Politically Aware?

The number of people that believe that they are aware of what's going on in the world when they really have no idea astounds me. I am no exception- I read various news websites daily and try to keep up, but obviously it is impossible to get a real handle on absolutely everything.

Unlike myself, though, many are truly ignorant. Understanding what's going on in your area, your state, or your country alone simply cannot be considered being sophisticated nor aware of the current political climate. This tendency of many people has become increasingly apparent as of late due in part to the economic crisis (which, oddly enough, is global. Who knew?), but more largely due to the overwhelming amount of press coverage given to the election process and our new President.

Right now there are conflicts going on in the world that most Americans are simply unaware of. What's more, they don't even care. Beyond that, the ones that they do know about they have ridiculous misconceptions of. The Israeli/Hamas conflict is a prime example as most people have heard of it. Many assume that aggressive and unbalanced retaliations by the Israelis are totally unwarranted and are injuring far too many innocents. While some of this may be true, one cannot simply ignore the longstanding conflict and tension in the region that has led to this point. I know a fair amount about this subject. How many people that you know do? How about a percentage? I'd venture to say it's low. And that's one of the most talked about conflicts in the world.

What, then, of the economic climate of various nations across the globe and its effect upon many nations? The coalition government in Iceland just dissolved today. The crisis we find ourselves in is indeed important for us to address here in the US. However, we tend to blow our issues out of proportion. Just because we can't keep the standard of living that we were previously used to, clearly the world is about to end and we've elected MABUS as our President. Right. How about the countries that have been hit so hard that they're having trouble keeping afloat- having trouble feeding the hungry mouths of all of their children? Personally, I hardly know enough of the topic to even begin discussing it.

The point is, I am at least aware and interested in the broader global implications of many of these issues. Just because I live in America doesn't give me the right to ignore things that are important to everyone. All too often people forget that this modern era that we live in is NOT one of various powerful nations controlling themselves independantly and autonomously. Earth's population is so intertwined economically, socially, and infrastructurally that for any of the components to crumble could well begin a landslide. For an easy example, one needs not look further than the manufacturing industry in America. We hardly do it. We rely on other nations to do it.

I'm tired of people pretending that they are aware of what's going on politically just because they've listened to one man speak. Go find out what's really going on.