. . . Explains a lot.
Update: For those who don't have the inclination to watch the video, I will give you the relevant quotation. It's from German theologian and martyr to Nazism Dietrich Bonhoeffer:
Stupidity is a more dangerous enemy of the good than malice. One may protest against evil; it can be exposed and, if need be, prevented by use of force. Evil always carries within itself the germ of its own subversion in that it leaves behind in human beings at least a sense of unease. Against stupidity we are defenseless. Neither protests nor the use of force accomplish anything here; reasons fall on deaf ears; facts that contradict one’s prejudgment simply need not be believed – in such moments the stupid person even becomes critical – and when facts are irrefutable they are just pushed aside as inconsequential, as incidental. In all this the stupid person, in contrast to the malicious one, is utterly self satisfied and, being easily irritated, becomes dangerous by going on the attack. For that reason, greater caution is called for when dealing with a stupid person than with a malicious one. Never again will we try to persuade the stupid person with reasons, for it is senseless and dangerous.
Further update: To understand Bonhoeffer's meaning, you have to watch the video. Stupidity has a specific meaning to him. It isn't IQ, it's a kind of social contagion. And yeah, he was writing as a prisoner of the Nazis, so more than half the country was indeed stupid, in his sense of the term. Think about it when you consider the stupidity of -- well, not quite half, but maybe 35-40% of the people today. Yes, they are stupid. They embrace stupid beliefs and it is impossible to reason with them. That's stupid.
2 comments:
I feel like stupidity and ignorance are the secret weapons of today’s Republicans and conservatives.
Schiller beat him to the punch. Loosely translated from "The Maid of Orleans":
Against stupidity the gods themselves struggle in vain.
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