The Argument Against Reading and Words

July 14, 2030, Capitol City.

The US Ministry of Information holds a hearing on the proposed Federal School Curriculum.

Ministry Chairwoman Amanda Skell interviews Karen Blessing, Commander of the People’s Attack Force.

…So your position is, the subject of reading should be eliminated at all levels of education, Commander?

Reading is racist and statist. Reading is history. History is a delusion. There is only the present and the future.

What about words? Tools for Survival: Wh... Rawles, James Wesley Best Price: $20.93 Buy New $14.00 (as of 05:30 UTC - Details)

They are acceptable as oral communication, but not in written form.

So all education should be spoken?

Correct. A handed down tradition through word of mouth.

Isn’t that history?

No. History is written.

What about books?

Irrelevant.

How so?

When no one can read, books will wither away.

Just to be clear, you’re saying the elimination of reading is a positive step.

It’s revolutionary.

Do you personally own books?

Yes.

Do you read them?

I do.

Why?

I’m immune to their spell. I study books to understand how they have corrupted society. It’s part of my work.

You’re a linguist.

I have to be.

What will education consist of, if books are not part of it?

Teacher instruction. Prayers, chants, ceremonies, pledges, bonding, de-conditioning, gender declassification and equality, the erasure of racism and privilege. Above all—deletion of the written word from the mind. Don’t read. Watch a video. How to Survive the End... James Wesley Rawles Best Price: $1.48 Buy New $7.99 (as of 03:50 UTC - Details)

Video above reading?

Of course. See and hear the speaker. “You must watch this video.”

Sounds like a battle cry.

It is. Learn from the teacher. When the teacher isn’t there, watch a video. Let it flow over you. Don’t pause it.

Why not?

Because the details are unimportant. What counts is the overall impression. If a person, a student tries to remember details, research shows she tends to revert back to the written word.

It’s better not to remember?

You remember your impression. That’s all. You say to you friends, “This video is very important. Watch it.”

And if your friends ask what is in the video?

Say, “I don’t remember everything, just watch it.”

And this would be a positive development?

Absolutely. When you have ten million people who can only remember their overall impressions, you have a force for the good.

The desire for details…

Takes you back into the written word. Details are a weapon used by the enemy. They distract from the big picture.

And if a student wants to read?

Investigate. Find out where and how that desire arose.

Who investigates?

Education is a government program. So the government investigates.

Should the new curriculum contain anti-reading courses?

Courses, chants, pledges, and so on. Patriots: A Novel of S... Rawles, James Wesley Best Price: $1.10 Buy New $1.99 (as of 03:05 UTC - Details)

I’m trying to picture the effects a non-reading society will have on business and commerce.

What was once reading becomes a series of functions carried out by Artificial Intelligence.

And what about the people who devise the AI and the algorithms? Do they read?

The day will come when AI creates all new AI. Until then, yes, there will be these technicians who read. Naturally, they will be screened periodically for loyalty.

Loyalty to what?

To the flow.

Excuse me?

Loyalty to the flow of oral knowledge. Spoken truth.

Were there any statistics you wanted to present today?

Statistics are relatively unimportant. But here are two. Every day, across the world, people watch eight billion videos. They read thirty thousand books.

How many of those videos are viewed from start to finish?

Roughly one out of ten thousand.

And how many of those books are read all the way through?

The current estimate is a third of one percent.

What should the government do with its many archives of written material?

Ideally, burn them for fuel, which is in short supply. But that is impractical. We have a list of requirements for those who would obtain a license to access those archives.

A written list of requirements?

It is presented as a video.

A personal question. Do you own stock in any company involved with video production, distribution, or manufacture of video components?

No. I’m a board member of BILLGATES.

What?

It’s an acronym for Better Information for Little Learners in the Great Alliance of Total Education Systems. It’s a non-profit foundation that produces Internet video instruction for schools.

I understand the foundation has trademarked “You must watch this video,” and “Watch this now.”

Yes.

A newspaper columnist has called the foundation the KKK of book burning.

The Attorney General is investigating him. Apparently, he makes pipe bombs in his basement.

You have evidence for that claim?

I have a video which makes the claim. You must watch it. If you’re pressed for time, go to the 5:43 mark and continue to 6:58.

What does it say?

I don’t recall precisely. Just watch it.

Reprinted with permission from Jon Rappoport’s blog.