Education simply increases your ability to.....

To answer Tom's question regarding education and rationalization, yes it is true that education increases one's ability to rationalize and defend one's prejudices but more importantly, education provides a necessary framework for intellectual thought by enhancing one's knowledge of the world and political affairs. I am not at liberty to state beyond a reasonable doubt that you must be educated to understand these affairs, but it would be difficult to critically asssess the claims of some Political figures without it.  But, I am sure we can all agree that the acquisition of a higher education,  does not guarantee the acquisition of intellectual integrity ( I understand the term Tom used was intellectual discipline however for the purpose of this entry I use this term loosely) nor does it guarantee that the educated will be able to discern truth from propaganda. As a seeker of truth and knowledge, it is truly amazing to listen to some of the Public Officials I have helped become elected into office as it would seem at certain times, when the economical mood is satisfactory, Integrity seems to flow like the Nile and at other times, integrity and intellect have been replaced with old ideologies and partisan biased slandering. One thing I know for sure, it is essential to maintain an open, yet critical mind when deciphering truth from propaganda when it pertains to those we have/have not elected to represent our intellectual views.