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# Willful Ignorance is Contagious
- URL: https://signal-and-noise.io/willful-ignorance-is-contagious/
- Published: 2026-08-14T20:00:03.000Z
- Updated: 2026-08-14T20:00:03.000Z
- Author: Tinycube
- Tags: signal, MAGA, trump

> ”Low-IQ stupidity might still be spread across both sides of the political aisle, but willful ignorance — the [dogmatic cultish belief](https://daringfireball.net/linked/2020/11/30/asimov-cult-of-ignorance?ref=signal-and-noise.io) that loudmouths’ opinions are on equal ground with facts and evidence presented by informed experts — is the entire basis of the MAGA movement."  
> \-John Gruber, ‘[Stupid-Americans Are the New Irish-Americans, Trump Is Their JFK’)](https://daringfireball.net/linked/2025/06/27/trump-stupid-americans?ref=signal-and-noise.io)

This is one of my favorite posts from John Gruber…it pops up in my Readwise review feed often. It’s commentary on [Isaac Asimov’s](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac%5FAsimov?ref=signal-and-noise.io) January, 1980 Newsweek article [A Cult of Ignorance](https://aphelis.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/ASIMOV%5F1980%5FCult%5Fof%5FIgnorance.pdf?ref=signal-and-noise.io).

I was reminded of this again today when reading Paul Krugman’s recent article titled [The Rise of the Measles-Industrial Complex](https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/the-rise-of-the-measles-industrial) which discussed that low vaccination rates in the U.S. were an entirely Republican phenomenon. This is a pattern that we’ve seen before during the coronavirus pandemic, where “red states” [suffered 38% higher COVID death rates](https://abcnews.go.com/Health/red-blue-america-glaring-divide-covid-19-death/story?id=83649085&ref=signal-and-noise.io) than “blue states” once the vaccine was available.

This pattern is apparently continuing with childhood vaccinations. What was surprising (perhaps it shouldn’t be) is that the anti-vax movement is supported by right-wing media and conspiracy theory networks, both of which make a good deal of revenue from peddling alternative therapies to their anti-intellectual audiences.

In an effort to pander to this group (aka the MAGA base), Trump recently signed an [executive order](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/10/well/trump-vaccines-fact-check.html?ref=signal-and-noise.io) to reduce childhood vaccination rates even further. A loudmouth leading the willfully ignorant.