It's no secret that the general public is confused, and turned off by politics. In this day and age of "mass information" it is easy to be inundated by fragmented truths. In general, the mass media tends to generate soft news...which makes it harder to get detailed information on important issues that effect our tax dollars. One must sift through information discriminately to get the facts, and know that the information is credible.
One of the greatest variable to influence the general publics disenfranchisement, is how society has disconnected from social capitalism. The lack of civic activity makes the public vulnerable to misinformation. This lack of involvement and disconnection forfeits the power society has in democracy. This is not to discredit the civilians that do passionately service, and get involved; I am speaking in general.
Are the agents that socialize addressing the development of critical thinking, and social capitalism? How conscious are people that politics effects our lives everyday (i.e. speed limit, taxes)? Stronger education in politics, history, and social-stereotypes may help strengthen democracy. This would help individuals properly discern illusions, and propaganda being "sold" by groups that have may not have the publics best interest at heart.
OKAY...back to current events
Something to think about...while the bailout is being debated by the federal government, I could not but help think about history, and the issues that surrounded the industrial revolution and over-production. While not the same, some of the issues are similar. Britain eventually experimented with socialism, as a result of these issues. Here in America, we have large corporations screaming "free market," yet they do not trust the "invisible hand" of the free market. This seems to be a little hypocritical, where is the personal responsibility here?
What does this have to do with political socialization? Hey, we are talking big bucks here. What are the alternative solutions to the bail out? Restructuring? What is the economic fall out with the package or without? The American public should understand these things, and should have a voice. Everything goes back to politics, and I encourage individuals to "open their eyes" and not be intimidated by the fragmentation of information, but rather to proactively seek out the facts...and see where their power of influence is.
