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> Maybe it’s time to take a cue from our proudly pro-intelligence and pro-education cultural cousins across the Atlantic. Nope. I can live with the downsides
by rectang 8y ago
> Maybe it’s time to take a cue from our proudly pro-intelligence and pro-education cultural cousins across the Atlantic.
Nope. I can live with the downsides of anti-intellectualism in trade for escaping the cult of "genius". People who claim to know better than the rest of us are dangerous.
- minikites 8y agoI wish this attitude was applied equally to people in private industry like Elon Musk instead of only slamming government employees like the original article (and most similar articles).
- askmike 8y agoThat's exactly what the article talks about: > Despite the rise of Silicon Valley and its technoelites, the Revenge of the Nerds in the South Bay has managed to line stock portfolios without moving the needle on America’s cultural values. Jocks still rule high schools that spend millions on new football stadiums while starving the arts. Elon Musk isn't considered a national hero or someone to look up to (in most parts of the US - not talking about cali).
- WalterGR 8y agoIn what ways have our "cultural cousins" across the Atlantic succumbed to the cult of genius? What have been the consequences of that?
- nerflad 8y agoThere are plenty of "public intellectuals" with cults in the US, though. Jordan Peterson and Neil Tyson come to mind.
- throwaway8879 8y agoTyson can be a little annoying, he's just very excitable but generally knows what he's talking about. Peterson on the other hand...
- __blockcipher__ 8y ago[elon musk]
- lazyasciiart 8y agoYes, it's so great that America doesn't do stuff like the crazy Steve Jobs and Elon Musk worship you see in other countries.
- rectang 8y agoI will always be for more iconoclasm and skepticism rather than less, so naturally I'm not happy with idolization of entrepreneurs, either. Or religious leaders. Or artists. Basically, anyone who is revered for their understanding of matters which cannot be explained to the rest of us. I'm still glad that the U.S. has a healthy distrust of intellectuals and academics. I appreciate the work of all of such people, but I reject setting them off from the rest of humanity. We are all frail, fallible humans.
- askmike 8y agoYou should visit South Korea (or Japan), where people running big business are considered leaders by everyone in the country. Not just SV people who browse HN. I'm not from the US, but I'm pretty sure that the average person in most states has never heard of either of the people you mentioned.
- lazyasciiart 8y agoI have visited both and really enjoyed the trips, thanks for the recommendation! A movie titled 'Steve Jobs' featured half a dozen Hollywood stars and was nominated for Best Actor and Best Actress at the Oscars - and that's not even the one that Ashton Kutcher starred in. I work in a children's book store and there is a 'Who is Steve Jobs?' book sitting next to 'Who is Barack Obama?'. I think you're wrong.
- Ar-Curunir 8y agoin America you have the reverse: anti-"intellectual" genius cults. Eg: Gates and Zuckerberg. I've seen many people, even in CS, justify leaving college because those folks did.
- noobermin 8y agoI think that both things can be true. The problem is most people conflate all of the "establishment" into one. For example, one could rightly point out how terrible economists who hailed free trade as being a good thing ended up robbing many people of their lifelihood but in the same breath claim those same experts say climate change is real, whilst not knowing that these experts are separate groups of people.