Uninformed

Research polls, media interviews, and everyday conversations reveal an unsettling truth: citizens, while well-meaning and even passionate about current affairs, appear to know very little about politics. Hundreds of surveys document vast numbers of citizens answering even basic questions about government incorrectly. Given this unfortunate state of affairs, it is not surprising that more knowledgeable people often deride the public for its ignorance. Some experts even think that less informed citizens should stay out of politics altogether. As Arthur Lupia shows in Uninformed, this is not constructive. At root, critics of public ignorance fundamentally misunderstand the problem. Many experts believe that simply providing people with more facts will make them more competent voters. However, these experts fail to understand how most people learn, and hence don't really know what types of information are even relevant to voters. Feeding them information they don't find relevant does not address the problem. In other words, before educating the public, we need to educate the educators. Lupia offers not just a critique, though; he also has solutions. Drawing from a variety of areas of research on topics like attention span and political psychology, he shows how we can actually increase issue competence among voters in areas ranging from gun regulation to climate change. To attack the problem, he develops an arsenal of techniques to effectively convey to people information they actually care about. Citizens sometimes lack the knowledge that they need to make competent political choices, and it is undeniable that greater knowledge can improve decision making. But we need to understand that voters either don't care about or pay attention to much of the information that experts think is important. Uninformed provides the keys to improving political knowledge and civic competence: understanding what information is important to and knowing how to best convey it to them.

Voters often lack knowledge of government structure, political issues and candidates’ positions and frequently elect incompetent or venal politicians to office. Partisanship, corruption and inefficiency follow. Ideas for strengthening democracy are discussed, along with recommendations by various political scientists and philosophers.

Dr. Huggins and Dr. Levy assert that a large number of disorders are, though often incurable, easily preventable. He proposes that multiple sclerosis, lupus, leukemia, chronic fatigue syndrome, Parkinson's disease, many mental disorders including Alzheimer's, and even major diseases like breast cancer are caused, in part, by the toxins we place in our bodies. Where do these toxins come from and how do they get into our bodies? You my be surprised to find that you have actually paid to have them put there. These dangerous materials--mercury, cadmium, beryllium, nickel, and others--are used in everyday dentistry to make up the fillings, root canals, and bridgework in our mouths, and are supposed to be "safe." But are they? Uninformed Consent presents cases of toxic poisoning--of depressed immune systems and inexplicable illnesses--to toxins entering the bloodstream from the heavy metals in dental materials. The authors also discuss the hidden truths that the dental industry in America doesn't want to talk about, and the real reasons the dangers of these materials have been suppressed and ignored. Dr.'s Huggins and Levy implore the reader: "Don't leave your health in your dentist's hands and assume that all will be fine. Become informed and take an active role in your health. Know what will be implanted in your mouth. You must decide at the outset what is more important to you--the life of a filling or your life." Uninformed Consent will give you the facts so that you may take responsibility for your dental--and complete--health and wellness.

Religious apostasy is now rife in the land. Do not be misled. No human has a corner on the word of God. Do not look to man for truth: look to God. Dr. Richard Murphy is a native New Yorker. His ministry as a Christian compels him to be present in dialogue at this time. Reading and rereading the Bible, as well as Bible study in church, church seminars, the use of reference books and commentaries, church membership, singing in the choir, summer church camp, and church committee work have qualified him to write this commentary even though it is many years later than was his expectation. He received Jesus Christ as Lord in junior high school. As a practicing physician in New York City he learned first hand about the plight of young and old who are culturally driven and thereby lacking in fellowship with Jesus Christ. Dr. Karen Murphy, growing up in the South and having a childhood dream of being a missionary, began piano lessons at the age of four. With music always being a part of her life, her understanding increased as God guided her into this field. In mid-life after her children became teenagers, she returned to graduate school earning two more degrees in piano. With her doctorate, she joined the music faculty in 2008 at Mississippi State University. Karen's future plans include writing, from a Biblical perspective, a practical step-by-step health plan with satisfying recipes and simple exercise ideas.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1845.

Tiivistelmä.

The world's lone superpower...supreme guardian of democracy...and home of the blithely uninformed and epidemically obese. Welcome to America -- pull up a chair, click on the tube, and grab a donut. Concerned Citizen Peter Strupp is shocked and bothered by what he sees. It seems we're not as thin, smart, and good-looking as we like to think. Packed with real facts and statistics, Fat, Dumb, and Ugly takes readers on an eye-opening, laugh-out-loud, and at times horrifying tour of the numbers that shape our country: • Percentage of adults in the United States who are overweight: 64.5 • Percentage of Americans who believe they have actually spoken with Satan: 5 • Percentage of voters for whom Saturday Night Live and MTV are primary sources of information about presidential candidates: 16 • Average number of pink lawn flamingos sold annually in America: 250,000 A wickedly hilarious and addictive cultural snapshot of our nation of conspicuous consumers, fast-food fanatics, and dumbed-down dolts, Fat, Dumb, and Ugly casts a revealing spotlight on John Q. Public, the average American -- and it's not always pretty.