Why You Should Care About Politics

How Ignorant Are We?

Last year Newsweek conducted an experiment that involved American citizens and the U.S. Citizenship test for immigrants. The results were quite sobering. Close to one-third of Americans could not even name the Vice President (it's Joe Biden, in case you were wondering). Although knowing who the vice president is isn't directly related to ignorance, it does show how little Americans really care about important aspects of their country.

After September 11th, 2001 Americans re-energized their patriotism. They were ready to go to war against evil terrorist's who the president said had "Weapons of mass destruction". Of course, after billions of dollars worth of destruction, and irreplaceable loss of life in Iraq, no such weapons of mass destruction were ever found. This is simply one example of how misinformed the citizens of the Untied States are regarding politics and the world at large. In fact, this is the primary reason you should care about politics. Who we 'decide' to vote in as representatives whether it be a mayor, governor, or president has a great impact on our life and those of others. It is our responsibility to understand who they are and what they plan on doing while in office before we vote them in, or at least support and defend them.

The amount of taxes we pay, the food we eat, and the money we make are all based around decisions made in Washington. In fact, if you want the honest truth lobbyist really make those decisions. You see, the founding fathers of this country made special provisions for the citizens to petition the government in power to change certain things. However, this provision, while in theory was great, has turned into a nightmare for the American people. Instead of the poor pleading with the government for help, you have one giant corporation after another with limitless amounts of money bribing and paying off those we 'vote' into office. This is something the American people may not realize.

The Media Keeps the Light Off

Of course, once again mainstream media plays a role in keeping Americans in the dark. There is never any real intention to inform the public, instead it is a game to see how much information they can keep away from us. Shouldn't this make us upset? Or do Americans simply not care, or not want to know what is really going on? I believe it is time to fight off the ignorance we have been conditioned to wear, and exchange it for a coat of knowledge and understanding. In today's world there is no excuse for being uninformed. The Internet has a vast amount of credible news sites that offer more information than the mainstream CNN, FOX, and MSNBC. Below I have complied a list of alternative news sites that everyone should check out.

1. Russia Today, or RT
2. InfoWars
3. Natural News
4. Alexander Higgins Blog
5.The Huffington Post