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> a human problem. That's the very crux of the whole "debate" over everything from Facebook to "Russiagate". The bottom line is, you can't fix stupid. We hav

> a human problem. That's the very crux of the whole "debate" over everything from Facebook to "Russiagate". The bottom line is, you can't fix stupid. We have a very serious problem with stupidity and ignorance in this country. Far too many people lack basic critical thinking skills. You can't childproof society because far too many people are easy to fool. This "problem" won't be fixed until we have a critical mass of people who can think for themselves, be skeptical and aware.

musage 9y ago
People being ignorant or not very intelligent isn't the problem as much as is other people exploiting that willfully. Helplessness does not cause lack of empathy or even sadism, and "Look what you made the bad man do" is something said to avoid responsibility, not to properly place it. When I see someone who is unconscious in the street, I don't steal from them, I don't kick them, or anything of that kind. At worst I might walk past them, at best I'll try to help. But there are people who would do these things and more. And if they see someone who isn't unconscious yet, but has their back turned, they might knock them unconscious and then do something to them. Those people matter, as does the fact that they don't just pick up some money on the street that would otherwise get swept down the storm drain. Even if all adults or even teenagers who aren't mentally handicapped became super hardcore critical thinkers, there still would be diseases, conditions or accidents that weaken people temporarily or for good, and there will always be children coming into the world who depend on being able to more or less absorb what the adults around them do, who depend on that not being toxic, and so on. So, totally orthogonally to it being desirable for people to have autonomy, to be able to make informed decisions and defend themselves: when abuse happens, disarm and quarantine the abuser, then maybe practice enforcing boundaries with the victim... but to just stand on the sidelines and sneer at them because the abuser can't touch you (yet) is quite rich. "Stupidity" becomes a problem because of sociopaths, and those obedient to sociopaths. Start there.

musage 9y ago

People being ignorant or not very intelligent isn't the problem as much as is other people exploiting that willfully. Helplessness does not cause lack of empathy or even sadism, and "Look what you made the bad man do" is something said to avoid responsibility, not to properly place it. When I see someone who is unconscious in the street, I don't steal from them, I don't kick them, or anything of that kind. At worst I might walk past them, at best I'll try to help. But there are people who would do these things and more. And if they see someone who isn't unconscious yet, but has their back turned, they might knock them unconscious and then do something to them. Those people matter, as does the fact that they don't just pick up some money on the street that would otherwise get swept down the storm drain. Even if all adults or even teenagers who aren't mentally handicapped became super hardcore critical thinkers, there still would be diseases, conditions or accidents that weaken people temporarily or for good, and there will always be children coming into the world who depend on being able to more or less absorb what the adults around them do, who depend on that not being toxic, and so on. So, totally orthogonally to it being desirable for people to have autonomy, to be able to make informed decisions and defend themselves: when abuse happens, disarm and quarantine the abuser, then maybe practice enforcing boundaries with the victim... but to just stand on the sidelines and sneer at them because the abuser can't touch you (yet) is quite rich. "Stupidity" becomes a problem because of sociopaths, and those obedient to sociopaths. Start there.