Illiteracy's Impact on Political Understanding and Engagement

The population's low literacy and math skills hinder their ability to critically evaluate political policies.

### The Impact of Literacy on Political Understanding and Critical Thinking
* 📚 Speaker 1 addresses the sensitive topic of literacy in the U.S., noting that approximately **21% of adults are functionally illiterate**, meaning they cannot read beyond a **sixth-grade level**.
* 🧠 He highlights the challenges of **communicating complex ideas** to this demographic, especially in the context of **political discourse and policy evaluation**.
* 🎥 A TikTok video featuring a math tutor illustrates the **struggle many face with basic math concepts**, prompting questions about the **intended audience for such content**.
* 💬 Comments on the video reveal a **lack of understanding of fundamental multiplication and decimal placement**, raising concerns about **educational standards**.
* 🔍 Speaker 1 connects these educational gaps to broader political implications, arguing that if many citizens **struggle with basic critical thinking**, they are **ill-equipped to evaluate political proposals critically**.
* 📉 He emphasizes the importance of **understanding economic concepts**, such as tariffs, which are often **oversimplified in political rhetoric**, leading to **misconceptions among the public**.
* 📖 The speaker calls for a renewed focus on **critical thinking and media literacy** in public education, while acknowledging the challenges posed by **decades of funding cuts** to these programs.
* 💭 Ultimately, he seeks feedback on this pressing issue, emphasizing that it is not merely about **math skills** but about **empowering individuals to navigate the complexities of the modern world**.

Speaker 1: All right. I want to tackle this next subject delicately and with tact, but I do have to tackle it. This is one of those topics where no matter how you phrase it, someone's going to say, 

David, what an asshole, what an asshole that you're being. But I think this is too important to let it slide. So let, let me let me lay this out. Last week I pointed out in a discussion about 

Trump having a plurality, but not a majority of the vote. I pointed out that 21% of the country is functionally illiterate. What I mean by that is one out of five adults, roughly 21%, one 

out of five adults does not read beyond a sixth grade level. And in a sense, that works fine if Trump speaks at a sixth grade level and the, you know, 20% of the adult public doesn't read beyond 

a sixth grade level. But the point is, you really can't communicate nuanced ideas to people whose literacy doesn't go beyond grade six. So we've talked about this in terms of how it influences policy and politics and what people fall for. So then I'm on TikTok and I come across a video of a 

guy who goes by the name Bumi math tutor, also known as math guy, doing basic multiplication. And as I looked at this video, which I'm going to play, I thought to myself, who on earth is this video for? 

Because the video is of this guy explaining
like you would to a little kid, how do you multiply point eight by point 12? Now, right
away you look at it eight times 12 is 96 and there are three decimal places. So it's 0.096.
This is instant mental math. It's multiplication

tables and knowing decimal points eight times 12
is 96. Move the decimal point three spots .096. It is only one more step beyond three times
nine. We learned this in fourth grade, but you look at the comments on this video and
I'll play it in a moment and people are saying,

why isn't the answer Point 96, for example. And
of course, if you look at it and you say, what's 80% of point 12? It couldn't possibly be .96 80%
of point 12 can't be more than point 12. Okay. So

TikTok in the United States is for 13 plus
if you're younger, it's a different app with
different safety features. You wouldn't see this
creator's content. 13 year olds are in seventh to
ninth grade, depending on your state and your
birth date. Is this video for adults? So check

it out. I'm going to play the video for you and
then I want to talk about it in some more detail. Speaker 2: The average American can't do this
question. Yes, you could use a calculator for

this, but I'll show you how you can do it without
a calculator. So first, let's break down the best
numbers. So we have eight and I see 12. So first
you can do just eight times 12 and you can do that

in your head. Or you just do 12 times eight. Two times eight gives you 16, carry the one. Eight times one is eight plus one, which is 96. Now that means that you have to work with the

number 96. So what you have to do now, we have to calculate how many decimals we have. So looking at the number 0.8, how many decimal places do we have? So the idea is that to go from this decimal

place to the last digit, we just have to move it once. So that's one decimal place. And how about 0.12 and 0.12? We have to move one two to get to the last digit, two decimal places. So in total,

how many decimal places are we moving, or moving one plus two, which is going to be three decimal places. So in this case, with the number 96, moving to the left, three decimal places. So we start from here, move one, two and then three. So we end up right there, which means

we have to add an extra zero in your answer. 0.096.
Speaker 1: Okay. Now if you don't know this math instantly, when you look at point eight times 2.12, this isn't about making fun of you. If

anything, it's almost like there are victims out there, victims of the educational system, victims of a growing culture of non-thinking. But what is going on here and I know some people are going to say, David, you prick with you, you smug prick with your private school, this or that. I

want to know about private schools. I guess for grad
school, technically I did, but elementary school, 
middle school, high school, undergrad, public
or state schools. It's not about that. The other day I met a guy. We were talking about a driveway
paving job and he goes, okay, let me see though.

The number was 112 and he needed to add 20%.
He goes 112 and we've got to add 20% of that.
And I see the guy struggling now instantly in my
head. That's 22.4, right? So if you've got 112,

10% of that is 11.2 and then you just double it,
it's 22.4. That's how you get 20 to 20%. You take
10% of something and you double it. This guy's
struggling. He takes out a calculator and I go,

it's 22.4. All right, how did we get here? But
most importantly, this isn't a math show. What
does it mean about our politics? If a significant
portion of the population struggles with basic
critical thinking, understanding foundational
concepts, understanding things that kids learn

when they are nine, how on earth can we expect
them to evaluate policy proposals? Think about
Trump's proposals, tax cuts or tariffs or health
care. On the surface, they're often sold as good
for everybody. Of course, the reality is, if you
don't understand nuance, you can't possibly engage

critically with it. Trump will tell you tariffs
are great for America. We're really sticking it
to China. And people go, Yeah, we are. But they
don't realize tariffs are essentially taxes paid
by American consumers. It's basic economics that
the cost gets passed down to us. But if you're not

equipped to process that, you buy the soundbite
and you miss the impact. When you consider the limited
language capabilities of people who write
in to the show, you know, sometimes I'll
feature these messages I get from people
furious with me. They're clearly American. They

clearly only speak English. They can
barely string a coherent sentence together
in written form. This has real consequences. It's
not about laughing at people. So we really are in
this wild situation. It's not about multiplying
decimals together in your head or calculating

percentages. It's about equipping people with
the tools to navigate the world and not get duped
by the slick talking points and empty promises
of a populist sounding demagogue. And that's how
people end up being sold. A lot of these ideas.
Now, I'm not claiming Trump won because people

can't do math. Okay? That's that's not the point.
But what I am saying is that in general, aside
from which candidate motivates people to turn
out or did how did Trump's turnout compare with
2020 Harris versus Biden's and increase decrease
shrinking of the electorate demographic? All that

stuff is real. But also also when education has
been deliberately decimated by Republicans for
decades and you end up with a large share of the
population that can't string together a coherent
one paragraph email. I get it all the time. Can't
do basic math. Of course, they fall for stuff like

if I put tariffs on everybody, now it's Canada
and Mexico too. We'll talk about that later in
the show. Of course, they fall for it. And then
I go, Wait a second, I can actually figure this

out for myself. What happened? So I don't have
an answer. In my book, my forthcoming book, of course, I talk about. In public education.
We need to be teaching critical thinking, media literacy and epistemology. But if critical, if you
decimate funding for public education, where are

they going to get the money to teach those things?
So it's not the easy solution that maybe we would hope for. Let me know your thoughts. I'm not
trying to be a smug prick, as Dave Rubin called

me. I'm trying to talk about a real issue. I want
to hear from you. Info at David Pakman dot com.

Is something VERY WRONG with the country?

David Pakman Show

Low Literacy Rates and Political Implications

The speaker introduces a sensitive topic about the impact of low literacy rates on political discourse.

The speaker mentions a previous discussion about Trump's election and the statistic that 21% of the adult population is functionally illiterate.

This low literacy rate is explained as a significant factor in the way political messages are received and understood.

The speaker shares an example of a TikTok video explaining basic multiplication, highlighting the surprisingly low mathematical understanding of some viewers.

The speaker questions the target audience of a simple multiplication problem video.

The video demonstrates a basic multiplication problem (0.8 x 0.12), which should be easily solvable for those with a basic understanding of math.

The speaker highlights comments on the video showing a lack of understanding of the solution.

The speaker discusses the age appropriateness of the video's content on TikTok.

The speaker questions if the video is intended for adults, given the apparent lack of basic mathematical understanding shown in the comments.

Implications of Low Mathematical Skills on Daily Life and Politics

The video shows a person solving the same math problem, highlighting the difficulty some people have with basic calculations.

The speaker emphasizes that the inability to perform simple calculations is not a matter of ridicule but rather a consequence of the educational system and cultural factors.

An anecdote is shared about a person struggling to calculate a 20% increase, highlighting the prevalence of this issue.

The speaker connects the lack of basic critical thinking skills to the difficulty in evaluating political policies.

The example of tariffs is used to illustrate how a lack of understanding can lead to acceptance of misleading political soundbites.

The speaker discusses the real-world consequences of low literacy and numeracy, referencing emails received from viewers.

The speaker emphasizes that the issue is not about mocking individuals but about addressing the lack of essential skills for navigating the world.

The speaker clarifies that the inability to perform basic math is not the sole reason for political outcomes, but it is a contributing factor.

The speaker discusses the impact of Republican policies on education funding and its connection to the current situation.

The speaker suggests teaching critical thinking, media literacy, and epistemology in public education as a solution, but acknowledges the financial challenges involved.