Where are all these "stupid people" that supposedly exist?

[w00tage]

Wow. To all those who have trouble finding stupid people, I say "Kudos to you, you lucky bunch!"

I can't go a day without at least a Daily Dose of Stupid. Maybe they're all hanging out where I live?

In all seriousness, I don't there are truly stupid people so much as folks who are just ignorant and unaware. Seems they just sort of get trapped in their own little Bubbles of Reality and forget they share the Earth with seven billion other people.

So I don't think the issue is literally a lack of intelligence...just a lack of awareness.

/agree and I'd rep you for it if the Escapist forums had that functionality. I also remember a phrase from a favorite author - "the will to be stupid". I observe this in action very often, and it seems to be more of a willful avoidance to process information so that an emotional dependence won't be threatened. I note the same people generally have some competence in some area, not genuis, but effective enough to be reliable (and get them a paycheck), so I don't think it's an actual lack of capability.

So I think most stupidity is in fact "self-inflicted", and how much good could be done by educating people in avoiding the cause....

 

[I-Protest-I]

They live in places where many don't work in an office environment.

 

[DancePuppets]

There are many many stupid people. A fair few of the customers I served when I worked for a supermarket certainly fell into the "stupid'' category. Some of them also fell into the "needlessly aggressive and violent" category too, in many cases the 2 categories went hand in hand.

 

[spartan231490]

You're just lucky I guess. I meet them by the dozens, it's like they come out of the ground as I walk past. At work, in my personal life, and at school, oh my god at school. Seriously, the average student at my college is horrifyingly stupid. The questions these people ask, seriously some of the professors are dumber than a box of hammers.

 

[bafrali]

I saw a guy today who criticised a platformer (which is really hard) for being casual because it had too many colours.

Live your life without searching for those stupid people my friend. You will curse yourself when you do find them.

 

[Auron225]

I don't know if its so much that there are absolute imbeciles that make all the stupid statements or just a lot of people, who make stupid statements from time-to-time about particular things but otherwise wouldn't really be considered thick. My older sister isn't stupid but her common knowledge can be abysmal at times.

But I have known a few imbeciles too - one guy in our school wanted to know why people didn't build housing on active volcanoes because it would cut heating costs -.- He also asked our Geography teacher if the Queen (of England) wore her crown to bed. He seemed to think if she ever took it off, she wouldn't be queen anymore... it was simply astonishing...

 

[Calibanbutcher]

I met a girl at a party a while ago and she was really, really stupid.
That was my first encounter with one of those and it was impressive.

 

[Tallim]

There are very few truly stupid people. However every single person will do stupid things, some of those instances become stories. The internet has seemingly made being stupid "clever" a lot of the time now.

 

[Zen Bard]

...and it seems to be more of a willful avoidance to process information so that an emotional dependence won't be threatened....

This, my friend, is probably the most succint definition of the problem. Well put.

 

[DudeistBelieve]

Maybe this isn't the case for everyone, but every once in a while I come across two types of people.

1. People I Am Smarter Than
Fairly simple, and I don't mean this in a mean way... Just every once in a while I come across a person who's, I wouldn't say mentally deficent, just off. Not playing with a full deck. They may of graduated high school but something, socially I suppose, is just off. They're the kind of people who make low-level intelligent jokes. I know a chap that thinks racism as shock humor is particularly funny. Thing is, I get the feeling he doesn't know it's funny BECAUSE it's shock humor, I believe he just thinks Racism=Funny. My experience is though, these people are usually good people.

2. People that I feel are just as intelligent as I am, yet some how they've come philosophical conclusions I don't agree with.
These are the "stupid" people. These are the ones I find most aggravating. Everyonce in a while I come across a person of equal intelligence to me that will believe staunchly in Anti-Gay marriage stance, or "Marijuana is wrong, and you shouldn't smoke it because the government says so"... And it's not like I'm aggravated that they hold that view, because I think almost everyone goes through that in stages. I had those moments too at one time. It's that I know they're just as smart as me, if not smarter, and if you really think about those examples? Like fuck, I can understand if one is against gay-marriage because they're devout in their religion, but only if they say "Well I'm [Religion], so I have to be." and most don't. Most aren't self-aware, and jesus christ how can you not?

Mostly on facebook, which is why I deleted my account.
One chap in my class fills the criteria as well. Let me give you an extract of a conversation between him and the teacher.
"So as you can see there is vegetation the the sand dunes to keep it from washing away
"wait, vegetation, miss?
"yes"
"So there's vegetables on the beach?"

Wait, so he's an idiot because he's requesting clarification?

I mean... really? I mean, I am assuming the guy wasn't trying to be a smartass but isn't asking questions a sign of intelligence rather than just blindly accepting what is being told from perceived authority as truth? Hell I'd probably ask something simaller hearing that.

 

[DudeistBelieve]

A lot of people see stupidity in a first glance and assume that's the person as a whole. For example, I work at a shop and I've had two things which stick in my mind, "where's the garlic bread, you know the frozen kind". He comes in often so he's not asking where the freezer is. The other is " no I don't want a plastic bag thanks, you know, it will save the trees a bit". Wu...Wut.

But these people could actually be clever and those moments are just bits of stupidity that everyone has. However there still are a lot of really stupid people haha.

I work in Grocery too, so I can sympathize with the amount of inane questions I get that could be solved if people just took the effort to LOOK AT THE FUCKING SIGNS UP AND DOWN EACH AISLE.

That said, it comes across in your example he was asking you in a round-about way where the freezer department was... And what aisle contained garlic bread.

 

[Tiger Sora]

Have we so quickly forgotten G W Bush?

And those that voted him in for a second term.
People who blame Obama for the shite economy. He didn't break it, he's trying to fix it. But it's like someone trying to get their office workers to get the job done and theres a bunch of adorable panda babies distracting them. And the bankers, investors and such that caused the problem.

 

[Keoul]

Wait, so he's an idiot because he's requesting clarification?

I mean... really? I mean, I am assuming the guy wasn't trying to be a smartass but isn't asking questions a sign of intelligence rather than just blindly accepting what is being told from perceived authority as truth? Hell I'd probably ask something simaller hearing that.

Yes.
If it's something we've been going through for weeks I'd say he is pretty stupid not to get the difference between vegetation and vegetables, even more so when you consider this isn't primary school anymore and you've got more complicated stuff to learn.

 

[Ix Rebound]

they are sitting in my history class asking why the people on the Titanic didn't call for help on their mobile phones -__-

 

[wadark]

Thats because I am the stupid people.
Yep. I'm all ofthem, at the same time.
Being everywhere is a tough job and I can't get to everyone sometimes. I'll be sure to visit you at east once in your lifetime.
Don't worry, plenty of stupid to go around.

Now to go complain about how government pollution is causing light diffraction.

So YOU'RE responsible for this?!

<youtube=_c6HsiixFS8>

SHAME ON YOU. D:<

You, sir, have made my day with this video...thank you...

 

[C F]

No human walking this earth is omniscient; every man has a gap in his knowledge somewhere that corresponds to another's strengths. And when what comes naturally to one's strengths are not immediately evident in everyone else, the one's brain starts to pick out comparative inconsistencies. Be it driving, basic computer skills, attentiveness, tact, mathematics, there's bound to be a place where a noticeable number of people fall short of what you're capable of. And then you move to another field, and another number of people fall short. As the trend continues, the likelihood of someone muttering "I'm surrounded by idiots" approaches one.

What isn't immediately evident is that you might be one of the idiots to someone else's subjective observations. For example, you might cringe at a customer's grasp of basic commercial etiquette, but later absentmindedly speed down the highway and not signal lane changes on your way home. The former sticks to you, the latter might only come to the attention of another. Everyone is stupid in their own (or should I say "another's") way.

they are sitting in my history class asking why the people on the Titanic didn't call for help on their mobile phones -__-

Oh, and then there's these guys. Forgot about these guys.
Seriously, that has to be the dumbest thing I've read all day.

 

[DudeistBelieve]

Wait, so he's an idiot because he's requesting clarification?

I mean... really? I mean, I am assuming the guy wasn't trying to be a smartass but isn't asking questions a sign of intelligence rather than just blindly accepting what is being told from perceived authority as truth? Hell I'd probably ask something simaller hearing that.

Yes.
If it's something we've been going through for weeks I'd say he is pretty stupid not to get the difference between vegetation and vegetables, even more so when you consider this isn't primary school anymore and you've got more complicated stuff to learn.

Just saying, I would of question that too, if only because I was taught in first grade that plants can't grow in Sand.

And you spent weeks learning about Sand Dunes? Jesus and here I am bitching about how board I am reading Virginia Woolf.

 

[R4ptur3]

That said, it comes across in your example he was asking you in a round-about way where the freezer department was... And what aisle contained garlic bread.

The thing is, it's not a big shop, there are only three freezers. If he said do you sell frozen garlic bread, followed by where's the freezer, that's fine, but he comes in regularly so he knows where the freezer is and that it's only a small part of the shop. You had to be there as I can't really explain it, but trust me, he didn't mean either do you sell frozen garlic bread or where is the freezer, he actually made it sound like he didn't know where he could find frozen garlic bread. Maybe it's just the way he said it that made me think it's stupid. However this guy also asked me what half of 10 pounds was, so yeah. To be honest I'm pretty stupid as well so It's not really helping my argument haha.

 

[Arslan Aladeen]

We're all stupid at something. It's usually just easier for people to point out others stupidity to make themselves feel better about themselves.

 

[sextus the crazy]

Chances are you know lots of stupid people, but don't know them well enough, or in the right contexts to understand their stupidity. It's the same with prejudices; unless you probe for it, chances are you won't know whether someone is prejudiced against a group or not.