Academic Knowledge and Manipulation

Academic knowledge, as we all know, can easily provide individuals with advantages in certain situations, such as an academic discussion or debate; it can also offer people the idea of superiority over others. This can lead to a different posture, and different ways of seeing and approaching various situations. For example, having a superior education will a lot of times lead people to the conclusion you are credible, and hence believe everything you say, giving you great opportunity to manipulate and take advantage of their trust. Supporting your opinion with "evidence," as some might call it, may add, when presented the right way, even more credibility to your argument. However, once you look closely into the ideas and arguments people have used, they are not always being used correctly, sometimes corrupting the argument rather than supporting it. As we have read in the article by Jared Diamond, "Romney Hasn't Done His Homework," presidential candidate Mitt Romney can be served as an example. Diamond claims that in one of his speeches, delivered in Jerusalem, Romney made a clear misinterpretation of the view points and statements made in his book, "Guns, Germs and Steel," leading Jared Diamond to discredit the fact that the candidate had even truly read it. 

Under the scenario that my work were being used for the manipulation of others, as scientist and author Jared Diamond stated has been done to him, my response - would I have the same influence and resources as Diamond - might not be different from his. I would simply like to state the true meaning and objective of my work, and make people aware of the mistake that had been made.