The Halloweenishly Terrifying Flight Of Facts

Scariest thing on this Halloween is the demise of fact-based reality

David Horsey, October 30, 2017 (LA Times)

“…True or not, the things we fear are very likely to be the things that motivate us to vote for particular candidates…[I]f you fear global warming and people carrying guns in grocery stores, I can probably guess who you voted for in the 2016 presidential election, just as I could likely make an accurate prediction of your ballot behavior if you are someone who fears that federal agents will take your guns and immigrants will take your job…Voting is an emotional act that feels as if it is a rational choice.

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"…[Fears that] the federal government is concocting so-called false flag events, like the Sandy Hook school shooting, or that every Muslim is capable of being turned into a terrorist…are preposterous falsehoods promoted by charlatans to elicit an emotional reaction that is susceptible to manipulation…[But it] is not irrational to worry about another economic meltdown caused by high rollers on Wall Street…[or] to have angst about random mass shootings…[or] to have some concern about a lunatic North Korean dictator…[or] to fear for the safety of your teenager…[It] is harder to predict, though, how those particular fears will drive your political choices.

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"…Climate change is high on [my list of fears], although…this is more a fear for my children and grandchildren than for myself…I [also] fear that our ignorant, brash president and his chaotic administration will bungle foreign policy so badly that…America’s strength and global influence will wither…[But] the fear at the top of my list right now is that our democracy is being dangerously and permanently subverted…[by] Russian hackers, internet trolls, talk radio charlatans, right wing political operatives — and is being amplified by social media…I cannot yet see how we, as a country, will find a way out of this pit of lies. And that is as scary as anything on this spooky Halloween.” click here for more

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