"Real? Hell, no! More liberal crap. Where the hell would anyone work if it weren't for businesses? And all the government can do is tax them out of existence."
"Now, Marie. They're hardly taxed at all. And when their existence is threatened the taxpayers are called to repair the damage they've done to themselves and the economy. I'd say a $10 trillion return on the little they pay in taxes isn't such a bad deal for them."
"You need help, David. You're obviously smoking illegal drugs. You're at least drinking like a dried up sponge. I'd try to help you, but the kind of help you need you won't take."
"A clinic, you mean? A drunk tank?"
"No, stupid. A television so you can listen to the truth. Glenn Beck, Rush - there's a few true Americans left who could set you right if you'd only listen to them, but you"re a commie socialist and you"ll never listen to anyone but another Russian."
"You know, Marie? You must be looking forward to the day when you can tell the government to stick its Social Security check. Social Security, Marie? As in socialism?"
"I don't give a damn. I've worked all my adult life, and that check is mine."
"O.K, Marie."
Marie hung up. She could not bear to have such honest, patriotic Americans, as Glenn Beck and Limbaugh disparaged. But if there are millions of Maries out there, how can the country possibly survive them all? Is it entirely hopeless - getting the Maries of the world to accept that some things are true in spite of what Beck, Limbaugh, O'Reilly et al, say? Being reminded, again, that deeply entrenched ignorance wears a human face, and transcends all logic and reason, is a profoundly startling experience. Realizing there is absolutely no defense against those who cannot, or will not think, is frightening. There are many millions of Americans who, because their lives don't come into close proximity with the truly ignorant, think there is some hope for bringing such people, if not enlightenment, than at least some degree of factually based knowledge.
It's probably for the best that knowing the extent of blind ignorance, as a destructive force, never becomes apparent to those millions who would, if given a choice, remain unaware that such gross ignorance commonly exists.
There may be a way to force Marie to learn along with her millions of abysmally ignorant colleagues. Offer anyone who can prove the existence of ghosts $100 million. Who knows what they might learn while they study the possibilities of constructing a ghost trap clever enough to catch that most wily of all creatures! Beck, Limbaugh and all the other right wing droolers would weigh in with their ideas, and soon the catching of ghosts would eclipse the directed hatred against all the liberal communists. As the ghosts constantly outsmarted and eluded them they would transfer their hate onto them, and those whose skulls are occupied by something other than a marble or two, could govern the country.
