Smug-norance

Many experts, commentators, talking heads, presenters and academics on TV and other media, are full of self-importance and deliver opinions as statements of fact, that are often completely bereft of any real knowledge, truth or even a vestige of "fact".

These "expert opinions" covers everything from economics to geopolitics, potentially making the expressed opinions very dangerous. ( also known as propaganda )

These are often the opinion leaders and social influencers, who in the final analysis, are no more useful than an ashtray on a motorbike. 

This sad state of affairs can be found in the public and private sector, in equal measure, and imho, represent a major danger to our future prosperity.

Why do we have so much chaos, when vast numbers of "experts" are involved?

For years I have beaten the drum of learning how to formulate better questions, why the language we use matters, yet I see little changing in our daily lives. 

Maybe I am just too dumb to understand phrases such as, "our forward leaning posture" or "International Rules Based Order"   

From a political perspective, now copied by the Woke brigade in business, we can fall back on George Orwell for clarity.  

'Political language. . . is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind'.

As for the language we use, including the words with implied meanings, such as Values and Morals, I would suggest the people who use these words frequently have no idea what they really mean. 

There are real consequences to the language used, and as we are using Mr. Orwell as a point of reference, here he describes the danger.

George Orwell - Politics and the English Language
April 1946

Now, it is clear that the decline of a language must ultimately have political and economic causes: it is not due simply to the bad influence of this or that individual writer. But an effect can become a cause, reinforcing the original cause and producing the same effect in an intensified form, and so on indefinitely.

A man may take to drink because he feels himself to be a failure, and then fail all the more completely because he drinks. It is rather the same thing that is happening to the English language.

It becomes ugly and inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish, but the slovenliness of our language makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts.

The point is that the process is reversible.

Considering the time laps since 1946 and the total lack of progress, in reducing "foolish thoughts", I would suggest we are in trouble.

We probably should all expend some effort at "lifting" our game or accept a steady decline, as we see in the world today. 

We might even be brave enough to revert to the old IBM slogan, "THINK".