Brian Dunning of www.skeptoid.com has put together a great video as an introduction to critical thinking.
I believe people's inability to look at things with a critical eye is a big reason for America's standing in the world today.
When Oprah and Larry King are considered valid information outlets, our collective intelligence suffers.
My world travels may be fairly limited, but when I've watched TV in France, Germany, Holland and England, there are actual round-table discussions about current events (that don't include shouting and name calling). A station out of Paris has a weekly show that discusses books that airs in prime time.
A recent study shows that most commercial television stations in America only air the minimum amount of educational programing per week and then, even the content is of questionable value.
So what do we do? Well, start by watching There Be Dragons and if you feel it's worthwhile, tell someone else about it. If you're an educator, show it to your students.
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