The happier a thought makes people feel, the more likely they are to accept it without much critical thinking. This way of forming opinions can be dangerous if we care about what is true.

Take, for example, Mother Teresa. Students almost always mention her name when asked by a teacher to think of an altruistic person. But how many of these students actually know anything about her besides that she’s supposed to be good?  Was Mother Teresa really good all the time?

Mother Teresa is most famous for opening the first Home of the Dying in Calcutta. This is seen by most as a positive thing. But her hospices weren’t a place for the poor to relieve their suffering at all.

According to Christopher Hitchens, who has published a book on the misdemeanors of Mother Teresa called “The Missionary Position: Mother Teresa in Theory and Practice,” people who volunteered at this hospice were shocked. The needles were reused without being sterilized. Medical aid beyond ibuprofen was not given. Volunteer Mary Loudon wrote about how medical treatment was refused to a 15-year-old boy whose death could have been prevented by antibiotics. Quality medical care was simply not offered, despite the millions of dollars the nun recieved in donations.

Clearly, critical thinking and research skills need to have a greater emphasis in the education system if the above information is news to the majority. The upcoming 2012 election that most seniors will be able to vote in makes this even more crucial.

Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry, who has authorized 234 executions as Governor of Texas, would like his voters to believe that “the state of Texas has a very thoughtful, very clear process in place.” This sounds good, if you ignore the fact that Anthony Graves, who spent 18 years in prison and 12 years on death row until proven innocent, was almost a victim of this very clear and thoughtful process.

Most politicians would also like their voters to believe that they support our troops. But when the audience booed at a gay soldier during a Republican presidential debate, not one of the candidates tried to defend him. However, Obama did speak out against this, which would strengthen his campaign, unless you know that Obama doesn’t actually support full equal rights for gays.

Believing facts just because they sound good is unrealistic and dangerous.  In a world where people have access to more information than ever, it is vital to sift through the hypocritical refuse and discover what’s actually true.

Scott Novak is an Opinion Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.