Monthly Archives: July 2016

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Why Placebos Really Work: The Latest Science – WSJ

As scientists find more ways placebos appear to bring real health benefits, new evidence suggests the fake drugs may cause changes in the body, not just the mind.

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Source: Why Placebos Really Work: The Latest Science – WSJ

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The Rutherford Institute :: Stop Drinking the Kool-Aid, America: Political Fiction in an Age of Televised Lies

Stop Drinking the Kool-Aid, America: Political Fiction in an Age of Televised Lies

 

By John W. Whitehead
July 26, 2016

“We’ve got to face it. Politics have entered a new stage, the television stage. Instead of long-winded public debates, the people want capsule slogans—‘Time for a change’—‘The mess in Washington’—‘More bang for a buck’—punch lines and glamour.”— A Face in the Crowd (1957)

Politics is entertainment.

It is a heavily scripted, tightly choreographed, star-studded, ratings-driven, mass-marketed, costly exercise in how to sell a product—in this case, a presidential candidate—to dazzled consumers who will choose image over substance almost every time.

This year’s presidential election, much like every other election in recent years, is what historian Daniel Boorstin referred to as a “pseudo-event”: manufactured, contrived, confected and devoid of any intrinsic value save the value of being advertised. It is the end result of a culture that is moving away from substance toward sensationalism in an era of mass media.

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Source: The Rutherford Institute :: Stop Drinking the Kool-Aid, America: Political Fiction in an Age of Televised Lies