Just read another article about some stupid person. It was a lady, presumably also a wife and mother, protesting mandatory vaccines. Her poster read "I Would Rather Bury My Family Than Lose My Freedom".
When the Hell did we get so stupid? Was it when Trump was elected and opened the door to racists, idiots and authoritarian wannabes? It certainly didn't help but I think it was an event that happened earlier. But before we dwell on that singular historical fact, lets look briefly at how stupid we really are. Step by step this is what happened. We elected an inarticulate, stupid man to the presidency and with it the ascendency of party. Specifically in this case a Republican. Pretty soon it didn't matter how stupid (or crazy) this president became, we put him on some kind of pedestal and proclaimed the Republican brand as almighty, supreme and, most importantly, in power. The Supreme court was packed and salivating at the opportunity to undo laws that didn't suit them, regardless of how long these laws had been on the books. Again, it didn't matter to the base how stupid or offensive the president got, they still worshipped him. He called soldiers "suckers and losers", but the soldiers loved him anyway. Because he was Republican. They even built a golden statue of him at the 2015 CPAC conference. Evangelists loved him anyway. After four years and a failed treasonous insurrection led by this president after a lost the lection didn't sway the Republicans. They still oved him. At this writing there is an ongoing coup d'etat that will presumably continue in 2022 and culminate in the actual elimination of American democracy on 2024.
So, how did we get so stupid? Anti-vaxxers, anti-democracy, Covid hoaxers, spineless Repubs too scared to go against Trump?
Was it the election of Obama that got everyone crazy? Was it the slow separation of Congress to the needs and desires of the people? Was it the realization that democracy may be insufficient to help propel vital help to folks left behind? Did America simply slide away from her moorings like other great civilations are bound to do? Might be. Might be all or none.
I personally think it was when the US failed to switch over to the metric system. Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan passed laws to become metric but as yet we as a nation have stood our ground and stayed with the Imperial set of measuring. Except for rocket building and car making we have stayed with the old system while the rest of the world goes metric. Only Liberia, Myanmar and the US still use Imperial. We were simply too arrogant, too lazy or too stupid to switch.
This is when we became stupid.
We are witnessing one of the ongoing reasons for our collective stupidity. States continue to gerrymander districts creating areas that will always have a Democrat or Republican representative. When you no longer fear an opponent from the other side you have no reason to compromise. The primary contest becomes the actual race for the seat. Politicians don’t want to be seen as weak followers of their party line. No RINOS or DINOS allowed. Who votes in primaries? The true party believers. The fervent devotees. In simpler terms the truly STUPID. Politicians now pick their voters instead of voters choosing their representatives.
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