The Roots of The Stupidity Pandemic

[@lisadunn2208]

Genius has it's limits, but stupidity knows no bounds!

[@User-jr7vf]

I don't agree with his first law. I always tend to think that most people are stupid.

[@jangilbert8028]

Yeah. You really can’t fix stupid!

[@richardcollier1912]

Right. You can quantify the number of subatomic particles in the known universe, but you cannot quantify stupidity, because that number does not exist.

[@encounteringjack5699]

“There are only two things that are infinite. Stupidity and the universe. Though I’m not sure about that last one.” - Albert Einstein

[@RCT1963]

“Never underestimate the stupidity of people in large groups” - George Carlin

[@ivancliff2514]

Carlin also said “think of how stupid the average person is and know HALF of them are stupider than that”.

[@wolfehologram3539]

With respect, I believe his exact words were, "Never underestimate the POWER of stupid people in large groups." It's a joke (and a good one, at that), but it's also true. After all, how do you think some lynch mobs form?

[@georgedunkelberg5004]

UNDERSTOOD THAT CON-GRESS IS MANDATED NON PROGRESS!

[@Questions-l8r]

George Carlin said government is a “big club and you ain’t in it.”

[@bizygirl1]

He also said, “I dislike and despise groups of people. But I love individuals. You can see the universe in their eyes”.

[@JC-eq6is]

It's hard to win an argument with an educated, well-informed person. It's impossible to win one with an idiot.

[@ErinIsReal]

"When arguing with an idiot, it becomes impossible to discern the idiot"

[@carolmaplesden916]

​@@ErinIsReal The issue has been for so long in being able to identify the idiot We all have gotten caught up in the downward spiral with them The saving grace is when you catch on and Acquiesce

[@Coen80]

Never argue with an idiot, for they will bring you down to their level..... And then beat you on experience.

[@tikhongilson3770]

If you're starting to win the argument, the stupid person may harm you.

[@carolmaplesden916]

@@tikhongilson3770 That is a true statement Very true

[@ken481959]

Before the Internet, we used to think that stupidity was caused by a lack of information. Well, it wasn't that.

[@VTKingdomsawing]

That is correct. Wilful stupidity is an example of Stupidity. Trump supporters, for instance.

[@andygreer8636]

Facts. 😂😂

[@STho205]

Internet eMail (90s)and smartphones (00s) are very analogous to the following: Moveable type printing press (religious and political revolutions followed) The steam press and telegraph (revolutions followed, socialism theories abounded) Voice modulation radio (revolutions and radical socialist movements gained ground and spread faster across the globe) TV.... obvious results in the 60s+ 2 way electronic platform (internet, social media, streaming, programmed search engines after 2000)...revolutions and riots emerged common by 2010 (Antifa, ProudBoys, Occ Wallstreet, IMF riots, Yellow Vests, Puss Hats, etc...)

[@Axeman428]

Truth and information aren’t the same. The information coming from some sources, like fox is just to confuse the stupid and is total propaganda, not news and not true.

[@bobbafett1849]

​@@STho205And in recent history Reichwing ReQuplickkklans etc have hopped on the bandwagon

[@VinGallo2025]

Anyone who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire

[@Vivaladarrio]

Like a man is a woman!

[@michaelkottler]

True dat.

[@LouisMontalvoJr-y8q]

Sounds like Donald Trump!

[@robertl.fallin7062]

​@LouisMontalvoJr-y8q ....

[@TheJacsbishop]

​@@LouisMontalvoJr-y8qYou are literally proving Voltaire's point 🙄 Russia hoax, Charlottesville hoax, the laptop is Russian disinformation hoax... Let me ask you this, if Kamala Harris is going to "take down" big business and big pharma WHY are big business and big pharma only donating to her and not Trump? Of Trump is going to make the "elite" richer and more powerful why are they NOT supporting him? Stupid does what they are told to do by MSM, Hollywood, etc etc etc try using Occam's razor with my question to you.. see what you come up with for an answer.. I'll wait 😂

[@driverman8615]

"No amount of evidence can ever persuade an idiot". Mark Twain.

[@ClarkHerkes]

👍

[@brucefrykman8295]

Isn't he banned now? Is _Huckleberry Finn_ even allowed in school libraries? Quoting Mark Twain is almost as reprehensible as quoting Shakespeare.

[@briankorbelik2873]

@@brucefrykman8295 Is this some new PC, (I'm a victim) outlook on great writers? Cancel culture? Couldn't find their ass with both hands.....

[@valerietaylor9615]

@@driverman8615 An idiot, or a fanatic.

[@1bizjets]

Among idiots yes LOL​@@brucefrykman8295

[@stischer47]

Stupidity does not equal ignorance. Ignorance can be cured, stupidity cannot.

[@denisemcdougal6445]

True

[@warringtonwilliams464]

That depends on whether the ignorance is willful or not.

[@Hangs4Fun]

While there is a large number of ignorant and willful ignorant, the number of stupid people is at its summit (I hope). Stupid people are very easy to control and use as snitches against those who aren't falling inline

[@WesternAustraliaNowAndThen]

Wilful ignorance can't be fixed...

[@Hangs4Fun]

@@WesternAustraliaNowAndThen in a way willful ignorance and stupid are in bed together. I think hundreds of years ago the ruling class had more stupid subjects. Nowadays they deploy propaganda in order to indoctrinate their brains, which leads to a form of willful blindness. At least with pure ignorance, we have a chance at correcting their course. But once indoctrinated, it can be very difficult to "snap" them out of it. HIGHLY recommend the book from Dr. Nehls called "The Indoctrinated Brain"

[@Chorkaloopa]

It is now November 6, 2024, and this video is as relevant as it ever will be.

[@winstonmoriarty1286]

Now you've jinxed us.

[@jackwells8107]

And now we're realizing how true the first law really is.

[@SecretSquirrel99-007]

When you are dead, you don't know you are dead, but the pain is felt by others. It's the same when you are stupid.

[@gregevans6044]

Brilliant! 😂

[@gothboschincarnate3931]

False...death is a fraud. Amadeus reincarnates in 1 years time .

[@Bloozguy]

I'm stealing this line, sorry.

[@SecretSquirrel99-007]

@@Bloozguy I stole as well so go for it.

[@bosatsu76]

When you are dead, you don't know you are dead, but the pain is felt by others. It's the same when you are maga...

[@gearhead366]

The problem, as I see it, is that the number of stupid people are increasing. In some cases, stupid people outnumber the sensible ones, and we wind up where we are now.

[@aplusatlanta1]

You couldn’t be more right. There’s not just ordinary stupidity out there, but a dangerous stupidity. And we all pay.

[@brianvanwyk9425]

Polls show the numbers of really dangerously stupid is around 12% the problem is they have congregated in a few key places where they dominate such as academia, media, and Hollywood. Worse there are what the video calls bandits using these stupid people to further their own goals of wealth and power. It’s going to be difficult to stop all this.

[@tackcolin6645]

Probably something in the Jane that made democrats insane😏

[@BUDDYCB4]

The main problem is, stupid people are reproducing at a much faster rate.

[@SoIAm1968]

This is true. The students in school have no attention span anymore. kids want to be entertained all the time, or they have behavior issues that effect everyone in the classroom like a contagion. The kids do not even know basic math fact in 5thgrade like basic multiplication and division by memory. Thus they can't recognize when an answer is wrong at face value.

[@matthiasbalke9089]

The Internet gave stupid people a place to find each other.

[@alsteeves2044]

Pleased to meet you. LMAO

[@juditrotter5176]

The Maga Party

[@fryingpanhead8809]

Case in point. This Judi Trotter^ broad. Mindless hate. Our founders refused to let women vote for a reason.

[@SelengiaMlawi]

Yes lol. Information turns out to be a a double edged sword cutting on both sides!!!

[@michaelkottler]

Regretful, but true. Our worldwide network of linked computers makes it easy for the less-informed and the (by Cipolla's definition) innately stupid to freely exchange self-affirming BS on an epoch-making level (the epoch of mass stupidity which co-exists w/the information age.) A seeming paradox, but I dare say it's accurate. So, yeah: What you said: The Internet gives stupid people a place to find each other. Some readers may find your comment an "easy" statement written to get likes, but the meaning your words represent is both salient and disturbing because it's so f-cking true.

[@billdagoe7371]

Well, that certainly explains the current situation in the States these days. I've never been able to figure out why some people seem incapable of hearing the truth and processing it - until now.

[@03flhtcui]

For decades I have used the expression, “Never underestimate the power of human stupidity.” This video explains it perfectly.

[@michaelkottler]

I wouldn't kick this video (and the ideas it represents) out of bed for smoking a lil' crack, that's for sure.

[@fredwood1490]

Teaching my Granddaughter how to drive, I explained that everybody is stupid sometimes and will do stupid things while driving, including her. The point being that she should be aware of her own actions as well as those of others, and make allowances for it. I then ran a Stop sign.

[@Cobbmtngirl]

Lol

[@josephstropoli1449]

So,that was you!

[@mightyluv]

Hah! But this moment offered an important lesson: a normal person would admit to making a mistake, while a stupid person would deny wrongdoing and even blame the sign for being where it should not have been. I have experienced similar conversations in the past and was dumbstruck at the stupidity and arrogance displayed.

[@RidingwithStymie]

LOL!

[@pinchebruha405]

😂😂😂😂😂😂🎉

[@OneEyedLion]

One thing that humbles me deeply is to see that human genius has its limits while human stupidity does not. Alexander Dumas, 1865.

[@richardcollier1912]

EIGHTEEN 65 ?

[@laaaliiiluuu]

That's wrong. Human stupidity ends where human genius starts, and vice vers, albeit it's a fluent transition and it's seemingly bigger on the stupidity side than the genius side.

[@paulayannalfo4798]

Don't most stupid people chase their tails which is closed not infinite.

[@1.618Golden]

Never follow the crowd. Never argue with them either. Just walk away.

[@trollhunter3034]

When not following this statement, stupid situations will occur

[@philipharris5201]

What if everyone walked away ?

[@1.618Golden]

@@philipharris5201 Then there would be no crowd to walk away from.

[@neilgillespie7435]

Good advice

[@QuantumRift]

That has been my philosophy since my freshman year in college in 1975. It has served me well.

[@EricKessel-y6r]

Never argue with a fool, bystanders won't know the difference.

[@eddarby469]

Never argue with stupid people. They will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.

[@Hank-r3h]

😅😅😅

[@CallMeGailyn]

Mark Twain.

[@TheRealJBMcMunn]

They're also playing on their home field.

[@georgesheffield1580]

👌

[@Janet-p3d]

My mother used to always tell me never underestimate the stupidity of your average person. And I always took her at her word.

[@BlackestEyes709]

"Stupid is as stupid does" -Forest Gump

[@QuantumRift]

"Stupid is as, well, stupid is." -- QuantumRift

[@BlackestEyes709]

@@QuantumRift "I'm not a smart man... But I know what love is" -Forest Gump

[@JZsBFF]

As a guy in Texas once famously said, wrote or did, or all of the above stupid me once, blame on me. Stupid me twice, well, that's three times on me being stupid.

[@jesseredden7123]

That quote is a line from George Bernard Shaw’s play Major Barbara which was written in 1905.

[@BlackestEyes709]

@@jesseredden7123 What Stupid is as stupid does? I just know it from Forest Gump lol

[@MrReubenTishkoff]

"Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large numbers." - George Carlin

[@cathjj840]

One the explanations for this is that some intelligent people often find it expedient to go along with the group/crowd/whatever even when they rightly esteem the others are wrong or that they themselves have a truer appreciation of a situation. Why? for fear of ostracism, and a good hunch that no one will listen or accept their accurate analysis anyway, but there will still be negative consequences for 'being right' 'against the others.

[@debbieblakesley2660]

@@MrReubenTishkoff Very prophetic for these times!

[@mikelayton3810]

@@cathjj840 From Heinlein. Whenever the locals rub blue mud in their navels, I rub blue mud in mine just as solemnly.

[@TheGtown95]

Carlin also said that think about how many stupid people there are in the world, well mathematically half of the rest are even dumber than that

[@artmanrom]

They are voting or are enjoying that people like Trump are getting elected for being the President.

[@OurLadyOfTheExquisiteCotard369]

"In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule". - Friedrich Nietzsche "The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe". - Friedrich Nietzsche

[@jamesn3513]

You remind me of what Mark Twain said. “Never argue is stupid because they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with their experience.

[@randolphstead2988]

Did you read your text after posting?

[@jamesn3513]

@@randolphstead2988 not sure why spellcheck changed my word “with” to “is”.

[@randolphstead2988]

@@jamesn3513 I'm old fashioned; I turn off predictive texting and spell checking. Your Twain quote should read, "Never argue with an idiot..."

[@robinac6897]

@@jamesn3513 The substitution of one word still doesn't excuse you posting nonsense while claiming to not be stupid.

[@jamesn3513]

@@robinac6897 Sorry, I don’t argue with stupid.

[@petelongrs]

The difference between imagination and stupidity is that imagination has its limits.

[@impalamama7302]

Shouldn't that be knowledge and stupidity, as knowledge is finite?? I am going by Einstein's quote "Imagination is far suprior than knowledge, as knowldge is finite."

[@iarde3422]

Actually, inauguration doesn't have limits.

[@amandalanea7912]

This is so Relevant to current events and recent history...😢

[@riskromer9773]

Nothing's more dangerous than an idiot with initiative.

[@swampsprite9]

Most conservatives and a good number of liberals

[@DSAK55]

Nothing's more dangerous than an idiot who inherited $500 million

[@loonaticsrunningtheassylum]

Nothings more dangerous than the common people giving authority to government (a bunch of career criminals)

[@Maureendrakes]

And that would be Maga leader and his cult.

[@carneliancaryatid]

Yes. That's why it's so important not to continue voting for Democrats. They're all idiots.

[@timothymccaleb649]

Wow. I totally agree with Carlo M. Cipolla. I have observed this and reached these very same conclusions. I am 65 years old and have watched stupid grow and spread my entire life, I called it the reprobate mindset.

[@neckutter1125]

Yes, God gives them over to the reprobate mind.

[@JGLy22086]

I’m 86 and I agree.

[@tonyrodriguez2524]

Stupidity in this country can be a reflection on the education level in some of our states or parts of our country. Flame away.

[@ericschneider8524]

The unconstitutional public school system has been stealing from the taxpayers and overpaying the teachers union to under educate the children since the 1970s.

[@stacysmith1615]

Ditto.

[@jamesblossom-y1u]

P.T. Barnum said "nobody ever lost a dime underestimating the stupidity of the American public."

[@deborahschumann8286]

Nope..you got the quote wrong. He said it about the taste of the American public….no one ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public.

[@mikeellement1567]

I think that quote either goes "...underestimating the intelligence..." or "...overestimating the stupidity...".

[@jamesblossom-y1u]

@@mikeellement1567 thats right. It was 'overestimating the stupidity'

[@hardystein114]

@@mikeellement1567 yes , it`s overestimating the stupidity...".

[@DamoXXX]

@@deborahschumann8286you’re both wrong. The quote was from HL Mencken.

[@donaldyanson8144]

The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. ~ Marcus Aurelius AZ QUOTESThose who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. Voltaire

[@jeffreylehman1159]

Voltaire was talking about religion

[@donaldyanson8144]

@jeffreylehman1159 yeah it's like a wise man pointing at the Moon while the fool examines his finger😂

[@MrReubenTishkoff]

"Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large numbers." - George Carlin

[@johnking6252]

Quite stoic I'd say 👍

[@RobertBrown-eb4co]

The current Donald Trump phenomenon.

[@marcusmiller5443]

Stupidity knows no boundaries, Cipolla is correct.

[@carlreed6186]

I have used the Bud Light boycott as a tool to show how many Bigots we still have in America.

[@kennynoel2863]

Who's here after Trump got elected?

[@MGhobbyroom]

This describes the situation in the US and many other countries pretty well.

[@laaaliiiluuu]

And the other side would accuse Harris' supporters of stupidity. But it's always only the others who are stupid right? Truth is: Neither party's establishment cares about you.

[@chriswarburtonbrown1566]

Depressing, and chilling. And I don't even live in the States! I fear for global security and for climate action. Extraordinary how many Americans made a stupid decision.

[@MGhobbyroom]

@chriswarburtonbrown1566 It is not only in the US. Lots of people in the EU are making the same stupid decisions 🤢🤮

[@paulbrereton5149]

This is playing out on the left amongst Democrats in ways I would have never imagined.

[@williamgreer4958]

I have made the mistake of believing that stupid bosses were not really going to go ahead and do terrible things. I underestimated what horrible things truly stupid people will do. I don’t make that mistake anymore. I know there is so much about everything I don’t know. The numbers of people that know everything is quite astounding.

[@loonaticsrunningtheassylum]

Most bosses aren't stupid. They're narcissists.. plenty of studies have shown that a huge percentage of successful people/bosses are either narcissists or psychopaths

[@jamesblossom-y1u]

@@loonaticsrunningtheassylum My experience is that stupid bosses are very insecure. They are afraid that someone will discover their incompetence if they make a decision so they "study" things that they should have known before leaving high school.

[@slsilver481]

Smart people also do terrible things. Power doesn't just corrupt the stupid.

[@emerycandy326]

I stopped wasting my time arguing with those type of people.

[@arrozconmgtow5026]

What you've done is exercise wisdom in acknowledging that stupid people have likely been stupid their entire lives which increases the chances that by bringing you down to their level will likely beat you with experience alone.

[@darkatthecore]

I once heard something along the lines of "arguing with stupid people is like playing chess with a pigeon they will just knock over all the pieces and shit all over the board" well that's the gist of it anyway

[@MrNate-jd1nc]

People so stupid People so dumb

[@slappy8941]

Pushing back on stupidity is like weeding your garden; it productive, but you have to do it.

[@digitalperson108]

The key problem is how do we fix stoopid? I do not mean people who disagree, but actual stoopid people?

[@Poppy-p2]

Before we start fiddling with Artificial Intelligence, we need to treat Natural Stupidity.

[@davidrende1939]

Stupidity is a tragedy, but ignorance is a choice.

[@amberturdcoloringbook1733]

Trump loves the uneducated 😥😥

[@michaelkottler]

I hear ya' (meaning I understand the ideas the words in your comment represent). And while you're right, in some instances, ignorance is not a choice but rather it occurs due to a variety of external factors including environment, socio-economic status and most of all the accident of one's birth (i.e. if one is born into a regressive family in Sh-town USA it's more likely one will grow up absorbing and accepting the inaccurate ideas and beliefs held by ones family, friends, etc. not by choice but by default. Some will "grow out of it" and reject those stupid values and ideas, some will remain ignorant due to stupidity, and some will, as you point out, make a conscious choice to remain ignorant because it's comfortable and self-affirming. Ah, the good ol' self-affirmation bias. Sad to see it so very much in-play in 2024.

[@ThaStonedGardner]

Cipolla needed to state that these laws only apply to critical thinking skills. You can be smart in math or anotamy or physics, but these are skills unto themselves that do not require critical thinking, only a bigger memorizaton skill. Society often attributes this memorization skill to smart people, but if you can't think critically outside of your other skill sets, you're stupid.

[@Dragonalynn]

Amen

[@alb.7389]

Exactly... These days; all one needs to lead stupid people is a degree... 😂😂

[@octavianepure8004]

I used to think being "school smart" meant memorizing stuff... Well, I found out that it is actually cheating. The thing is, math, physics, chemistry, etc, all have their laws and principles which need to be understood and used as building blocks for whatever you want to "build", not simply memorize everything. What happened to me was that I would memorize it all for the exam, but 1 week later I would forget 90+ % of everyhting. Becuase I simply did not understand what the heck I was memorizing. So my brain, which was smarter than me, said: "Okay buddy, I will make the effort of retaining this for you for the exam, which I know matters to you. But 2 days after I throw all this garbage away, and that's final !" So memorizing was the the biggest frenemy I ever had when it came to knowledge. It is a limited tool at best.

[@merrywalsh2809]

As an RN, I concur. Do you know what they call the person who graduates last in their medical school class? They call them “doctor.”

[@ajmcglynn9083]

People assume business leaders must make good choices because they are wealthy but seeking profit has nothing to do with wisdom in other domains. Cipolia

[@rp9674]

Analyze yourself fairly, accept your flaws, even though it's painful, try to do better don't listen to excuses from yourself or others. Don't blame everything on others and circumstances, you'll be happier in the long run

[@jacquelynemcelweebrown4367]

Is it fair to question our parent’s ability to teach us as children positive morals, values and standards in order to grow and live productive lives? Or is this all subjective stupid nonsense?

[@bkbigfish1316]

Unfortunately, the video is pointing out that you my do all these things - and become non-stupid - but you are surrounded by the stupid, who will drag you down to hell with them, and of course you'll feel worse because you finally see the stupid for what it is, but are powerless to do anything about it :)

[@GeorgeLerma]

I feel like i know the subtext of this one and it has a lot to do with the current U.S. political climate.

[@victorstruve3097]

Does this mean the woke mind virus is a result of stupidity run amok?

[@rhouser1280]

Yea but it’s obviously the other side that’s wrong

[@slappy8941]

​@@rhouser1280Right? 😂

[@nonelost1]

@@rhouser1280 and of course the other side says that our side is wrong. It reminds me of that 1970's political cartoon, in which US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger is shown with the Israeli Prime Minister, who says "NEVER!" Then Kissinger is shown with an Arab prime Minister, who also says "NEVER!"… Then Kissinger is interviewed in front of a bunch of microphones and says "We have a basis of agreement between the two sides."(or words to that effect)

[@Picsio64]

In 2016 I was like "ok that was realy stupid 1/2 of America" and for the next 4 years I thought, "see, that's what you get. You won't do that again, right?" ....and now here we are. Law # 6 - Don't assume stupidity can't repeat itself.

[@kenfox9447]

"Ignorance is temporary. Stupid is forever." - Me.

[@andygreer8636]

Ron White said this a long time ago. 😂😂😂

[@icecycles859]

"Stupid is the wheel, ignorance is the fuel" -Me "stupid is the bullet, ignorance is the barrel" -me

[@KeePenne]

Still have faith that witty intelligence can use the negatives created by stupid against stupid with astonishing effectiveness.

[@jschuler53]

@@KeePenne You win the Internet today with this great comment! Thanks for your thoughtfulness.

[@DavidBristow-u1g]

Absolutely. Ignorance is simply a lack of knowledge about something. Stupid is the inability to gain (involuntarily or voluntarily) and comprehend knowledge.

[@juliapierce369]

My mom always said, "You can't fix stupid "

[@gabbyhayes4561]

But cha can keep voting them to the V.P. office. 🇺🇸😎

[@keithperkins3798]

As a former teacher, I not only educated my charges on their assigned subject matter but also life. One of the lessons that I taught was you can learn your lessons in life the easy way or the hard way. The easy way was to learn from others' mistakes. The hard way was to make your own.

[@The-Chrystalmachine]

I spent a lot of my formative years on the former category.I like to think I have made some progress toward the latter.

[@jerrylanglois7892]

Teachers are underpaid and underappreciated but formal education is a bit overrated, commonsense being what I value the most. Abraham lincoln with one yr. of schooling writes the Gettysburg Address.

[@rae0521]

Unfortunately if you needed to explain what you meant, you were already talking to stupid people. I don't think intelligence can be taught... only skills.

[@KeePenne]

​@@rae0521As a teacher of two very different disciplines, I disagree. Why? Because I used to be a student. Great teachers help build great minds by planting encouragement. I've seen it from both sides

[@rae0521]

@@KeePenne Since you disagree with my views, perhaps you could explain how "planting encouragement" is teaching intelligence. In my opinion, a person needs intelligence before they can learn.... anything. Even a "great teacher" can't instill intelligence.

[@bridgetjones8339]

It’s taken me over half my life to realize that I was actually more intelligent than I realized. Unfortunately, I’ve learned that I’m mostly surrounded by stupid people. I always assumed most people were at least as intelligent or more intelligent than myself. Oh contra.

[@alansloan7784]

In other words, "I'm surrounded by idiots."

[@STho205]

Flip that and you're both more likely onto something.

[@KeePenne]

I think a lot of people stop learning things in favor of maintaining their status quo. Others actively keep their brain challenged by seeking new experiences.

[@billdagoe7371]

I've often been perplexed by my inability to correct someone's erroneous belief using logic and facts. How can they deny and not understand simple obvious truths? Now, after all these decades, I know!!

[@colettechausser7879]

Au contrère

[@LilLingLing6789]

We've just had a master class in stupidity

[@maranatha256]

The world has reached the point where whatever you say, think or believe is vilified by somebody. Nobody wins anymore.

[@EricKessel-y6r]

It reminds me of George Carlin, except it's more formal.

[@TheGtown95]

Never argue with a fool. They will drag you down to their level and beat you with their experience

[@mikegLXIVMM]

"If you listen to fools, the mob rules" - Ronnie James Dio

[@skidmoda]

Thus why censorship is bad

[@silentp9933]

🤘Look out! 🤘😈

[@redmage777]

Don't respond to stupidity with greater stupidity in the opposite direction lest you become the greater of two evils.

[@johnnyparker9928]

Genius!

[@SonicBoomC98]

I agree and disagree. I think the lesser of two evils narrative is severely overused

[@dhenderson1810]

​@@SonicBoomC98Nothing is black and white.

[@david33mtrb]

The word “stupidity” is being used in very broad contextual terms to explain what really amounts to a number of different behaviors. For instance, analytical thinking requires more actively functioning cognitive processes. We might explain this to children by saying, “It uses more brain cells.” When we drive home from work and forget to stop at the grocery store because our brain was on “auto pilot,” this is an example of passive cognitive processing. What this video frequently refers to as stupidity is sometimes people functioning in passive mode rather than active. We get lazy, and we don’t pay attention to things that might harm us as much as we should.

[@troyevitt2437]

"O judgment, thou art fled to brutish beasts, and men have lost their reason!"~Mark Anthony/"Julius Caesar"

[@lagueuxrobert]

Basically, you need to be smart to know you're stupid.

[@uropygid]

Smart people know what they don't know. Stupid people know every thing.

[@truelight999]

Yes- good point! So sadly - mass stupidity is a paradox and if it gains too much traction can only corrected by pain: war, famine and economic collapse

[@Sunweaver593]

You just need to be self aware to realize you’re stupid, or overweight or anything else

[@davegreene8588]

​@@uropygid There's a verse by Khalil Gibran that contains: "He who doesn't know that he doesn't know is a fool. Shun him" "He who knows that he doesn't know is simple. Teach him." "He who doesn't know that he knows, is asleep. Awaken him." (And finally) *He who knows that he knows, is wise. follow him.". -------------------------------- Unfortunately, many members of the first type, believe they're in the *fourth*.

[@bwilderd5082]

@@uropygidAnd the everything they know amounts to very little.

[@beverlyimeson6003]

The problem with stupidity is that you're so caught up in your cause that you don't realize you're being stupid until after the fact. If you're normal, you reflect on your actions and realize how stupid you've been and then feel shame.

[@dhenderson1810]

Stupidity is lack of intellectual intelligence, not lack of morals.

[@cb5501]

Stupidity is the assumption that any politician has your best interest in mind.

[@danrend4986]

Normally i would agree, but i had the winning lottery ticket and had a President that changed things around and really cared for the people. now we are looking foward to his succesor to keep alive his legacy.

[@coachhannah2403]

Stupidity is hiring an alligator to 'drain the swamp.'

[@discouragedfingers]

when people think i'm a conspiracy nut for suspecting that our government might be dubious or even malevolent, i site the fact that every government that has ever existed has been dubious at best, and malevolent at worst. is it so crazy to think that if something has been true 100% of the time throughout all of history that it is most likely the case now, as well?

[@Alosipher]

@@coachhannah2403 It was more STOOPID to put a dementia riddled Idiot in his place after rigging the election to remove him.

[@Cinnovations]

It’s always been damage control, and never an affirmative for me when voting.

[@JH-wl2hm]

exactly what I need right now

[@Xix1326]

The narrator may be AI, but the script is surprisingly well done. Good vid.

[@w.scottferguson9570]

Narcissists and those blind to narcissistic behavior are bigger factors than stupidity, but stupidity is certainly involved in the dynamic. Wise is a better term than intelligent for leaders.

[@marilon]

The problem with this reasoning is that no-one believes themselves to be stupid.

[@DRSmithCreations]

First sign that you can tell someone is stupid or is intellectually-challenged: they insist they know everything about everything despite evidence to the contrary. One of the biggest ironies is that stupid people think they know everything (which is why they don't learn anything) and intelligent and wise people know they don't know everything and therefore, are always exploring, learning, growing, and asking questions.

[@JuanAlmonte-rf7xk]

Stupidity is very subjective

[@no_more_spamplease5121]

​@@JuanAlmonte-rf7xkNo. We can measure it by its consequences.

[@territhatcher3700]

My grandfather always said, “stupid should hurt”

[@KeePenne]

That's how stupid gets fixed. 😂

[@gzoechi]

We would be so tired of their screaming

[@ryszardbyczyk6938]

It does hurt. It just doesn't bad enough or long enough for the average stupid person.

[@richardjcranium]

Being stupid should hurt the stupid person rather than everyone else.

[@gzoechi]

@@richardjcranium There would be so much complaining 😬

[@r.f.pennington746]

This essay by Cipolla came out in the mid to late 70's while I was in college. Read it long years ago. I remember the professor giving a summary by stating the opposite of Stupid isn't intelligent. No, that's the opposite of ignorant. The opposite of Stupid is Non-Stupid and like Stupid, it doesn't depend on any other characteristic of that person. Remember that, even after a half-century. Did Cipolla also state, "You can't fix stupid!" Oh, wait that was the philosopher Ronald "Tater Salad" White

[@kennedymcgovern5413]

It is plagiarized. This is Dietrich Bonhoeffer's work.

[@yvemcbride7056]

Ignorant is "not knowing" and it's opposite is some form of knowing or educated. Intelligent is being able to think and learn and it's opposite is not being able to do so...am I wrong in thinking that is a large part of "stupid"

[@r.f.pennington746]

@@yvemcbride7056 Correct. The very root of the word ignorant is 'no knowledge.' If you don't know, you don't know. Intelligence allows one to learn and adapt. Stupid is often the refusal (via confirmation bias, wishing, refusal to investigate, etc) to apply or investigate intelligent routes. Ignorance, as a causation, can be multi-origin: physical, mental development, location (as in living in the boonies), lack of resources, etc. Stupid has all the facts laid out in front, along with the tools to decipher, and still comes up with '5' to the query 'what is 2+2' simply because they are following the herd or doubling-down as the kids say these days.

[@Rocketshoes]

@@yvemcbride7056you can still use the word “ignorant” when people refuse to be enlightened about a certain subject or topic, just for the sake of being wanting to feel like they’re right or when they have a fixed point of view on a person, place or thing, and seem to be stiff necked about changing their mind about said thing.

[@johnking6252]

ARGHHH. they caught the Tater !! hahahaha. ✌️🌎✌️.

[@ashleegulley678]

Thank you for sharing ❤ this actually is helpful during my grief

[@prschuster]

It's not the demagogue that causes the most damage. It's the followers that actually cause the damage.

[@SonicBoomC98]

Yeah the problem is the people who follow and enable them

[@marcusmiller5443]

Specifically relating to the information here, Cipolla is correct. I will also add, I believe, just from what has been relayed in the video, Cipalla likely knew the stupid are actually a controlling majority. Intelligent people don't 'peacock', after all. Good information, here. Not many will fully grasp the knowledge, though.

[@michaelkottler]

At university I studied intelligence theorists' works including Gardner et al & was horrified by Cipolla's ideas but knew from history, personal experience & on an instinctive level that they were saliently accurate & sh-t, in 2024 it's still a thing (and always will be). Damn, Cipolla, why you gotta' be so correct? Great video. Thanks, MR. BRAIN!

[@MarkFreedmanNY]

You know exactly who this is about.

[@christopherrobinson3290]

No kidding a trump ad just interrupted the video 😂

[@MarkFreedmanNY]

@@christopherrobinson3290 perfect 😜

[@raulm1961]

The orange turd.

[@braddoty4953]

Trump and his Fascist cult

[@sallypage7476]

😂

[@ericharrison6418]

I just wanna make a comment here so someone will inevitably tell me I’m wrong or misinformed.

[@randomserbianguy5677]

you wrong're

[@ericharrison6418]

@@randomserbianguy5677 yoda?

[@r.f.pennington746]

I have reviewed your comment and I have come to the conclusion that you are grossly misinformed. Toss in wrong, just because!

[@ericharrison6418]

@@r.f.pennington746 fair. I fully support this.

[@jeffcullifer5629]

You obviously didn't do your research. There, feel better? 😊

[@eugenekilmer9407]

I live in Los Alamos, NM. The laboratory, you would think, is the haven of the smartest people in the country. However, those mad scientists retire from the lab and move into local politics. The county council, composed of seven individuals, is composed of those retired, well-educated, really smart people, but the decisions coming out of the local government are the stupidest you could imagine. The stupidity ranges from building a roundabout in a neighborhood near a school that did not leave enough room for school busses to get around it, to selling the local, formerly excellent hospital to an equity firm, thereby ruining the hospital. The stupidity ranges from driving local businesses out of town for the sake of greed, to spending millions of dollars to try to create a world-class golf course. The stupidity ranges from the county telling us that water is scarce and therefore its use must be restricted, to building hundreds and hundreds of apartments for the burgeoning population, all of which require water (not to mention power, sewage, and the rest of it). The stupidity ranges from building sidewalks alongside roads where there used to be shoulders for bicyclists, thereby eliminating a convenient place for bicyclists and forcing them into traffic, to allowing big trucks to use the skinny, curvy road into town that is not suitable for trucks instead of requiring them to use the truck route purpose built for big rigs. I guess it cannot be helped.

[@heron6462]

I grew up in Cambridge, UK. My parents taught at the university, and as a child I got to meet numerous intellectuals who came to our house for sherry parties and the like. Some of them were famous, although I didn't know it at the time. I was often struck by how naive, lacking in common sense, and incurious some of these people were about how the world really works.

[@feeberizer]

I'm down in Cruces. We see the same stupid stuff here as well. Common sense is inversely proportional to IQ.

[@M0rchaint]

Since these four categories come from Dietrich Bonhoeffer during WW2 you should give him credit.

[@josephBC3652]

Thank you my friend.

[@martiendejong8857]

People can turn from genius to stupid in an instant. And stupid people can be genius on occasion.

[@PaulBrower-bw4jw]

People go stupid when they think themselves wise in situations in which they are not so. I think of all the ads I have been getting for sports betting. Isn't everyone an 'expert' on his own team? No -- just a fan. There's apparently big money to be had in sports betting.

[@davidmac6406]

Famous last words "I wonder what that button does"

[@RobertMcUSA]

I’ve often been frightened by this thought: “Half the population is comprised of people who have LESS than an average IQ.”

[@johndunham9979]

That's stupid. Have have less than the median iq

[@bokesnmokes]

I wouldn't be. That statistic is meaningless.

[@tommyboy1653]

If your IQ is above 100 ,don't tell anyone and go with it.😂

[@ForNika]

Old Persian proverb: A smart enemy is better than a stupid friend.

[@KeePenne]

💯 😊

[@jessijfly]

I want to make a bumper sticker saying don’t believe everything that you think

[@sirdelatopher]

The problem is most people don’t know what group they belong to or why.

[@fabianurweider805]

I will stick with the stupid , makes me feel superior , they might just make me their president someday.

[@petes9524]

He's right about the effects and probably about the categories, but I'm not sure " stupid" is the right name for it. A soup of narcissism, sociopathy, gullibility, callousness, approval seeking, etc, etc , seems more like a complex mental pathology requiring a different name.

[@robertpatterson3321]

No. Stupid covers it all.

[@petes9524]

@@robertpatterson3321 Psychopaths aren't stupid, they're mentally deranged. That, by the way, doesn't absolve them from culpability for their crimes

[@gaagsl]

I learned this the hard way, this last Tuesday.

[@tagomago2178]

`Scientists` have stated that hydrogen is the basic building block of the universe because it is more plentiful than any other element, when in fact stupidity is the basic building block of the universe because it is MORE plentiful than hydrogen. Thanks Frank

[@floridapathfinder4252]

This is so true. I have a surgeon I work with is absolutely brilliant, has a doctorate medical degree and renowned creativity in the arts and physics studies. He doesn’t drink a drop of alcohol either. Yet he is completely brainwashed by the negative political events going on in the world.

[@CandiceMMartinez]

😆 This is information most people don't want to know. Lol. People won't want to have surgery

[@marilon]

How is he influenced?

[@AutPen38]

@@CandiceMMartinez Never forget that almost half of surgeons are worse than average surgeons at surgery. Doctors are nothing special. They go to the same universities as everyone else, but they study medicine instead of history, or media, economics, or whatever.

[@gabbyhayes4561]

Having a sheepskin (no pun intended)hanging on the wall doesn't make you an intelligent person.🇺🇸😎

[@annoyingbstard9407]

Aka as he disagrees with you and you think you’re always right.

[@GeorgeForest-lv5zg]

Unfortunately, Mr. Chipola’s work was from the 70’s. Today, technology has amplified any idiots opinion exponentially. For the Non-Stupid, reasonable person, the ability to overcome the Stupid is getting more difficult every day.

[@gooddog2001]

When stupidity is outlawed, only outlaws will be stupid.

[@MidMo4020]

💯awesome comment!

[@jamesosborne1286]

Only the stupidest and most evil of people would do such a thing as to outlaw stupidity. You might as well outlaw nature itself.

[@ianking-jv4hg]

Democrats will make exceptions

[@MrNate-jd1nc]

Yo, that stupid af

[@thomaslyons441]

There aren't enough prisons to hold the stupid if it was illegal.

[@Dennnis10B]

Stupid people are the ones who create and enforce double standards...Now who might that be?😅

[@jamesosborne1286]

Anybody who is narcissistic enough not to question themselves?

[@omnipresent1215]

@@jamesosborne1286 Indeed a 'two way street' while some seem to think as if on a 'one way highway'.

[@edhouse4826]

My body my choice!!! Except for big pharma in co-op with govt experimental jabs. Or believe all women except when they don't want trans men in their washrooms, lockers or sports.

[@slappy8941]

Literally anyone in a position of authority?

[@georgedunkelberg5004]

SCOTUS !

[@salamanca1954]

As one who spent a long career in newspapers, and witnessed human stupidity in all its luxuriant blossoms, I have often made the observation that no matter how intelligent one is, one's capacity to do something spectacularly stupid remains ever present and ready for full expression. Stupidity is our one inexhaustible resource. Could we but devise a way to turn a generator with stupidity, our energy problems would be solved for all time, and stupidity would be celebrated as a boon to civilization. Human stupidity can be expressed mathematically as well: In any given human population, the ratio of HA to H is always greater than 1, when H is equal to "Horses."

[@RansomeStoddard]

Never underestimate the power of stupid.

[@chrisscott3349]

Wake up humanity

[@alansloan7784]

The sheeple [the majority] prefer to be blissfully ignorant of their stupidity, rather than listen to wisdom that would save their lives from the wolves ruling over---and devouring---them, alive.....

[@shamarirose7288]

Here we are six months later, and this video is aging far to well, considering our current state of politics, and the fact that despite the Intellectuals spreading the information about Project 2025; there is still a great number of Stupid people that are still planning to vote for Mango Mussolini against their own best interests.

[@juanquintero4773]

Facts 👏👏

[@MarcusHCrawford]

Yet your own stupidity prevents you from doing even the most basic amount of research that Project 2025 isn’t something espoused by the leading candidate of the party you despise. Not at all, in fact, it’s been publicly denounced by that candidate numerous times. Alas, stupidity pervades both sides of the aisle, and you only confirm it with your own lack of information. It’s okay to perceive someone as a threat and to vote against them. What’s not okay is to influence the decisions of others with false information. If you can’t persuade someone why they should vote for someone without the truth alone, then you should leave the persuasion for those armed with the facts.

[@derekotto08]

Lol

[@MarcusHCrawford]

@@shamarirose7288 Facts that the views of the Heritage foundation have been denounced by Trump on several occasions? We’re not talking about those facts, though, are we? We’re only talking about facts that agree with our preexisting, establishment approved, beliefs.

[@chriswarburtonbrown1566]

​@@MarcusHCrawfordSo you really think current book bans, Don't Say Gay laws, abortion bans, culture wars are just the religious right and nothing to do with Trump? We'll see how it unfolds, but I'm pretty sure many of those HF ideas will become policy.

[@mfar3016]

The whole Covid 19 situation is a prime example.

[@genoaoak]

But, they all did their "research"!

[@DamoXXX]

The number of idiots that didn’t follow medical advice are responsible for millions of deaths, and that includes trump, the king of idiots.

[@philblane5752]

We are screwed.

[@brianthomas6005]

We have always been screwed. We just didn’t know it.

[@heron6462]

Stupidity = ignorance + pride in being ignorant.

[@davidbrockmeier9538]

Before 2015: Me, very pessimistic about the world, but only thinking about 20% of the population is stupid. 2016: Oh, looks like it's 40%. That's not good. 2020: A global pandemic. You have to PLEAD with other people to take it seriously. Looks like 70% of the population is stupid. 😬

[@mikebrown9850]

The jab is “safe and effective “. “Masks work”. “Stay six feet away “! So how did that work out for everyone?

[@joebeezy9471]

Why would anyone take that pandemic seriously when the rules made no sense? Is it stupid to follow something that you know is just for show? Social distancing was stupid and not based on any science. Wearing of a face covering, even an N95 mask if it wasn’t properly fitted, was a stupid rule that wasn’t based on science. Getting a shot for a virus your body has natural immunity to was stupid and not based on science. Quarantining the healthy was a stupid rule and not based on science. Not quarantining the vulnerable was a stupid rule and not based on science. Keeping children out of school was a stupid rule and not based on science. Encouraging children to get the shot was a stupid rule and not based on science. Arresting people for being alone in a kayak in the ocean during the pandemic was a stupid rule and not based on science. Restricting people from gathering outside was a stupid rule and not based on science. Allowing certain groups to gather for specific reasons without following the rules was a stupid rule and not based on science. There are far more coherent arguments that point towards the stupid people being the ones who believed whatever they were told and who did whatever they were told to do. It’s unbelievable that it’s 4 years later and there are people who don’t know how much we were lied to during that time. In 2015 I, too, was worried that many Americans were stupid. Seeing the media claiming Hillary had a 98% chance of winning really opened my eyes to the fact that we had a lot of stupid people voting. On election night I was happy to learn there were less stupid people that voted than the media had anticipated. Then in 2020 I was reminded how many stupid people were still here. They all voted for Biden. Then when he “won” I realized how stupid the media thinks we all are when they claimed it was the most secure election ever.

[@phoenixrise3126]

Yeah, like following the lies of the authoritarian big pharma taking your rights by lying to you.

[@treblepilgrim967]

"Speak not in the ears of a fool, lest thou be like unto him." ❤📖

[@cateclism316]

Composer Richard Strauss at first supported the Third Reich because he saw it as a German patriotic movement. Although he was disillusioned with it later on, he was put on trial for war crimes at Nuremburg, but was acquitted.

[@AutPen38]

As I understand it, Strauss didn't stand trial, but he was "unpopular" for a while outside of Germany. (Many other composers had fled the country). He dedicated a piece in 1943 to a supportive friend called Hans Frank, a mass murderer who became known as the 'Butcher of Poland' who was convicted in the Nuremberg trials. Strauss wrote pieces (including the Olympic Hymn for the 1936 Olympics) for the Nazi government, but got sacked as an official musician by Goebbels because he insisted on the Jewish librettist Stefan Zweig being present at the premiere of one of his comic operas. Strauss's daughter-in-law and grandchildren were Jewish and at least 25 of his younger relatives were sent to death camps. By 1943, Strauss - who was well into his 80s - was in "difficulties" with the Nazi authorities. His friend Hans Frank (the war criminal) helped soothe those difficulties a few weeks before he was convicted. Post-war, Strauss was very critical of the regime he'd tried to work with.

[@juliebrady8583]

​@@AutPen38 was Hans Frank in charge of Treblinka?

[@AutPen38]

@@juliebrady8583 Hans Frank was a government minister focused on policy in occupied Poland. He oversaw the Warsaw ghetto and then the camps in Treblinka, Belzec and Sobibor. As far as I know he wasn't involved in their day-to-day running but gave orders for other people to carry out. (At the Nuremberg Trials, he claimed he didn't know about the death camps until 1944 and tried to blame it all on Himmler and the SS, but he wasn't believed. That said, he reportedly showed more remorse than almost all the other war criminals).

[@juliebrady8583]

@@AutPen38 thank you for your reply. I visited Treblinka 30 years ago. It made a big impact on me and I couldn't imagine going home to my family after a day 'working' there.

[@kennedymcgovern5413]

I mean, it is not wrong but it IS plagiarized. This "Cipolla" cat did not write this. Bonhoeffer wrote this.

[@NeilJ894]

Presumably he thought we were all too stupid to notice

[@gabbyhayes4561]

Did he say that he wrote it?

[@louieo.blevinsmusic4197]

Wow. This is slapping a bit harder at the moment…….

[@oms8762]

Lacking wisdom and compassion sounds familiar 🤔

[@garylewis1431]

Yep. We have an entire party dedicated to those very things . And now they've gone and switched to an even less wise and less compassionate candidate for president. Heals up Harris had rhe audacity to imprison the people she claimed to represent while herself smoking illegal pot and backing her way up the ladder of the political machine with mayors and the like dragging her along. Well when they could catch her on her feet. I'm sure I will get banned or something for calling out Her Royal Skankiness but it don't matter. If the dems pull off this charade we are finished anyways

[@olavberrig4548]

Yes, you’re right. I have a feeling that a lack of love leads to stupidity

[@solarrain1176]

Stupid people act out of ego.

[@franksullivan1873]

Unfortunately there is a lot of them.I give up trying to talk to anyone.

[@arthurh5707]

The problem is that everyone assumes someone else is the stupid one. They, themselves, remain blissfully ignorant.

[@jamesward5721]

"Ignorance of the Law is no defence!" Law library upstairs where all the "Lawyers" go to try vaguely understand whatever statute they are about to argue about in court... it will take them hours just to find something vaguely relevant.. but you gotta be an expert right off the bat.. apparently. "I am a Law abiding Citizen!".... wow - you must study it 24-7.. Even the Judges have only a vague grasp..

[@georgedunkelberg5004]

WHY IS IT NOT MANDATED IN THE U.S.CONSTITUTION, THAT "JUDGES ARE TO BE ACTIVE LAWYERS? WHERE IS THAT CONSTITUTIONAL MANDATE BY THE CONSENT OF THE GOVERENDED, TO PUT THE U.S. SOCIETIES IN FREE-FALLS OF WHIMISCAL TYRANNTS WITH ZERO BOUNDS, OR MERELY SUGGESTION TO BE IGNORED?

[@normalsee4447]

Great video- I did notice quite a number of stupid comments

[@slappy8941]

I was a little disappointed.

[@MorteWulfe]

Seems you are arrogant. You fit one of the categories of being stupid. Do you fit the others?

[@jamesk8s1]

America is leading the way with more than 73 million of them who can vote, sadly.

[@brendantindall805]

Just out of interest, is the general opinion in the US, that the smart people voted for Harris?

[@romanyrose4074]

The crazy part is we all slide in and out of the stupidity model. It's kind of scary

[@sher167]

“Can’t fix stupid “ Ron White

[@mattfoltz7752]

But you can point and laugh at it

[@claudiodeugenio]

5th law: "Egocentrics are worse than egoists." So true!