophical sense of the word, do not. And you, Bruce, are bullshitting.
* http://press.princeton.edu/titles/7929.html
On Bullshit
Harry G. Frankfurt
“…bullshitters seek to convey a certain impression of themselves without being concerned about whether anything at all is true. They quietly change the rules governing their end of the conversation so that claims about truth and falsity are irrelevant. Frankfurt concludes that although bullshit can take many innocent forms, excessive indulgence in it can eventually undermine the practitioner’s capacity to tell the truth in a way that lying does not. Liars at least acknowledge that it matters what is true. By virtue of this, Frankfurt writes, bullshit is a greater enemy of the truth than lies are.”
If you look at the situation Obama put himself in over the Syria situation you would have to conclude that he is the most incompetent president ever. Now he’s trying to pass the buck on the red line comment he made so he can put blame on the congress one way or the other
I’m the last person on earth who wants to defend ignorant wingnuts, but we really should take this poll with a big grain of salt.
It’s “link bait” from PPP. It’s funny, and good for a headline, but….
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/22/scott-rasmussen_n_3799256.html
“The problem with this question should be obvious: It was asked only of Republicans and offered just two choices: Bush, who was president at the time and Obama, who was still a junior senator from Illinois. “If you ask the vast majority of Louisiana Republicans to identify the leader most responsible for the Katrina response,” the conservative Louisiana blog The Hayride argued, “you’re going to get Kathleen Blanco and Ray Nagin as the answer. Replacing those two on the ballot with Barack Obama so that the only choices available are Bush, Obama or ‘not sure’ is malpractice, and mean-spirited malpractice at that….The question was designed to force Louisiana Republicans to trash the former president in “It’s Bush’s fault” fashion. And that was transparently obvious to the respondents. Anybody could see what they were trying to do. So 72 percent of those polled basically told PPP to do something anatomically impossible. 44 percent chose the most non-responsive response they could, which was to say ‘not sure.’ And the other 29 percent went even further and gave the in-your-face answer of Obama.”
My response is that I’m pretty sure some small part of the 29% that gave the FU, I’m not going to blame Bush response actually is so ignorant that they don’t know who was president. Another small sliver might think that the Jr. Senator from IL was to blame, since “they” have been grooming him to be president ever since they planted that birth announcement in the Honolulu paper. But mostly I think the ignorance in the Republicans being polled is their continued aversion to blaming Bush for anything.
Louisiana Senators are Democrat Mary Landrieu and Republican David Vitter … both bottom feeders.
The American Conservative Union rated Senator Landrieu as 40% conservative in 2007, which was the highest score of any sitting Democrat and higher than the scores of two Republicans.
And Vitter ….
If you watch Ken Burns documentary on Prohibition you’ll see how key the WCTU was in getting incredibly erroneous information about alcohol in textbooks. That started 2 decades before Prohibition began. Feed children w/ propaganda, wait till they’re able to vote, an voila, you have the great American Mistake…err Experiment.