Manufacturing Consent: Do We Really Live in a Democracy?

THINGS I AM THINKING ABOUT DEPT.

I've been intrigued by the concept of "manufacturing consent" as popularized by political theorist Noam Chomsky and economist Edward S. Herman in their book Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media. "Manufacturing consent" has to do with the way media, governments, and powerful institutions shape public opinion to align with their interests, often subtly guiding what people think and believe.

It's a two word phrase--manufacturing and consent--loaded with implications.

Manufacturing is the process of producing products from raw materials using tools, machinery, and human labor. It involves transforming materials like metals, plastics, or chemicals into finished products, such as cars, electronics, clothing, or household items. It often follows a series of steps, including design, fabrication, assembly, and quality control, ensuring that the final product meets specific standards. It is considered crucial to the global economy, creating jobs, supporting industries, and providing the essential goods that society relies on every day.

Consent is the voluntary agreement or permission given by a person to allow something to happen, often in the context of personal boundaries, relationships, or legal matters. It requires that individuals have a clear understanding of what they are agreeing to, without any pressure, manipulation, or coercion. Consent is a foundational principle in ethics, emphasizing the importance of mutual respect and understanding between parties.

The idea is that media outlets, often controlled by large corporations with vested interests, influence what stories are covered, how they are framed, and what information is highlighted or omitted. This process can create a kind of consensus among the public that supports certain policies or viewpoints, even if they may not serve the broader public interest. Essentially, rather than being purely objective, media and institutions may "manufacture" agreement or acceptance of specific ideas, shaping public perception in a way that maintains the status quo or supports the interests of those in power.

 

In Manufacturing Consent Herman and Chomsky argue that media plays a significant role in American society is to prepare it to willingly accept the values of the ruling elite. 

When did this switch happen or has it always been this way? Instead of serving as a means for the public to obtain information needed to have sufficient control over the politicians and the flow of power in the country, the press now blatantly serves as a means for the elite to promote its agenda, to defend the economic, social, and political agenda of privileged and dominant groups in the society.

Edward Said addresses this media manipulation from the specific manner in which our media controls Americans' view of the Middle East and the Islamic world. The author of Covering Islam: How the Media and the Experts Determine How We See the Rest of the World shows how the American news media have portrayed "Islam" as a monolithic entity, synonymous with terrorism and religious hysteria. 

One question I have here is, "Who's calling the shots?"

And the follow up: "To what end?"

The manner in which legacy media covered up President Biden's foibles and mental decline (How many times did we hear that he was "sharp as a tack"?) was such a partisan non-neutral effort to influence public opinion that it ought to prompt us to question other things they spew. 

What's going on?  

As one Amazon reviewer explains, "This book tells ALL about our media prejudices and the shortcomings of our journalists, writers, intellectuals, academics, etc., when it comes to Islam, Arabs and the Middle East. It is a great analytical essay about false propaganda and the wrong views dispersed about the Middle East." 

* * * 

So, the title of this blog post asks if we are really living in a Democracy? I ask, then, how can we have a democracy without an informed public? How much do we know from first hand experience? How much do we know of what we believe we know? So much of what we believe we know has been mediated to us. How much is spin? 

* * * 

"Tell me why you're crying my son

I know you're frightened like everyone.

Is it the thunder in the dstance you hear? 

Will it help if I stand very near? I am here."

Peter, Paul & Mary

Day Is Done

The First-Class Passenger (Another Fun Chekhov Story)

Somewhere along my writing journey I remember someone saying there were only 36 dramatic situations from which all stories are built. It may have been a fiction writing class in college, or perhaps a writers' conference, but the number 36 stuck with me and I decided to see if I could find that source.

As it turns out Georges Polti, wrote a book in 1895 called The Thirty-Six Dramatic Situations (Les trente-six situations dramatiques) in which he argued that there are only 36 fundamental dramatic situations.

Digging deeper, it seems that Polti was expanding on an idea associated with the 18th-century Italian playwright Carlo Gozzi, who claimed there were only 36 tragic situations. Goethe later noted that Schiller had tried to find more than 36 but could not even reach that number. Polti’s list (supplication, deliverance, crime pursued by vengeance, pursuit, disaster, revolt, adultery, etc.) became a classic reference for writers and dramatists.

All this to say that I wonder if one of those plot situations might have been something akin to serendipity of the kind demonstrated in Hitchcock's Strangers on a Train. This is what came to mind as I revisited a hilarious Anton Chekhov story that I enjoyed perhaps three or four decades ago called "The First-Class Passenger." (Some translations call it "A First-Class Passenger." While being an entertaining read it also leaves readers with a few morsels of thought food.

Here are the opening two paragraphs.

A FIRST-CLASS passenger who had just dined at the station and drunk a little too much lay down on the velvet-covered seat, stretched himself out luxuriously, and sank into a doze. After a nap of no more than five minutes, he looked with oily eyes at his _vis-a-vis,_ gave a smirk, and said:

"My father of blessed memory used to like to have his heels tickled by peasant women after dinner. I am just like him, with this difference, that after dinner I always like my tongue and my brains gently stimulated. Sinful man as I am, I like empty talk on a full stomach. Will you allow me to have a chat with you?"

It's a perfect setup. Two characters have been introduced. They both come from the money class. Velvet seats, private compartment. The first has had too much to drink and in his self-introduction he admits to a habit of loquaciousness. That is, Chekhov is letting the reader know that this story is about to become a monologue, and the reader, like the man who shares this compartment, is pretty much trapped into going along for the ride. 

The first gentleman does have the courtesy to ask for permission, and the man sharing his vis-a-vis is apparently most agreeable.

As it turns out the first-class passenger is an engineer who has built bridges and aqueducts, written technical papers and made significant contributions to science. But it irks him that as he nears the end of his career, that he is still an unknown, whereas people with superficial talents are celebrated. 

The irony is that this engineer has some major accomplishments under his belt, but was bitter because what drove him initially--and perhaps throughout his career--was the longing for public recognition, that is, fame.

There was a time when fame was the domain of generals, political figures and movie stars. Over time, however, a shift was taking place and an astute Andy Warhol keyed in on it suggesting that in the exploding mass-media culture of his era, 15 minutes of global fame would soon be within reach of everyone. 

We've seen it with our own eyes. Obscure individuals fool Penn & Teller, or win America's Got Talent or Jeopardy or a hundred other game shows and they become momentary stars. In most cases the attention is shallow, mass-produced, and short-lived.

Warhol would likely not have been surprised to see how all this evolved into reality TV, TikTok, Reels and viral internet spots.

GETTING BACK TO OUR STORY, it's a relatively short piece and though it can be found in a number of standard anthologies, here's the fastest way to find and enjoy it.

https://www.readbookonline.org/readOnLine/1018/ 

When all is said and done, what gives your life meaning? 

The Cuban Revolution Didn't Happen in a Vacuum

A few thoughts about Castro and the Cuban Revolution.

Context is everything. Without understanding the circumstances surrounding an event, an idea, or a decision, we risk missing its meaning.

Throughout my life I've heard pundits rail against Castro and communism. But if you live long enough and read widely enough, you'll eventually realize that to understand anything you have to probe a little deeper. To understand how a communist dictator came to power 90 miles from our border, you have to ask questions; you have to be curious. 

What happened? And why did it happen?

The Cuban Revolution of 1959 did not emerge in a vacuum. Fidel Castro came to power in a country where political corruption, economic inequality, American influence, and increasingly brutal repression had undermined the legitimacy of the existing government.

The name Batista meant little to me when I was young other than he was supported by the U.S. government. I can't even recall ever knowing or hearing his full name until researching this today. Fulgencio Batista. Whenever he was mentioned it was Batista, like Madonna or Dylan or Beck, Bono and Prince. Unlike the others, the name Batisita rolled off the tongue like a slur. And it's one of the ironies of the Cuban Revolution that the guy we (the USA) propped up helped create the conditions that ushered Castro into power. 

Batista was a force in Cuban politics from the 1930s and served as an elected president from 1940 to 1944. In 1952 he returned to power through a military coup. With presidential elections approaching and Batista facing an uncertain electoral future, he overthrew President Carlos Prío Socarrás and established military rule.

The coup interrupted Cuba's constitutional government and discredited peaceful political competition. Batista subsequently relied on manipulated elections, restrictions on opposition activity, and the security forces to maintain power.

At this point, and when your read further, tell me if it doesn't feel like an echo of the musical Cabaret? 

For Castro, who had been pursuing a political career, the coup became a powerful justification for armed resistance. Before long Batista's police and military became instruments of terror. As opposition intensified, Batista's government increasingly resorted to arresting and imprisoning political opponents, often without due process. Torturing suspected revolutionaries and political prisoners became part of the game. Killing opposition activists and leaving bodies in public places was designed to intimidate others. (cf. The Real Reason They Punish Horse Thieves.)

The censoring of newspapers and suspending constitutional protections also contributed to a growing desire for change. Add the fact that even though Cuba was prosperous, the prosperity was not evenly distributed. Urban professionals and wealthy Cubans enjoyed lifestyles comparable to those in the United States. Meanwhile, many rural families lived without adequate sanitation, electricity, medical care, or dependable employment. 

Nevertheless, the vibe in Cuba dark, menacing, and thinking people were privately questioning. What next?

Because of the Cold War, the Eisenhower admonistration maintained diplomatic recognition, economic ties, and military assistance for most of that period, viewing Batista as an anti-communist partner protecting U.S. business interests. American businesses, deeply embedded in Cuba, adopted a "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" attitude regarding the abuses of the Batista regime. U.S. interests were involved in sugar, utilities, manufacturing, transportation and other industries. Profits were good, investments were paying off. And after hours, Havana was one of Latin America's most glamorous cities, a Vegas of the Caribbean. What's not to like? 

There were, however, American leaders who spoke out against what was going on in Cuba. Senator Wayne Morse of Oregon was one of the most consistent congressional critics. He described Batista’s government as a vicious police state that liquidated opponents and objected strongly to U.S. military aid. Another vocal critic was the Senator from Massachusetts, John F. Kennedy. He characterized support for the regime as backing one of the bloodiest and most repressive dictatorships in Latin American history and linked it to broader economic exploitation of Cuba. Some conspiracy theorists state that this conviction, and his later interference with the Bay of Pigs Invasion, was the catalysts for JFK's assassination in 1963.

In summary, it's pretty clear why so many Cubans--including middle-class professionals, students, intellectuals, and businesspeople--initially welcomed Castro's movement. Families, professionals, and ordinary citizens who might never have supported communism increasingly wanted Batista removed. Ultimately, most wanted a restoration of constitutional democracy. They were not seeking a one-party communist state. 

In the end, they got what they wanted, the end of Batista's beastly reign. But they also got more than they bargained for.

TO BE CONTINUED

Almost Wordless Wednesday: The Music Scene

 Part One: Martin Guitar Factory, Nazareth PA

Part Two: Closer to Home

Be sure to read this week's tribute to Todd Eckart in The Reader

The West Theatre is back in business. Great shows being 
lined up, movies and concerts.Visit thewesttheatre.com

 

Related Links

Martin Guitar Factory (my blog post)
https://www.martinguitar.com/about/visit-us/

The Dance of Winged Lovers (A Poem)

The Dance of Winged Lovers

On the forest floor I lay
beneath a canopy of boughs

a pair of lovebirds alight 
in the treetops above

in silence I watch
and listen with delight

soft trills in the breeze
yielding to chirps and chatters

signalling readiness 
preceding their courtship ritual

of clicking crooning whistles  
and mutual preening

in preparation for their
breathtaking dance

this feast of affection
voluntarily yielding to

a double helix corkscrew descent
and I the lone witness

to their synchronized duet

* * * 

Poem inspired by a vivid memory from a hiking trip along the Athens hillsides one lazy afternoon above the Hocking River. The forest was alive, but one must be still to fully experience its treasures.  

The Escalating Student Protests in France

We are finding out that what looked like a neglected house a year ago is in fact a ruin.— Vaclav Havel

It's sad to watch the destruction taking place in France right now.

October 17

🚨🔥 FRANCE IS BURNING 🔥🚨

The historic Limoges Town Hall — a 140-year-old neo-Renaissance masterpiece, classified monument, symbol of the French Republic — has been set on fire and largely DESTROYED.

Masked rioters during the 17 October cost-of-living protests blocked the A20 highway, torched multiple police cars, smashed windows, stormed the building, and set the ground floor ablaze. Flames reached the roof. The campanile collapsed. Two-thirds of the façade is gone. Firefighters fought the inferno with ladder trucks while a municipal employee wept in the street.

“Cultural enrichment.”
“Peak diversity.”

“Full tolerance.”

This is what it looks like.

A 143-year-old city hall reduced to a smoking ruin while shops get looted.

October 17

The entire roof of Limoges City Hall has collapsed.
Inaugurated in 1883, the historic building survived two world wars but now faces severe damage amid violent protests in France.

Oct 14

Dr J Morgan

One commentator living in France stated the protests are isolated & most of France is still peaceful. IDK.

Have you seen the signs ..

@nytimes

@washingtonpost and 

@Reuters

Have all carried fake news on the protests…

All carrying similar messages..

It’s a sign that the backers of these protestors are getting desperate…

Otherwise why have these papers not carried dozens of articles on the discontent spreading in France, Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden etc… 

Europe is breaking down… the fissures are way too apparent… the informal meeting in Lake Cuomo a few days back of many European heads of state certainly came to very strong anti-immigrants policies !!!

* * * * * 

I REACHED OUT TO A FRIEND IN FRANCE  FOR HIS TAKE

I'm happy that the youth is finally reacting, and I think that resistance by any means becomes necessary when we reach the point when the elites choose oppression and clearly wish to wipe out the ordinary people. I'm happy to be in a country where there's still resistance against all the evil that took over the world. I hope there will be growing resistance here against neofascism and technofeudalism.

The dire lack of perspectives of the youth due to new technologies and climax disasters, which I observe, the increasing inequality, the lack of fraternity, all that saddens me deeply, it feels like I live in a world that has stopped caring.

This is how I see it today. Stay well my friend. 
Gabriel

* * * * *

WHAT FOLLOWS IS AN IMAGINARY INTERVIEW USING EXCERPTS FROM STATEMENTS ON X.com

EN: What sparked the unrest in France in early October 2026, and how did it escalate?
Guy Mercier: Student blockades began in late September over teacher shortages, overcrowded classes, and crumbling school buildings. They quickly spread to hundreds of high schools (reports of 400–500 affected or closed in part). Violence followed: schools were set alight or ransacked (at least two dozen), projectiles and fireworks were used, and clashes with police erupted. More than 850 people were injured—roughly 600+ officers, about 190 students, and 78+ teachers or staff—with thousands arrested, many minors. 

Marine Le Pen and government sources described it as organized riots, not ordinary protests, with La France Insoumise (LFI) and far-left proxies accused of stoking the action. Intelligence briefings to a crisis meeting reportedly called it “an operation organised by LFI and its proxies.” Mélenchon publicly backed the mobilizations, compared them to May 1968, and urged supporters to stand between students and police while condemning the police response.

EN: Who has been prominent in the streets, according to eyewitness and critical accounts?

GM: Critics, including French commentators on X, highlighted groups of second- and third-generation migrant youth, often carrying Palestinian or Algerian flags, using slogans such as “Allahu Akbar,” “wallah,” or “wesh,” and engaging in arson, attacks on teachers and firefighters, and defiance of authority. One widely shared speech contrasted this with orderly Christian youth gatherings the previous weekend and called the scenes the early stages of civil war driven by Islamization and left-wing instrumentalization. Official tallies and videos showed masked or older participants at some sites who did not appear to be local students. Broader European context includes parallel student unrest in Brussels and now Albania, and preemptive UK lockdowns around migrant arrivals, amid fears of contagion.

EN: Why do some observers reject the mainstream framing of pure “classroom conditions”?

GM:Michael Shellenberger and others note heavy state funding of French media (Culture Ministry aid of €204.7 million in 2023 to outlets including Le Monde, L’Humanité, and Libération; substantial public support for AFP) and European commitments under the UN Global Compact for Migration that discourage coverage that appears as intolerant of migration. They argue schools receive more per-pupil funding than in earlier decades and that a longstanding left-Islamist political alliance is exploiting grievances. Progressive defenders and some local voices insist the core issues are underinvestment, inequality, and legitimate youth anger at a failing welfare state, with isolated violence exaggerated.

Open questions remain. How much of the violence is driven by organized far-left and Islamist networks versus spontaneous student frustration? Will the injuries, arson, and political accusations accelerate support for stricter anti-riot laws or immigration controls ahead of 2027 elections? Can European governments restore order and public trust without further polarizing societies already strained by high public spending, debt, and demographic change? What's the endgame for the protesters?

* * * * *

"France may lack the political will or economic conditions to meet the protesters’ legitimate demands. If that is the case, the French state itself has failed. It is impossible to know what lies ahead, but education will certainly shape the 2027 national elections. Other Western nations should restore accountability to local government before their citizens, too, must take to the streets to demand it."
--Trey Dimsdale, Senior Editor of Law & Liberty at Restoring the West 

What is your take on these events?

The Origin of Universities

Peterhouse Chapel, Cambridge--1284

Like all things people have created, there was a time when universities did not exist. At a certain point in time, under certain conditions, new things emerge. Examples abound: television, electricity, mass production, railroads, space travel, modern jazz and also universities. 

Universities, as we know them today, began in Europe during the High Middle Ages, evolving out of older cathedral and monastic schools. The very first university was the University of Bologna, founded in Italy in 1088, followed closely by the University of Paris around 1150 and the University of Oxford by 1167.

The word "university" comes from the Latin universitas magistrorum et scholarium, which roughly translates to a "community of masters and scholars." Originally, these institutions were essentially scholastic guilds. In Bologna, foreign students formed a guild to protect themselves from local price-gouging and legal vulnerabilities, actually hiring their own professors. In Paris, the university grew as a guild of masters or teachers overseen by the church.

These early universities were granted special legal protections, autonomy, and privileges by popes and emperors, which allowed them to govern themselves, hold their own courts, and grant degrees. Students, who were all considered clerics, focused on the seven liberal arts: the trivium (grammar, rhetoric, and logic) and the quadrivium (arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy). After completing these foundational studies, they could move on to advanced faculties like law, medicine, or theology, which was considered the highest and most prestigious field of study in medieval universities—often called the "Queen of the Sciences."

In other words, Christianity played a foundational role in the birth of the modern university, particularly in medieval Europe between the 11th and 13th centuries. 

Many of the assumptions underlying the university—that truth is worth pursuing, reason is a legitimate instrument of discovery, education has moral significance, and knowledge should be preserved and passed from one generation to the next—were vigorously cultivated by Christian scholars. Though Christianity did not invent intellectual inquiry, medieval Christianity did help create the institutional framework that transformed intellectual inquiry into the enduring university system.

What makes this history especially interesting is that the university developed within a religious civilization that believed the pursuit of knowledge was not merely useful but a way of understanding God's creation. 

Europe in the 12th century experienced a massive influx of translated ancient Greek and Arabic texts, including the works of Aristotle, Euclid, and Avicenna. Cathedral schools could no longer handle this explosion of new knowledge, creating a demand for these permanent, specialized institutions dedicated to higher learning and intellectual debate. Thus was born the the idea of the University.

Christian scholars like Augustine and Thomas Aquinas not only helped preserve and transmit classical learning, they supplied a philosophical justification for such studies.

The point of this brief essay is to counter the notion that the Middle Ages were Dark Ages. While some scholars equate Enlightenment with casting off the repressive shackles of Christianity, they often fail to appreciate the scholars who held firm to a Biblical worldview as foundational in their passionate pursuit of learning. 

EdNote: In an upcoming post I will acknowledge some of the awful things that were carried out in the name of religion.

Related Links

Math Circle 9: Clocks - Heritage of the Christian Faith (Part One)

Math Circle 9, Clocks as a Reflection of a Worldview (Part Two)