Are We Really This Stupid?

Are we really this stupid, that we believe random emails smearing someone about what their religion is, whether they're a patriot, etc., over what the person himself says and what verifiable facts prove?

You'd like to think democracy has something to do with a well-informed electorate.You'd like to think that facts have some standing versus smears and lies. You'd like to think that people know enough to check out the information they're fed. You'd like to think that people are thinking.

The things we've heard of the last few years haven't given us much confidence. A big example was that a large percentage of Americans thought Saddam Hussein was responsible for 9/11 and no amount of proof to the contrary was able to sink in. And another example would be the 23% of Americans who still think George Bush is doing a good job.

What causes this? We have a pretty good educational system, I guess. It seemed OK when I was in school. And everyone's supposed to go to school. We hope they pick up something there as to how to reason for themselves.