Why won't most people think enough?

[Amittai]

When I was scarcely more than an infant I knew that my parents and teachers knew that there is cheating, that the worst morals produce victims, that there is a huge continuum of viewpoints on all issue and every issue.

Much of the time teachers etc would be consistent (though quite individual and varied) and so I felt largely safe with what was around me (there were a handful of bullies, scarcely any in authority though).

I was looking for a sociology section but then again this is about the ethics of taking responsibility for one's own thinking and of indirectly influencing others' thinking through implied structures.

I probably, was just plain relatively lucky.

As everything around everybody younger (and now us too) is in more & more freefall, why have a large chunk of people become more gullible and find it more shocking that there is sleight of hand, illogic by those in a position to know better, etc.

Having written that I admit I am 1,000 % more scandalised to the core than I was this time yesterday.

But, what about those who didn't grow up or learn in a rational atmosphere (from what I read of other countries' schools in recent years). They must be at more of a disadvantage than me. I read about a lot of "black & white" - "all or nothing". I've always been about 57 shades of grey. But that was just me.

As I believe to embrace logic (in the big sense) is ethical, please can we confine ourselves as much as possible to the rational and not gravitate especially towards "complaining about morals" per se.

To critique public affairs we need to keep our minds sharp.

 

[OldWiseGuy]

When I was scarcely more than an infant I knew that my parents and teachers knew that there is cheating, that the worst morals produce victims, that there is a huge continuum of viewpoints on all issue and every issue.

Much of the time teachers etc would be consistent (though quite individual and varied) and so I felt largely safe with what was around me (there were a handful of bullies, scarcely any in authority though).

I was looking for a sociology section but then again this is about the ethics of taking responsibility for one's own thinking and of indirectly influencing others' thinking through implied structures.

I probably, was just plain relatively lucky.

As everything around everybody younger (and now us too) is in more & more freefall, why have a large chunk of people become more gullible and find it more shocking that there is sleight of hand, illogic by those in a position to know better, etc.

Having written that I admit I am 1,000 % more scandalised to the core than I was this time yesterday.

But, what about those who didn't grow up or learn in a rational atmosphere (from what I read of other countries' schools in recent years). They must be at more of a disadvantage than me. I read about a lot of "black & white" - "all or nothing". I've always been about 57 shades of grey. But that was just me.

As I believe to embrace logic (in the big sense) is ethical, please can we confine ourselves as much as possible to the rational and not gravitate especially towards "complaining about morals" per se.

To critique public affairs we need to keep our minds sharp.

Do you have something specific in mind?

 

[Ricky M]

You can thank:

The liberal dumbing down of the populace
The self esteem movement
The loss of attention span
The embracing of sound bites and memes

 

[Jonathan Walkerin]

The liberal dumbing down of the populace

Quite unlike the enlightened deep philosophical approach of Fox & friends....

 

[Ricky M]

Quite unlike the enlightened deep philosophical approach of Fox & friends....

The liberals dumbed down the population.

The conservatives are taking advantage of a dumbed down population.

I tell ya, on the surface they appear to be opposites, but at their core they are taking their orders from the same source.

 

[Amittai]

You can thank:

... The self esteem movement ...

Interesting - I found the self-esteem movement constructive, presumably because I add a "secret ingredient".

I'm with you on the rest but memes have always been there - it's how we manage them in our habitus that wins or loses the day.

I must admit the utopianism that often surfaced in those days no doubt cloaked things. "You've never had it so good." "White heat of technology." Pictures of nuclear powered cars with double headlights.

I suppose one thing was, life was both more private and more relational.

 

[Jonathan Walkerin]

The liberals dumbed down the population

That sounds a lot like personal opinion but anything in particular ?

You get more points for facts and deductions from base ranting.

 

[Amittai]

...

I tell ya, on the surface they appear to be opposites, but at their core they are taking their orders from the same source.

Dialectical materialists all. Steal the affections of the subalterns.

 

[Ricky M]

Interesting - I found the self-esteem movement constructive, presumably because I add a "secret ingredient".

I'm with you on the rest but memes have always been there - it's how we manage them in our habitus that wins or loses the day.

I must admit the utopianism that often surfaced in those days no doubt cloaked things. "You've never had it so good." "White heat of technology." Pictures of nuclear powered cars with double headlights.

I suppose one thing was, life was both more private and more relational.

What is your secret ingredient? (You can whisper it to me so it'll stay secret)

 

[Ricky M]

Dialectical materialists all. Steal the affections of the subalterns.

I'm sorry, I've been dumbed down. Translation pluhleeze?

 

[Ricky M]

That sounds a lot like personal opinion but anything in particular ?

You get more points for facts and deductions from base ranting.

Have you met a millennial?

 

[Jonathan Walkerin]

Have you met a millennial?

Still sounds a lot like personal opinion. I agree it is a tragedy some nerds do not know how to fix a leaking pipe while making gazillion dollars sharing cat videos but you still get deducted 5 points.

 

[Ricky M]

.

 

[Ricky M]

Still sounds a lot like personal opinion. I agree it is a tragedy some nerds do not know how to fix a leaking pipe while making gazillion dollars sharing cat videos but you still get deducted 5 points.

Only 5? I was shooting for 10...

 

[Amittai]

The liberals ...

The conservatives ...

Maybe I'm getting a case of "good old days", just thought of all the war zones & chemical tips, Opium Wars and instituting of Criminal Castes.

Fooling all of the people all of the time, just about different things.

 

[Amittai]

Have you met a millennial?

You've made me think of a tragic thing.

At a university in England a clever young woman in physics had to give a "presentation" and one young man among others was particularly virulent in his condemnation. Most sadly she afterwards took her own life.

At 21 I was completely stumm (I had trouble with written work as well). I did get marked down, but polish wasn't the be all and end all then, nor at my employers either. I pepped up in my mid 40s and more in my late 50s.

I think some universities have become so snobbish, they don't understand study support nor genuine reasonable adjustments. She was known to find non-essentials a steep curve and is a loss to science. (She presumably submitted good written work.)

I hear that in schools in the US they make the children talk, perhaps without necessarily anything to say?

 

[SkyWriting]

You can thank:

The liberal dumbing down of the populace
The self esteem movement
The loss of attention span
The embracing of sound bites and memes

Traditionally, liberals are not dumber.
Though they tend to dress more business casual.
I don't know that's dumb though.

 

[Ricky M]

Traditionally, liberals are not dumber.
Though they tend to dress more business casual.
I don't know that's dumb though.

Weren't they behind, say, phonics, that taught children there is no difference between there, their, and they're? Or the self esteem movement, which taught children that no one matters but themselves?

 

[Amittai]

Traditionally, liberals are not dumber.
Though they tend to dress more business casual.
I don't know that's dumb though.

There are so many varieties of liberal. I've always thought what passed as liberalism good, but it was forced to cloak things (hijacking/human shield).

 

[SkyWriting]

There are so many varieties of liberal. I've always thought what passed as liberalism good, but it was forced to cloak things (hijacking/human shield).

Are you speaking of the level of intelligence, or fashion sense?