Yep, lots and lots of distractions and addictions, some very pervasive, like the materialist illusion you mention. My comment was more general, about the ability, and acceptance, of admitting a belief is in error. Information is far more available, and fluid, than it used to be. What I smelled in Sagan's words was a bit of obstinate, crusty ego, and, imo, we don't have to get stuck as easily, to old ideas, as we used to.
I don't know what happens when people wake up from the materialist illusion, especially with the availability of almost an endless variety of toys, for every economic strata -- from private islands, to high political office, jets, mansions, etc. for the ultra-wealthy, and Cuisinarts, Toyotas, Disneyland, and a 30-year mortgage, for the middle-class. I spent many years, as a child, living without a dependable source of electricity, so I don't take it, and its derivatives, as a necessity for life's enjoyment, though the convenience of it is obviously unparalleled. ---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, <s3raphita@...> wrote: Re "an idea that is dying out, with the older, ignorant generations.": I think this old saw "The bamboozle has captured us. It’s simply too painful to acknowledge, even to ourselves, that we’ve been taken" still has a way to run. Most people today have completely bought in to the whole consumerist ethic and think that material goods will bring them fulfilment. What will happen when the retail therapy stops working and they realise they've been well and truly bamboozled? ---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, <no_re...@yahoogroups.com> wrote: Agreed, Ann - this tired old saw about not being able to change, once we know something, is outmoded and an idea that is dying out, with the older, ignorant generations.
