I am of the
opinion that people are becoming less intelligent with each passing generation.
And this is in spite of the fact that more and more schools are requiring
standardized testing, and at much younger ages than in the past. And I’m not
just saying this because I’m getting older and less tolerant of stupidity –
although I am. I base this on things you find now in everyday life that is
geared towards the idiot. Let me explain…
Have you
looked at a product label lately? I know some of these things you’ve heard, or
even seen, but have you really stopped to think about them? For example, there
is the labeling on the iron that tells you not to iron your clothes while you
are wearing them? Now, seriously, why is that there? Simple; at some point in
time some idiot tried to iron his or her shirt while wearing it. And I’m sure
this brain child, once burned, blamed to company for not telling them the iron
gets hot. Now I grew up watching my mother iron clothes and the thing is I
never needed to be told the iron was hot. I could tell by the steam. But I’m
not an idiot.
This is
a good one; the blow drier label that warns you not to use it in the shower
because of an electrocution hazard. Now even if you didn’t know that water and
electricity don’t mix, or even if they did, why would you use a drier while
still in the shower? It would seem to me that this would defeat the purpose.
But I’m not an idiot.
McDonald’s
is now required to tell you, when you order coffee, that it is hot. This stems
from the lady who ordered her coffee, expecting it to be hot, placing it
between her legs instead of in the cup holder of her car, spilling it on
herself because of said stupidity and blaming McDonald’s for not telling her it’s
hot. I’m thinking the proper warning should have be, “Don’t be a moron”, but that’s
just me. And the only thing more stupid than her filing her lawsuit is the fact
that a judge, an educated man, allowed it to go through. I think if I had been
the judge I would have pointed out that when you order coffee expecting I to be
hot that no one should need to tell you that it is in fact hot, or to use your
cup holder. But I’m not an idiot.
Certain
laws in this country are not much better. It seems that in California it is
illegal to hunt whale with a high powered rifle from a moving car. Now really,
who the hell was that written for? I really want to meet the person who did
this requiring CA to pass a law against it. I really want to know what was
going through his mind (other than possibly alcohol or marijuana) that made him
think he would bring down a whale with a 30-30 while driving down the PCH. I
would never think for one moment that this was even remotely a good idea. But I’m
not an idiot.
The
dumbing down of our society is even apparent in clothing trends. How many times
have you seen the kid, and sometimes the adult, wearing his ball cap backwards?
Now what the hell is the point in that? The idea of the brim of the cap is to
shade your eyes, not the back of your neck. That being the case the only thing
that looks more ridiculous than wearing the cap backwards is wearing it
backwards while holding your hand to your forehead to shade your eyes. But it
isn’t just hats that are being worn incorrectly. I also see more underwear
these days just driving down a neighborhood street than I would ever see at a
plumber’s convention. Can you not find pants that fit or did you lose your
belt? Either way reach down and pull up your pants. Wait; you can’t because one
of your hands is busy shading your eyes because you have your hat on backwards.
You know I would just never consider dressing in this manner, not even as a
joke. But I’m not an idiot.
There
are so many things, or people, I would like to blame for this disturbing trend
but there just isn’t enough time. The root of it though, I think, lies with the
parents. Parents no longer seem interested in teaching their children the
important things in life. I taught my daughter right from wrong and the right
way to dress. I taught her that life is not fair. I taught her that coffee is
hot, you don’t iron clothes while wearing them, and you shouldn’t blow dry your
hair in the shower: it won’t get dry but you will get electrocuted. Now I never
taught my daughter that you can’t bring down a whale with a 30-30 from a moving
car but in fairness we live nowhere near the ocean, and she loves whales and
would never hunt them.
If more
parents would take this type of attitude then there might just be fewer idiots
in this country. Of course there are other things that would help, like reading
to your children. Turn off the reality TV and pick up a book. Read to them.
Teach them the sounds of the letters as you go. Teach them how vowels make
different sounds and why. It really isn’t that hard and children learn very
quickly. My eldest granddaughter, who is all of 5, now reads to us. But she isn’t
an idiot.
If more
parents would take the time to actually be parents and stop trying to be their
child’s best buddy then maybe we could turn this trend around. Maybe we can
stop raising a nation full of idiots. I know it doesn’t seem like much but
every little bit helps. And it would help me since I am not getting younger and
therefore will not ever become more tolerant of stupidity.
That is
all.
