We all know that some information are withheld from the general public. Usually the justification the authorities provide is that it is done to preserve public safety.For example, if they have gathered intel on an impending terrorist attack on a certain location. They don't let us know in order to prevent a mass panic.
If they have delicate info on racial/ethnic related matters, they might also withhold it in order to preserve mutual trust b/w groups of people.
This type of information management is also part of the way they use to achieve other goals.
They can also purposely withhold or not emphasis on certain details to shape your beliefs.
They can purposefully emphasis and magnify certain info as well.
We see this a lot in history-making.
Anyway, I digress.
Back to the withholding info part. =)
I think withholding info from the masses is all good because you get to prevent panics and stuffs, therefore it is beneficial to the nation as a whole.
However, the individual will gain more to know such information instead of being kept in the dark. It will save me a lot of time to explain why if you are aware of The Game Theory.
In the this movie, an unidentified Alien object is calculated to hit the city. However, the masses are not informed as there is not enough time to evacuate the entire population of 8million people.
If you, living in the city, knew of the impending event, there would have been sufficient time for you to leave the city within 2 hours.
This is in the event that all other city people do not know of it. Which means to say that you have exclusive information that others do not.
However, if the masses were to be informed of this crisis, a panic would ensue followed by mass evacuation, which will probably jam the roads and hinder your leaving.
But regardless of whether the others know or not, it's always better that YOU KNOW this info.
Many things in the society are like this.
The authorities regulate the society in such a way that the country, as a whole, receives as much benefit as possible.
But you have to know that this does not mean that by following their plan, your gain is maximized.
Many of us get nudged into taking up courses that are probably what we're not really interested in. The nature of the choices what appear in front of us is shaped by the trajectory of the nation.
When a country 1st underwent industrialization, education will naturally emphasize on technical skills. When we switch to a service-oriented industry, naturally courses related to it become more accessible.
I personally find it hard as well, to believe that so many students take up engineering courses because they really like it. But I might be wrong here, maybe many people really love engineering-related stuffs. But I'm not 1 of them.
But my point is, what is good for the country as a whole may not be good for you as an individual.
So sometimes, if your own plan is not in sync with the nation's grand plan, I say fuck the nation's plan. Follow your own path.
Finally I wanna clarify that it does not mean that I do not agree with that the authorities has done. In fact, I'd have done the same if I were them. I'd have made my decisions for the good of the nation rather than for the individual. This is so to maximize total benefit. (See game theory again.)
But as an individual, I'd choose to maximize individual benefit. =)
