On November 10, Chris Hedges published a column at Truthdig.com called America the Illiterate. After the standard statistics about non-readers, whom he seems to view as both victims and causes of our nation’s various economic and political woes, Hedges went on to attack politicians and businesses for using brand imagery and other marketing techniques to manipulate those who cannot or do not read.

Hedges complains that “Political leaders in our post-literate society no longer need to be competent, sincere or honest. They only need to appear to have these qualities.” Well, that’s the advice Machiavelli offered five hundred years ago, but I don’t think of Renaissance Italy as a post-literate society.

As a dyslexic who struggled for many years to master the written word, I appreciate the value of literacy but also feel empathy for those who cannot read. Most of humanity has been illiterate throughout history, and I for one am grateful that technology and research have made it easier to communicate with people who cannot read, from the standardization of pictographic warning symbols to the educational programming of The Discovery Channel and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. It’s not the same as reading Emile Zola, but it’s enriching.

Of course, Hedges rightly fears the other kind of programming. He writes, “The change from a print-based to an image-based society has transformed our nation. Huge segments of our population, especially those who live in the embrace of the Christian right and the consumer culture, are completely unmoored from reality. They lack the capacity to search for truth and cope rationally with our mounting social and economic ills. They seek clarity, entertainment and order.”

In other words, they behave like the majority of humankind through the centuries. I share the concern, but I don’t think this is news - and I think our improved techniques for communicating with non-readers can be a great force for good.

According to Hedges, “Obama used hundreds of millions of dollars in campaign funds to appeal to and manipulate this illiteracy and irrationalism to his advantage…” Maybe so, but Obama did not have the option to make the illiterate literate during the campaign. Literacy improves lives and societies, but is not a prerequisite for citizenship.

Hedges is correct that government and business use advanced advertising techniques to lie more effectively, but misuse of communication channels is the fault of the abuser, not the technology. And if we’re so smart – and righteous – we should be able to use the same methods for better ends.

Writing of “the awful reality that awaits us,” Hedges joins a long line of pessimists who always seem to yearn for a long-gone golden age, as if human history was not primarily a history of poor sanitation, rampant disease, slavery and starvation. When people whine to me about the dangers of the world in which their children are growing up, I always ask whether they’d prefer their children to live in Dickensian London or America’s 19^th century coal or copper mining camps. Even accepting the likelihood of an “awful reality that awaits us,” I am thankful that the innovative, resourceful and adaptable American people are better equipped than ever to face the challenges to come.