in today's economic environment, intelligence is a desirable trait. but, are there other imaginable economic environments in which intelligence becomes unimpor

in today's economic environment, intelligence is a desirable trait. but, are there other imaginable economic environments in which intelligence becomes unimportant? i'm reminded of the saying "China has two words for foreigner: barbarian and master" China's legendary, long standing emphasis on education and intelligence has served it well for much of its history, but perhaps not all of it.