The reason why this forum exists at all

[Satch]

Below is a link to an article which many think should be compulsory reading. Need to go through it a couple of times and be clear on how the matrix works, but once you have done that I promise you will understand why the world and the motorists general day to day experience can be so depressing.

THE BASIC LAWS OF HUMAN STUPIDITY
by Carlo M. Cipolla

http://www.cantrip.org/stupidity.html

 

[kikkthecat]

Below is a link to an article which many think should be compulsory reading.

I tried but it made my head hurt.

 

[mark.t]

well

2 seconds to decide it was totally stupid to read, i think it boils down to the amount of time you devote to being stupid,

 

[Satch]

I tried but it made my head hurt.

The author was a Professor of Economics so what else could one expect? Worth sticking with it because it really is of universal application!

Here is a synopsis:

Five Basic Laws:

1. Always, and inevitably, everyone underestimates the number of stupid individuals in circulation.

2. The probability that a certain persons are stupid is independent of any other characteristic of those persons. Sex, race, creed and education do not matter.

3. A stupid person is a person who causes losses to another person or to a group of persons while himself deriving no gain and even possibly incurring personal losses.

4. Non-stupid people, who act in a rational manner, always underestimate the damaging power of stupid individuals.

(Because the stupid do not act in a rational or predictable fashion there is actually nothing a non-stupid person can do to organise a proper defense or mitigate the disaster in time. In particular, non-stupid people constantly forget that (i) at all times, (ii) in all places and (iii) under any circumstances to deal and/or associate with stupid people infallibly turns out to be a costly mistake. This is because they tend to assume that the behaviour of others will be as rational as their own. But when you are on the road you cannot choose who you share it with so nobody has the luxury of being able to recognise (let alone avoid) the stupid when driving.)

5. It follows that a stupid person is the most dangerous type of person.


The author shows that proportion of stupid to non-stupid people in a society is important as is the balance between personality types he classes as the Intelligent, the Helpless, the Stupid and the Bandits. Get too many Stupid Bandits or Helpless Stupid in any society and it all goes down the pan.

 

[pammy]

I gave up after a couple opf lines on the original version - read the first two and last two of the abridged version - but you only have to drive around a bit - or walk around a bit to know the ratio of stupid people on this planet - 100% coz we're all as thick as the proverbial at times

 

[sportyreptile]

You've all seen this of course....

http://www.darwinawards.com/ :bannana: