Good column. I’ve been saying this since I first became aware of the whole manufactured “mask controversy”. Stupid people have a right to their opinions; it doesn’t make their opinions right. But they think it does, because… They’re stupid.
I have trouble distinguishing between someone who is stupid, ignorant, delusional, brainwashed, or some combination of these.
I’ve worked with microprocessor design engineers (with masters degrees from top universities). Some were evangelical christians that didn’t believe in evolution and thought the earth was about 6,000 years old.
I gave up in believing in a god when I was 12. There was no science to prove the existence of a supreme being. So, i’m an atheist, as defined as someone who does not have a belief in a god (using the common definition “supreme being”).
So, how should I characterize someone who does believe in one or more of the 2,000+ gods in the various religions across the world? Since a person’s religious belief is principally determined by the religion of their parents, what is the right characterization? brainwashed? delusional?
When science doesn’t matter? When facts don’t matter? What do we do? Somehow we need to persuade enough people to not give us 4 more years of president Voldemort.
What do you suppose Mr. Stoehr would call the actions of Anthony Fauci:
a) wearing a mask while throwing the first pitch at a baseball game into the ground but
b) at the same game not wearing a mask while sitting cheek by jowl between two people, apparently laughing, pumping out any Wuhan flu virus he may have into the air.
Would Mr. Stoehr call Mr. Fauci's actions 'stupid'? Not likely; Mr. Fauci has Liberal Bigot Privilege, as does the press in general. He also knows the likely consequences of doing so:
a) being whipped into line by peers or
b) being canned (hi, Jim Bennet!)
Much better to smugly call others, with much smaller platforms to defend themselves, "stupid" and well the warm glow of smugness, smugness that prevents Mr. Stoehr from even realizing, let alone acknowledging, the serious issue of public suspicion of the press in general
Social media platforms have deliberately enabled the voices of the uninformed to aggregate and not only endanger our lives but our liberties. I would like to believe that there are more of us....those who grapple with often incomplete or contradictory information and who use critical thinking and are guided by values towards making informed decisions, but I no longer know if I can trust that an informed citizenry will prevail.
Good column. I’ve been saying this since I first became aware of the whole manufactured “mask controversy”. Stupid people have a right to their opinions; it doesn’t make their opinions right. But they think it does, because… They’re stupid.
I have trouble distinguishing between someone who is stupid, ignorant, delusional, brainwashed, or some combination of these.
I’ve worked with microprocessor design engineers (with masters degrees from top universities). Some were evangelical christians that didn’t believe in evolution and thought the earth was about 6,000 years old.
I gave up in believing in a god when I was 12. There was no science to prove the existence of a supreme being. So, i’m an atheist, as defined as someone who does not have a belief in a god (using the common definition “supreme being”).
So, how should I characterize someone who does believe in one or more of the 2,000+ gods in the various religions across the world? Since a person’s religious belief is principally determined by the religion of their parents, what is the right characterization? brainwashed? delusional?
When science doesn’t matter? When facts don’t matter? What do we do? Somehow we need to persuade enough people to not give us 4 more years of president Voldemort.
What do you suppose Mr. Stoehr would call the actions of Anthony Fauci:
a) wearing a mask while throwing the first pitch at a baseball game into the ground but
b) at the same game not wearing a mask while sitting cheek by jowl between two people, apparently laughing, pumping out any Wuhan flu virus he may have into the air.
Would Mr. Stoehr call Mr. Fauci's actions 'stupid'? Not likely; Mr. Fauci has Liberal Bigot Privilege, as does the press in general. He also knows the likely consequences of doing so:
a) being whipped into line by peers or
b) being canned (hi, Jim Bennet!)
Much better to smugly call others, with much smaller platforms to defend themselves, "stupid" and well the warm glow of smugness, smugness that prevents Mr. Stoehr from even realizing, let alone acknowledging, the serious issue of public suspicion of the press in general
Social media platforms have deliberately enabled the voices of the uninformed to aggregate and not only endanger our lives but our liberties. I would like to believe that there are more of us....those who grapple with often incomplete or contradictory information and who use critical thinking and are guided by values towards making informed decisions, but I no longer know if I can trust that an informed citizenry will prevail.