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Is America fostering the stupid generation?


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I admire Leonard Pitts, I wish I had his way with words.

http://www.sltrib.com/opinion/4955019-155/leonard-pitts-the-education-gap-between

There is a great deal of truth in his opinion pieces, and it is shameful when you realize how right he is. There is not one thing more important in society than education...not one thing. I know we can sit back and laugh at the ignorant statements by the Trumpanzies we see quoted in the news but they must be embarrassed as well, and so they call these reports fake news.

I have always thought that a degree certificate doesn't meet the requirement of labeling someone intelligent. Trump has college degrees and not a lick of common sense. If they had a degree in narcissism then he would be top of his class. But there is a lot to be said for common sense and it isn't taught in the classroom.

The old propaganda adage that if you repeat something often enough that people will begin to believe it is true applies to much of what spews forth from the White House these days. But with the horrible collection of clowns Trump calls his advisors and cabinet we are left wondering whose words are leading the pack? Hard to tell when one day Trump says I did this and then spends the next week in denial of those statements.

But real news, and by that I mean facts well vetted, will not be an issue for long...Trump's budget is going to eliminate finding for National Public Radio. Perhaps he expects Fox News to fill the void, or not. The Twitter president is proving himself to be nothing but a tweet...or is that a twit?   

 

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I agree, Chris. There's nothing more that I can add to what Leonard Pitts says in his article and what you say in your post — other than I agree.

Colin  :icon_geek:

 

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I agree that education is a crucial component in any society, but Chris James makes the greater point that it is common sense, not 'book larnin', that is less teachable and far too often absent. Common sense is more likely to sprout in the open air of real-world experience than in an academic cloister.

Common sense might suggest that the dust-up over misspelling Messr. Du Bois' name is far more likely the fault of a carryover employee from the previous administration than a new hire. Twenty days would have been a pretty short time period to hire 17,000 Department of Education replacements.

As for spelling errors among educated professionals, just for fun -- start keeping track. The day does not pass that I don't find mistakes in the highly-vaunted self-aggrandizing Press. It's one thing to pursue excellence -- something else to criticize others for not living up to one's own lofty self proclamation.

Lest there be any doubt, examine James Savik's excellent story by Hans Christian Andersen, (quite apropos to the discussion of El Don) published by no less an authority than the Hans Christian Andersen Centre at the University of Southern Denmark. Can such an esteemed author and august body not avoid the simple typing errors I've seen discussed on this very board? The end of paragraph 6 in the story shows the Emperor's decision ending in a period followed by a close quote. [...better."] Yet two paragraphs later, the same Emperor's thought ends with a close quote followed by a period! [...at all".] Good heavens! Call the Literary Polizei!

And for the record, lest one make incorrect assumptions, I may be in Messr. Du Bois' 24% category, but it doesn't mean I voted that way.

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I too see errors I never saw twenty years ago in books, magazines, Internet articles, fliers, TV subtitles, what have you.  I don't think it's because I'm more observant now, and certainly I'm no smarter.  No, I believe it's the great American corporate overwrought need to cut costs at all costs.  I think they've replaced very good people with much less good machines, and then perhaps gotten rid of the people who ran the machines as another unnecessary cost because, after all, who cares if there's a mistake or two in their copy?

I do, for one.

Not that they care.

C

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The Federal government is backing away from transgender student rights, allowing states to set their own bathroom rules for trans people. These actions only cater to the dumb factor in our society.

In the Trump world I think the issue is just too complicated for the simple minds that are in charge, what a shame. It would be too easy for gay men and lesbian women to ignore the T in LGBTQ society since it is such a small segment of the population, but this is about minority rights and needs to be addressed.

I could probably use the men's bathroom in a public place without ever knowing if the person behind a closed stall door is male, female, or even transgender. The scare factor injected into this situation by the hate filled right is that trans people will be there to observe and molest children. The absurdity of that statement is not supported by any evidence, just the fears of heterosexual persons who have a track record for such molestation.   

But trans students have enough derision heaped upon them and setting up special bathrooms for the Trans kids only paints the individual as different for the rest of the mob. I can truthfully say I empathize with the Trans community, although I do not understand their needs because I am already a gay male. This is not an issue that is going to be solved by laws written by a majority who lack understanding.

In the new Trump society is seems okay to be racist and anti-immigrant. What chance do transgender kids have? But they need support from the gay side of the equation because if we ignore the dumb factor, "they" will be coming for us next.  

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The next President is going to have a very difficult time trying to restore the integrity of the White House and the administration; respect will take even longer. The real problem will be getting the rest of the world to accept that Fascism and the Trump presidency have been defeated. It's probably a little too optimistic to hope for the defeat of ignorance as well. 

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2nd Warning:

Circular Reasoning:  is a logical fallacy in which the reasoner begins with what they are trying to end with. The components of a circular argument are often logically valid because if the premises are true, the conclusion must be true. 

Example

Father Porter's answer to the atheist was Psalm 53:1   The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.

The problem here is that Father Porter has used a bible verse to argue the existence of God.

Another example much closer to my point:

They must really be stupid because they don't think like we do. 

Sometimes others see things we miss. 

This is especially true when the corporate owned media is spoon feeding you a distorted version of the truth. A version they spent billions trying to sell the country and the country rejected.

 

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12 hours ago, JamesSavik said:

2nd Warning:

They must really be stupid because they don't think like we do. 

Sometimes others see things we miss. 

This is especially true when the corporate owned media is spoon feeding you a distorted version of the truth. A version they spent billions trying to sell the country and the country rejected.

And this is also true when the political leaders are spoon feeding you their distorted version of the truth. A version they spent almost nothing selling the country and now that they are in power they continue feeding you.

Colin  :icon_geek:

 

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Fake news from Fox News, and now they take it one step further:

https://www.yahoo.com/news/fox-news-swedish-security-advisor-heads-scratching-001838409.html

 

Nothing worse in a news program than a non-expert, especially when he is commenting on a non-news story. This is consistent with the way Fox News spreads disinformation and bolsters the Trump propaganda machine.

I agree with James and his circular reasoning argument. Corporations and government can always find talking heads to mouth reasonable sounding arguments that are totally false based upon the premise that they are always right and truthful. Just like adding manure to the spreader, we end up with shit being flung across the news landscape but without the smell being attached.

 

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