I heard on a podcast that our country affords an open door to cranks. Folks who make up reality according to their Gut. The Gut is not based on logic nor science. It is based on feelings, both good and bad. Are there really two or more points of view on verifiable facts? Is the Gut feeling of hate as important as Christ’s admonition to love each other as he has loved us? Some folks are convinced that Earth is flat. Now this mystery was laid to rest a long time ago.

Truth is mistaken for what sells. If enough people like Gut Feeling pronouncements, do we have a new truth? If a leader says a lie often enough, is it transformed by alchemy into the truth? Can we make coal into diamonds by force of will?

A peculiar change occurred many years ago when newscasters’ opinions became news. When I began watching the CBS Evening News, Walter Cronkite was 15 minutes long. It was a big deal when it expanded to 30 minutes per evening. Once a week, a newscaster would offer under five minutes of opinion, and it was labeled as such. In these Gut Science days, Opinion is the new gospel.

We were simple people in Eldorado. We studied reading, writing, and arithmetic. There was a Civics class. The established truth of American life was an anchor for our conduct. We respected our elders. We said please and thank you. Making fun of others’ disabilities or personality was verboten. We were on the journey together. The road was clear. Gut Feelings were unreliable. Anger, hurt, animosity, and pain were mixed into the actions of Gut Feelings. We were the beneficiaries of the Civil Rights movement. We saw the wrong and suffering wrought on our African American brothers and sisters. President Johnson, a man raised in Texas and exposed to prejudice all of his life, enacted more Civil Rights legislation than any President before or since.

We have more information than ever and less wisdom. Neva J used to say, ‘Say aint and shaint and let the snot fly.’ Indeed, this has become the philosophy of the day. America for Americans, some tell us. Ask them where they came from. Women reporters are spoken to in a brusque, offensive manner, and no man in the crowd will stand up and say not in my presence. I suppose this is all the product of Gut Science. Hate, venom, cruelty, and bullying are now the accepted norm. Freedom and self-actualization are not a product of Gut Feelings.