Freedom of expression or brain washing?

In one of the discussions this past week, Mr. O'Connor brought a very interesting suggestion. He shared how he was going to buy tickets to folk music concert, and was bombarded by fans of the Disney channel's Hannah Montana. Where has she come from? Did the Disney channel pick her because she was a socially-minded artist looking to express anything to her audience, or did Disney pick her because she was a girl that they could use to manipulate millions of teenage girls with? She now has a not just a TV show and an album out, but also a clothing line and who knows what else. Remember when music used to be about making a statement?

Bitter Allies

Humans accusatory instinct is a powerful thing. All humans are given a degree of inward favoritism. Therefore whenever something bad happens, it is natural to blame someone else instead of yourself. That partiality is the driving force behind such episodes in American history as the Salem witch trials (as discussed in the Crucible), the communist hysteria in the 1950s, and the unease of terrorism of modern-day America. In an episode of The Twilight Zone, a neighborhood starts to get suspicious when the power goes out. Everyone suspects their own friends and neighbors as being aliens in human disguise causing all the trouble. In reality the aliens had the last laugh as they were the ones who shut off the power and turned the neighborhood inside out.
Similarly in the Crucible, it is believed that the devils servants are roaming Salem. This hysteria splits-up the closest of relationships.

Beliefs

Sometimes different people have different interpretations of historical events. Sometimes, though, different people will have the same interepretaions for completely different reasons. For example, in class, we are reading the Crucible by Arthur Miller. When Betty is ailed with an unknown sickness, witchcraft is a common cause believed by the villagers. However each of them believes this, or at least suggests this for their own personal reasons. Putnam has a grudge against Parris because of previous unrelated unfortunate events that affected his brother-in-law. Abigail and Betty accuse others of witchcraft to get attention, and to get rid of people that they possibly do not like. Tituba admits to witchcraft simply out of fear. This leads me to wonder if people believe in their own "opinions", or if they just support these views for personal gain.