242 Chasing the Wind: Assessing Philippine Democracy, Second Edition conformity. The information overload leads to increased inability to assess truth or reliability of the information and a supercial sweep is all one can hope for. As a result, what is salient becomes more powerful, more "true." If more people say it, then it must be true. This is a sad context for political socialization and can only lead to values confusion and behavioral paralysis.
Before we throw up our hands in utter frustration and surrender, let us examine some of the positives. The martial law regime and the People's Power revolution that overthrew it have socialized a generation to the dangers of authoritarian rule and the true meaning of citizen empowerment. And even if the lessons appear to be generally forgotten today, there are pockets of surviving memories. There are multi-channel attempts (via schools, media, groups of concerned citizens) to socialize a new generation unfamiliar with the past to the important values derived from that past. Experience can be a great socialization agent. But even those without experience can learn from those who do. Media can play an important role in spotlighting the efforts of good citizen. Highlighting those model behaviors indirectly transmit positive values and behaviors that, hopefully, others may emulate. A television spot entitled "The Good News" attempted precisely this many years ago and there are many other similar examples today. Finally, we can also expect the winds of (values) change from the many Filipinos who have seen the world and bring back with them new values and new ways of being, picked up from their exposure to other cultures and forms of governments. These ideas they can pass on to their families and communities as they themselves participate actively and more fully in nation building. Indeed, "democracy is a foregone conclusion" but it will take time, energy, and lots of patient effort. After all, as the old adage goes, "Rome was not built in a day!" In parting, we may benet from reecting on the psychologist Moghaddam's insights on the behavioral characteristics of a democratic citizen (2015). From years of research, he had come to the conclusion that to be a good democratic citizen, one must possess these traits - "a willingness to accept being wrong, the ability to critically question everything including society's "sacred" beliefs, the ability to revise opinions based on evidence, and tolerance / acceptance of the different other." At the core of his prescription, is a critical thinker who is fearless, open to ideas and not rigid. A democratic rather than an authoritarian socialization would be a good starting point in this direction.