Pocket paradigms

Most Americans only profess Christianity, but increasingly - and in a deeply fundamentalist manner - they practice technocracy, relying unquestioningly upon the systems that make it work. Almost without exception, the reaction centers on technocratic solutions of security, warfare, propaganda, and surveillance. At every level - academic, media, and government - such issues are considered stripped of moral, philosophical, ethical, historical, or anthropological content. One need look no further than your own TV screen to observe this. The "experts" on the network news and talk shows are invariably those of technocratic skill rather than those who have demonstrated wisdom, foresight, or human understanding. They exemplify a quality that John Ruskin called "intricate bestiality." - Sam Smith