This Biblical phrase tells us that sometimes, innocents know and speak only the truth. That is why a child is often more believable than an adult. The child has not learned to obfuscate, lie, or mislead. Hence, an innocent child speaks the truth, regardless of the consequences.
Out of the mouths of babes might be one way to find the Truth, but only if the children have not been brainwashed, either by experience or their community. Once indoctrination has begun, it is difficult to know if children are speaking the Truth, or someone else’s “truth”.
To my way of thinking, there are too many children receiving media attention because the children have been taught a certain, ideological view point. I’m thinking of David Hogg who feels that his own, personal experience gives him the right to lecture everyone else on gun control. Though 19, he has been the media’s sweetheart for several years, long before he could possibly have understood all the ramifications of gun control and Constitutional issues. Yes, he had a traumatic experience, but that experience might also have disproportionately influenced his opinions. His youthful approach, as with most advocates for gun control, reflects the theory that only he knows the truth. Anyone who disagrees with his stance HAS to be wrong, simply because he is right.
Greta Thunberg is another child whom the media is cultivating because she is on the march against climate warming. That opinion is very popular in Sweden and, of course, the liberal media gloms onto her and her viewpoint because………..she has the same ideas as they do. It’s sad to see a child cynically used for the benefit of a political issue, yet the press has no compunction about using, and abusing, even children. And, expecting a child to be the spokesperson for anything is, indeed, child abuse.
Normally, we encourage children to be aware of their world and to learn and listen as they grow up so they can be responsible adults. The problem with these two is that they have NOT grown up yet and, thus, are being used by the media in a very cavalier and debasing manner simply to advance PC issues. It is another example of the main stream media promoting their own causes, only this time, by exploiting children and their fears. And, worse, adults are expected to bow at the knee of these two, juvenile “experts”.
CNN and MSNBC and NBC need to start doing some homework and actually studying issues before giving a breathless, dramatic headline. And, certainly, any story worth telling should have its basis in facts. Neither David Hogg nor Greta Thunberg are old enough nor educated enough to be lecturing society on anything. David seems to be scarred by the horrific event he lived through. And Greta, well, who knows if her parents or community are instigating her public comments? At any rate, neither can be considered objective observers.
To stop this foolish reliance on a mere child, we need to insist that the media stop hyping the ridiculous idea that children should choose how society lives, or even, how government should react to what are, after all, important issues. Let’s insist that the media report facts and not merely the regurgitation of a popular ideology. And, to have that happen, we must hear from adults, not children.