According to a recent survey of 33 countries, we have little or no idea of what's going on around us and our perception of national issues are basically formed on what we believe is public opinion, rather than fact.
This is where the PC Army and the Ignorant get to cross paths. It's my opinion that the PC Army come up with a radical idea. Though small in number, they have loud voices that drown out the silent majority and the knowledge to manipulate the media into giving them a headline. This makes them a wild and unpredictable beast. When successful, take the recent issue of using the word Christmas for example, we get fed a story that has been voiced so loudly that many just accept it as fact and even go on to believe that the same view is shared by many more people than it actually is. End result, an Ignoramus is born. Duped by this misrepresentation of the facts and too lazy or complacent to educate themselves on the real story, they then go on to complete a survey which only validates how wrong their perceptions are and New Zealand is left with the humiliation of looking like a right bunch of drongos to the rest of the world.
Where did they find the the 25,000-plus people for the survey? Was it all based on perception or were we so stupid that we didn't even understand the questions being asked?
It would be a little less embarrassing if the answers were a close call, but having read the entire survey, I can't even take consolation in that. We were so far off the mark I was left gobsmacked.
It wasn't rocket science, just basic questions on topics we hear about daily. Wealth, obesity, immigration, the internet, nothing too taxing. In one question participants were asked what percentage of the country's wealth should the wealthiest 1per cent own. Our lot answered that they wanted them to own way more than they already do. Part of me couldn't believe it was possible but the cynic in me wasn't really surprised at all. It doesn't give one much faith going forward but it does go a long way toward explaining why the country is in the state it is in.
Now I found myself stuck with the image of aliens touching down in New Zealand and confirming my worst fear: "There's no intelligent life here."
Still, I'm not going to let that dampen my Christmas spirit because I would like to think differently. Maybe it was just a poor choice of survey candidates. Can we demand a recount? A re-sit? Maybe a new batch of people will do better, they certainly couldn't do any worse. No1 in the developed world ... such a shame it's for the wrong reasons.
It won't be long before the PC Army have the Ignoramus declared a protected species, mark my words.
Ignorant or not, I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Christmas. I hope you take the time to treasure what is truly important. For me it's spending one last Christmas with the withered old crone. That is the best and only gift that I could wish for. Stay safe and enjoy this special time.
Go easy on the egg nog!
-Kate Stewart is a politically incorrect columnist of no repute who believes in Santa Claus and loves Christmas. Your feedback is welcome: investik8@gmail.com
