There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge. ~ Isaac Asimov

In 1995 Hollywood came out with the psychological crime thriller, Seven; starring Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, and Gwyneth Paltrow. I won’t go into the plot, but there is a scene in the film where Morgan Freeman tells Pitt: “I just don’t think I can continue to live in a place that embraces and nurtures apathy as if it was a virtue.

Don’t take this the wrong way, I’m not suicidal, but I can certainly relate to that sentiment; there are times I wish I could just disappear into the hills; as far away from humanity as humanly possible. Yet, whenever I feel like I’ve hit rock bottom I always seem to meet someone who shows me that there is still a glimmer of hope left for mankind; that not everyone has their head buried up their ass.

For instance, last Saturday, while the wife and I were out doing our weekly grocery shopping, we ran into a Filipina friend who used to be a cashier at WalMart. Since her job was to usher people through her line as quickly as possible, I’d never gotten the chance to really talk to her. This time, however, she was just a customer, and we ended up talking for nearly an hour and a half.

Come to find out, she thinks a lot like I do on a lot of things. She believes this whole Covid thing is a scam designed to deprive us of more of our freedom. She believes that government is corrupt, and that voting is a waste of time. And, she also believes that the government does not run things; they are merely puppets for those who actually run this country. I find it kind of sad that a naturalized Filipina can see the truth of what’s going on in this country, yet the vast majority of native-born Americans can’t.

Then, three days ago I met an old guy (and I’m no spring chicken myself) who carried around an oxygen tank because he has COPD. He told me this whole Covid thing is a scam; that he won’t wear a mask, and he damned sure isn’t gonna let them put that vaccine into him. He told me he hasn’t worn a mask since this thing started, and he hasn’t gotten so much as a runny nose. He also said that it was time to stop voting and start hanging a few of these treasonous bastards.

Then, just yesterday, I had to go to the Western Union office to wire money to my wife’s family for disaster relief; after their island got slammed by Typhoon Rai. While there, the cashier, a young woman, pretty much repeated what the old guy had told me the day before. She told me our system is corrupt, and that voting is a complete and utter waste of time; nothing ever changes. She said she no longer votes and that, if she had her way, our elected officials would be spending the remainder of their lives in prison for their crimes against the people they supposedly represent.

I truly believe that there is a reason I meet these people at specific moments in my life. I think God puts them there to lift my spirits, boost my morale, so I don’t go around thinking that everyone on the planet is a complete, and utter, dipshit. If that is the case, then thank you Lord; I needed the morale boost – I’ve been feeling pretty down in the dumps lately.

Before I continue, I need to explain why I get so disappointed with people. Right after the events of 9/11 I began questioning what I was being told about the, so-called, terrorist attacks that, supposedly, brought down the Twin Towers. Don’t get me wrong, at first, I was just as angry as was everyone else; wanting blood for what those dastardly terrorists had done. However, once I began researching the matter beyond what I was being told by the media, and government officials, I realized that I was being lied to.

Once I accepted that, I began to learn that what Einstein said is true: “Education begins after one has forgotten what one has learned in school.” It may have taken me 43 years, but once I realized that I had been lied to, my real education began; one which was founded upon something I’ve come to hold dear – the truth. For the two decades that followed I have sought to free myself of the indoctrination I underwent for the first 4 decades; a process that continues to this day.

Once I began learning the truth, I thought that others would be as overjoyed to learn about it as I was; so, I began writing essays; sharing what I’d learned. I quickly learned that I was naïve to think that people would share in my enthusiasm. I came to the sad realization that Nietzsche was right when he said: “Sometimes people don’t want to hear the truth because they don’t want their illusions destroyed.”

It is my belief that the older one gets, the harder it is for them to admit that much of what they had been taught to believe is a lie. I think this is due to the fact that what they are taught ends up becoming the foundation upon which their core beliefs are built, and people, as Nietzsche said, don’t want their illusions destroyed. So, people tend to hide from, or reject, those facts which threaten their illusions. I imagine it’s human nature to do so, but as Patrick Henry once said: “For my part, whatever anguish of spirit it may cost, I am willing to know the whole truth; to know the worst, and to provide for it.” And that is why I get so upset at people; for they do not share that attitude.

So, you’ll have to forgive me if I get a tad bit upset when people say that they don’t like it when they are being lied to, but turn around and reject any evidence that their entire belief system is built upon a mountain of lies.

Way back in the 70’s, when I was in high school, they used to offer debate class as an English elective. The teacher would divide us into groups, then assign a topic that we would have to research and debate on Thursdays and Fridays. Regardless of whether we were given the pro or con side of the topic, we had 3 days to prepare evidence to support our side of the debate, and the side that won the debate was the one that had provided the most compelling evidence in support of their position.

For instance, the teacher might assign the topic of whether gun control prevents crime, or whether it leads to an increase in crime. We would then have to gather evidence supporting one of the two positions, and the side which provided the most compelling evidence won the debate. However, the one condition was that the evidence be grounded in fact; no personal opinions or emotionally based beliefs were allowed in the debate.

You cannot debate the issues with people today; for a couple of reasons. First off, most people do not have any facts to support their position; that position is emotionally driven. As an example, let’s say government is proposing a piece of legislation in Congress; the public takes sides on that issue based upon whether it is being introduced, or supported by, Democrats or Republicans; meaning their position on the issue is a partisan issue, not a fact-based issue.

What that means is that it does not matter if the bill is good or bad, or whether or not the constitution allows for government to even consider legislating upon the matter; the only thing that matters is which party introduced and supports it. You cannot introduce facts into an argument where the only two positions are based upon people’s party affiliation.

What makes matters even worse is that, once a bill is signed by the President, and becomes law, it may as well be written in stone; they rarely are ever repealed; regardless of which party gains control of the system. So, from a purely fundamental perspective, while one party may be philosophically worse than the other (and I’m not going to even go into which side that may be), it doesn’t matter; the other side rarely repeals the laws enacted by previous administrations. What ends up happening is that bad bills get piled upon bad bills, until our liberty is crushed under the weight of them.

If you cannot prove that the laws being passed are in violation of the constitution, by quoting from the constitution, then what hope do you have of proving to people that the entire system isn’t worth their support? If there are no limits to what government can do, then what we have is a battle between differing belief systems over which one is powerful enough to gain control of government and impose their views upon the minority.

If people cannot, or will not, see that government is supposed to have limits, that it was supposed to be instituted to secure the rights and liberty of everyone equally, then you’ll never be able to convince them that their current system is bad; that it was designed by men whose goal was not to secure the rights of the people, it was to establish a system that eventually led to the enslavement of those it governs.

I have had numerous debates/arguments with people over various pieces of legislation; asking them to show me where government is authorized to do what it has done, or is trying to do. Inevitably people will say that they think, or they believe, that government should do what they are trying to do. It makes no difference to them that they cannot show me where in the constitution it authorizes government to do it; all that matters is that they THINK government should do it. There can be no debate when one side refuses to use facts in support of their position!

That is why you end up hearing use insults when they argue politics; it is their only weapon to silence those who disagree with them. The problem is, people let those insults silence them; they fear standing up for their beliefs.

Take the Covid crisis as an example. Who knows how many people have taken the vaccine, not because they think it is effective, but because they fear losing their jobs if they don’t? How many people wear a mask into stores that require it instead of shopping in stores that don’t require it; simply because it is too much hassle to shop elsewhere? How many people obey the law simply because it bears the title of law? Tell these people what Jefferson felt about the law, that it is often but the tyrants will, and always so when it violates the rights of the individual, and it goes right over their heads; it is the law, therefore they are bound to obey it; it is their patriotic duty to obey the law and the commands given them by those who enforce it.

Had our ancestors felt the same way people today do, there would never have been a Revolution, and July 4th would be just another work day. Our ancestors knew what their rights were, and they opposed any law that violated them. Those laws piled upon one another until they realized that the only way to secure their freedom was to sever the bonds that bound them to that system of government. Yet speech like that today gets you labeled as a subversive and put on a multitude of government watch lists. Let me tell you right now, if you’re not on a government watch list, you should be ashamed of yourself!

If you believe as I do, that government is broken, it is corrupt, it is evil, then you must accept that voting will not fix the problem. You cannot change government when the vast majority of the people still think government is good; that the only problems are those created by one of the two political parties.

If you believe as I do, then you must accept that the system was flawed right out of the starting gate, and that no amount of good intention and hope are going to fix things. That’s why I keep repeating Spooner, who said: “But whether the Constitution really be one thing, or another, this much is certain – that it has either authorized such a government as we have had, or has been powerless to prevent it. In either case it is unfit to exist.”

If you can’t see the truth of that statement, then it means your mind has lost the ability to think critically; to analyze facts and come to a logic-based conclusion; and that’s why I get so angry; because I’m trying to debate with a bunch of damned idiots!

So, forgive me if I happen to be angry all the time; it wouldn’t happen if people would just think once in awhile.

December 24, 2021

~ The Author ~
Neal Ross, Student of history, politics, patriot and staunch supporter of the 2nd Amendment. Send all comments to: NealHRoss@outlook.com.

If you liked Neal’s latest column, maybe you’ll like his latest booklet: The Civil War: (The Truth You Have Not Been Told). Life continues to expand for this prolific writer and guardian of TRUE American