Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Why dumb is bad

From freezing Florida, Agent 17 sent me a link to "The Stupidest Game Show Answers of All Time". Watch it and have a chuckle at the dumb blonde and other ignoramuses. Then think about this.

These people are allowed to vote! And their vote counts for as much as yours and mine. Worse, as Rick Shenkman points out in Just How Stupid Are We?, never in the history of America have "the people" wielded so much real political power.

Public opinion polls drive public policy. Petitions and ballot initiatives lead to stupid and unworkable legislation. Elected officials can be recalled because "the people" have changed their collective mind (if you'll pardon the overstatement) and don't want them in office any more.

Yet "the people" know next to nothing, as these video clips demonstrate, about geography, politics, economics, civics or the issues of the day. Shenkman says we have stopped reading and learning about these things because we are preoccupied with entertainment and the culture of consumerism.

And what is the result? Bad policies, bad decisions and bad government. We -- and I include Canadians and Britons along with Americans -- are reaping the harvest of the dumbing-down of our society.

It's bad for us to be so dumb! Dumb. Bad. Dumb. Bad. Dumb. Bad. Keep repeating until it sinks in.

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