I’ve been on Twitter/X since Musk bought it and (largely) ended its censorship. Shortly after Hurricane Helene devastated much of the Southeast, I started seeing written and video testimonials from people claiming either to be in the area or have contacts who are. A common thread was a slow or non-existent presence from FEMA, in contrast to neighbors and faith-based groups springing to action right away.
Here’s one, claiming the 82nd Airborne, known as America’s “Global” Response Force, often jumps into disaster areas, like after Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. However, as of Sept. 30, they had not been deployed to western North Carolina, even though they are based at Fort Bragg, in the same state.
Two, this truck driver claims he saw minimal FEMA and Red Cross participation after the flooding. Maybe these people claiming to be witnesses are lying. If they are, though, they must have been A+ students in their college drama classes. Moreover, Twitter/X now has a function “Community Notes.” It’s like “fact checking” on Facebook and elsewhere, but instead of some faceless techies in a far-off city deciding what is true or false, Community Notes are crowdsourced by Twitter/X users.
Several times I’ve seen posts I or even Elon Musk had retweeted get a correction by Community Notes. It’s incredibly helpful to help winnow the good from the bad.
So far, in the testimonials from Helene’s aftermath, I have seen none flagged by Community Notes. That tells me, they’re likely legit.
In addition to complains about a sluggish federal response, there have also been statements like this that make many wonder how much the Executive Branch even wants to help those who are suffering. After the disastrous past three and a half years, I think many American have come to expect the worst from Biden/Harris and their “America last” policy.
This video has Pres. Biden “proud to announce” $2.4 billion in aid for Ukraine then three days later, to the question if there will be any more resources sent after Helene, Biden responded “no.”
The purpose of this column is not to discuss FEMA’s response or criticisms of it. Rather, its purpose is to question the naïveté of unquestioningly believing anything the government tells us without critical thinking or curiosity.
Among the social media chatter a few people have sent me the link to this FEMA website: “Hurricane Rumor Response.”
Maybe they thought sending me the link would “straighten me out,” but instead I was shocked. I applaud an honest desire to squash rumors, and am on-board with that, but why are some folks so willing to just believe what they’re told?
It reminded me of the old joke, “Did you know the word ‘naïve’ is not in the dictionary?”
It also reminded me of the new joke pointing out how many stories that are mocked today later turn out to be real.
Q. What’s the difference between a right-wing conspiracy theory and the truth?
A. About 2-6 months.
Plus, it shows a logical fallacy called “circular reasoning.” The message is basically, “FEMA’s doing a great job and all the negative talk is rumors and conservative conspiracy theories; to prove it, just read this webpage from FEMA.gov.”
Let’s look at it this way.
Example: You’re upset with Walmart for driving out mom and pop stores, weakening American manufacturing by sourcing from China, and overworking and underpaying their employees. Imagine complaining to me and I send you a page on Walmart.com stating “don’t believe the rumors; Walmart is a wonderful company.”
Or imagine I’m your child’s teacher. Each night your child is up till midnight, tearfully struggling with homework, but your child never gets higher than a D. All other parents report the same with their kids. Irate, you come to Parent/Teacher Conference Day to vent. “Mr. Dreyer, your workload, grading, and difficulty are all unreasonable. What needs to change so my child can be successful in your class?”
But instead of hearing you out and brainstorming ways to help you, I pull up my class website and condescendingly tell you this: “That’s impossible, because right here on my class website it clearly explains I’m a wonderful teacher and no one should believe any negative comments because they are all just rumors and conspiracy theories.”
In the Walmart and school examples, would you be persuaded?
I teach an online class of three 7th graders at a prestigious school in Taiwan and I explained this FEMA website issue with them. When I asked them if they saw anything wrong with the situation, one boy responded, “It’s not logical, if it’s their own website. It’s biased.”
How come a 7th grader on the other side of the world gets it?
The only currency news platforms or “influencers” really have is credibility. Like the boy who cried wolf, if someone repeatedly spreads false information, truthtellers should be able to point it out and the audience will shrink. That’s one crucial reason for Free Speech: the ability to debunk garbage.
Frankly, if the media had cared about its credibility and actually been doing their jobs fairly these past few decades, most folks would still go to it for news and not feel the need to reach out to Twitter/X or alternative platforms. You can see despicable false media reports about the J13 assassination attempt against President Trump here.
Why do so many people instinctively doubt citizen journalists and laypeople on the ground where Helene wreaked havoc, but unquestionably trust news corporations based in New York or California, hundreds or thousands of miles away?
I’m finishing this column on Columbus Day, now renamed as “Indigenous Peoples’ Day,” – by all indications a time to remember the exploitation of America by Europeans and also how those with superior technology and weaponry have subjugated others throughout human history.
So it’s fitting to close this column with the text of a bumper sticker I bought from a Cherokee vendor at Green Hill Park years ago.
“Sure You Can Trust the Government. Ask Any Indian.”
Go deeper: What is a Circular Argument?
–Scott Dreyer
