There are facts which can be used to engage is useful debate. Then there propaganda disguised as truth which is meant to forward a predetermined agenda. When done with a willingness to learn and possibly change, debate can be respectful, intelligent, and clarifying. It can be a constructive process that reveals areas of agreement upon which advances for the common good can be made.
When it comes to military spending, these are some possible subjects worth debating:
- How big a military do we need in order to maintain and increase national security?
- What would an effective barometer be to assess effective or wasteful military spending?
- Should the military's budget undergo cutbacks in tandem with those happening elsewhere; why or why not?
If we would have the courage to let truth usurp knee-jerk response or what we might like to believe, the answers could provide American citizens with a much firmer grasp of reality.
On the other hand, Cartoonist
Mark Fiore provides a satiric example of propaganda used to promote opinion and agenda. Specifically, we're introduced to fake math as a tool in deceit's box of cheap tricks. Like all political manipulation, it is particularly vile when committed under the rouse of piety or patriotism.
