I think we need to have some faith that people are generally smart enough to know better, and in the cases where she had blind followers, we need to include stuff like this in basic education to prevent people from believing everything they hear.
I don’t think muting them is the answer though. I mean, we’ve got “Ancient Aliens” and “Hunting Hitler”, and I think by now that most people understand it’s just mindless entertainment with some great aerial photography. The average watcher probably says: “Let’s see what these idiots are preaching tonight”. I don’t believe Ancient Aliens has a large following of people that actually buy into this shit.
Well, okay, there may already be a bunch of folks that actually believe that shit, but that’s their built-in audience. Their talking heads are simply not good enough to convince a person of average intelligence to change what they believe. Same with non-medical cancer treatments.
In other words, I’m still (tenuously at this point) hanging on to my belief that, in general, people are not stupid. We’ve got a decent education system that’s been in place for decades. And while it may need improvement, I think most people know this shit isn’t true.
I base this on the (highly anecdotal) fact that I do not personally know a single person that actually believes this crap. And some of the people I know aren’t all that sharp. And yet they go to see actual doctors for this kind of stuff.
I don’t have a problem necessarily with that viewpoint, but the issue then becomes a total lack of accountability. Gullibility extends far beyond the realm of the “wellness” fad. Should we not hold the tens of millions of people accountable in this country alone that believe homosexuality is evil, or that deporting Muslims is for the best? These people were not created in a vacuum; they were lied to by charlatans in the church and elsewhere. And those charlatans themselves, if you choose to call them that, were they themselves misinformed at some point in their lives.
Everybody is a victim of miseducation at some level. At some point people have to take accountability for their decisions and their lack of critical thinking (whether willful or not).
Well, unfortunately I know quite a few that do believe in it. I do also think that most people have the level of intellect to understand how and why this stuff is bullshit, but I also believe that due to a woeful lack of critical thinking development and gullibility, that it’s a moot point. Education is key here, which I touched on in the very first post of this thread. Whether it should start at the government level or not is up for debate I suppose.
It’s the “whether willful or not” part of that statement that I have a problem with.
This has to be addressed early in life. Critical thinking should be something taught at every grade of school. I think that’s a far better solution than telling people they cannot speak what they believe.
EDIT:
You’re responding so fast that I missed this, but yeah, I think we’re in agreement generally.
I was reviewing the information with my wife, who, full disclosure, is part of the Young Living MLM. She rolled her eyes at me and mentioned something about different types of lavender cause the hormone disruptors and of course, that isn’t the case for Young Living Oils. Lavandin is what she says you should avoid.
My god, as complicated as this shit is, it really should be regulated. My wife agrees.
So has anybody had any experience with the latest trend in the WELLNESS AND DETOX field of bullshittery—activated charcoal teeth whitening? There are a ton of products on Amazon, some of which have just thousands upon thousands of 5 star ratings, yet the more I dig the more I see things like “dentists don’t recommend” and “company offered free product in exchange for 5 star ratings”.
Nextdoor is so great. It’s both terrifying and hilarious to know how many nuts live within a 1 mile radius of me. Who knew so much crypto-racism could fit on one website.
