Blog #8

In “I Know the Truth, So Don’t Bother Me with Facts” Jeffrey Kluger describes the ongoing battle in Manhattan over the proposed Islamic cultural center. He also describes a study done at Ohio State University which assistant Prof. Garret and assistant Prof. Nisbet recruited 750 people who were familiar with and believing at least one of the rumors about the Islamic cultural center. In the study conducted professors found that it was very easy to manipulate people’s beliefs with pictures hinting “inflammatory quotes”. The professors found that fewer than one third of the people were willing to change their opinion no matter what proof they were given. Many people in the US get their information from the media. The media is not always given the correct information and therefore they are not always able to provide the correct or true information. People take this information in and are able to develop their own biased opinions based on the information given. Kluger finishes his article by stating “We may not always agree on what facts mean, but at a minimum we need to agree that they mean more than fantasy." I agree with Kluger that people can easily change their minds because people are naive and scared.
People are naive in the sense that their opinion can be manipulated easily. The study done at Ohio State University proves that people are not ready for change or the consequences that they will have to deal with once that change has taken over. The Participants of the study were so stubborn that no matter what evidence was put in front of them less than 1/3 of the participants were willing to change their opinions. Normally, if someone shows you that their folder is purple and they take out their folder and its purple you usually tend to believe them and not question its purple-ness anymore.
People change their mind when they are scared because it is easier to go with the crowd and have their support and feel safe than against the crowd and be alone and vonurable. People enjoy having the support of others to make them feel stronger and that is why there are many followers and very few leaders. In the article more than 2/3rd of the participants of the study stayed with their beliefs and were oblivious to the proof that they saw right in front of them. In many situations I have dealt with the same situation and so have many of you reading this. There comes a point in time when we just want to fit in and be part of the crowd. That is when we start listening to a special genre of music, dressing differently, and even acting differently. Until we are finally comfortable with ourselves we will stop needed to feel the need to fit in. I felt empowered by being able to make my own decision and not be influenced by others.
In conclusion, people should learn to have an open mind. Not always are things as they seem and everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Peoples opinions change and there is nothing wrong with that all. As people are given more information they are able to either agree or disagree with their previous/current opinion. We should all open our minds a little bit more and maybe, just maybe one day there will be no need for a battle in Manhattan.