Root Causes of a Failed System
Neil Postman in his classic work Amusing Ourselves to Death nailed it when he wrote, “When a population becomes distracted by trivia, when cultural life is redefined as a perpetual round of entertainments, when serious public conversation becomes a form of baby-talk, when, in short, a people become an audience, and their public business a vaudeville act, then a nation finds itself at risk; culture-death is a clear possibility.” He wrote that in 1985. Our political life today is like a reality TV show. There is a fascination with celebrities from Kanye West to the Kardashians to the former host of The Apprentice. And the soundtrack in the background is permanent war.
Recorded at First United Methodist Church.
Speaker
Chris Hedges
Chris Hedges is an award-winning journalist who has reported from war zones around the world. Cornel West calls him, “The greatest radical writer and journalist of our generation.” He writes a weekly column for scheerpost.com. He is the host of The Chris Hedges Report. He is the author of many books including War Is a Force that Gives Us Meaning, Empire of Illusion, Death of the Liberal Class, Wages of Rebellion, Our Class, and The Greatest Evil is War.
Kathryn & Rand in Florence, OR –
We listened tonight to your Hedges recording. We were there in the front row when he spoke in Eugene. As we throw away ‘reels’ of ‘tapes’ it’s nice to hear history marching onward due to your efforts/courage. Hang in there.