CMV: Most people don't understand how the world works.

This is a discussion I've been having with many people, and it is mostly stupid to me. <br><br>I asked a friend of mine if he thinks 90% of the people understand how the world works. He said yes, they do. I think they don't. So I say they don't. Hence the thread title. <br><br>I am assuming "how the world works" means: everything from the fact that we live in a society, and all the economic and social rules and norms that come with that. <br><br>I think it is not an exaggeration to say most people don't understand how the world works in that way. For example, what percentage of people knows how the stock market works, how governments, businesses and the economy all interact, how the laws and rules are created, how really everything from agriculture to finance works? <br><br>I think it's enough to read the news and see what people think to see that this is true. "Oil went up!" "Why is petrol up?". "Putin is evil." "Why are tomatoes expensive." "Putin is evil." "Why is my gas bill so high?" "Putin is evil." Those few exchanges I had with another person, and that was it. Why is insulin so expensive?<br><br>Now, most of the people I argue with say that people don't know all the details of everything, but they know how the world works in general. <br><br>I think that is nonsense. I think that you don't know a damn thing about how the world works if you don't know how the economy works. Or the political system. Or how the laws are created. <br><br>**EDIT:**<br><br>I am not saying that most people aren't smart. I am saying most people don't have a clue how the world works. <br><br>I am not saying how the world works should be obvious to everyone, or that the information is easily available, or anything like that. However I do think that it makes little sense to call someone informed if they don't have a deep understanding of how society and economy (and how they interact) work. <br><br>**EDIT2:**<br><br>Most people don't know much about many things, and that's not the point. The point is if someone knows how the world works. If you don't know how the world works, how you know how to participate in society? If you don't know how the world works, you are basically someone waiting to be manipulated by everyone, and you can't make rational choices really about what government you want, how you want the economy to work, what you think is right or wrong. <br><br>**EDIT3:**<br><br>It's possible that I have too high expectations for people regarding how the world works, but I don't think that my expectations are that high. I don't expect everyone to know how everything works. But I expect everyone to know how the world works at a really deep level, and not think that's too much to ask. <br><br>**EDIT4:**<br><br>I decided to change this to a poll, since it seems like that's what it turned into.