The intelligence of the human race

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Nieroshai

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Groups of humans and humans at large have always been outrageously stupid, but that mass of idiocy has always been salted with a good shake or two of brilliance. It's just that now technology and affluence allow for the stupid to voice their minds louder than those of us who know better. They're not multiplying, they're just getting louder.
 

Tomo Stryker

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Socks and Shoes said:
Tomo Stryker said:
but its the idiots that just make you hate to be human.
Really? Because for me it's the arrogant "intellectuals" who look down on such people.
Or maybe its the ones who sit in the middle and take pot shots at both parties at their own convenience because they have nothing better to do.
 

Bobbity

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Socks and Shoes said:
Tomo Stryker said:
but its the idiots that just make you hate to be human.
Really? Because for me it's the arrogant "intellectuals" who look down on such people.
Nope, you're both wrong. It's bigotry, arrogance, selfishness and all these other lovely characteristics that make someone a dickhead. Your level of intelligence has nothing to do with whether or not you're a dickhead; only how you got about being one.
 

Ghengis John

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MaltaElvoret said:
At work today, I had a large group of people walk through the door. They asked me what the best deal we had was and I told them. They then asked for what the regular price was, which I told them. So you have some context, I work at a bowling center. The special was 3 hours for $15, regular was $5 per game and $4 for shoes. The group had to stop and think about it. They literally had to stop for at least 10 minutes to figure out what was the better deal. I wouldn't mind so much if they had moved out of the way, but no. Instead they stood there like cows blocking the road for others.

Is it just me, or is the intelligence of the human race slowly declining? Maybe its just an American thing, but this is happening on a daily basis. Thank you for letting me rant. I would also like to hear some other experiences like this.
As somebody who has worked in customer service I can tell you this, the average person is not as familiar with the services that you provide as you are. It is a common misconception among service personnel to assume the customer is stupid simply because they do not immediately grasp what you are telling them. However, we all do stupid things from time to time. At my worst moments people would think I was an absolute moron if that was all they knew of me and they didn't stop to consider their own lives for context. Clearly these people had to figure out how many games they intended to play and at the outset of their considerations did not know they would take that long. Have you never say, started a project and found you didn't have enough materials? Left something behind at the store? Or found you took longer to do something than you had anticipated? That doesn't make you stupid. Try to exercise a little understanding before you throw down labels and make blanket statements judging all of humanity.

"Oh my god, these people took like ten minutes making up their minds at the bowling alley." Well. Somebody call the associated press.

I used to be of the mind that people as a whole had to be getting stupider. As I got older however, and had some history behind me the question had to become, "Compared to when?".
 

Socks and Shoes

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Tomo Stryker said:
Socks and Shoes said:
Tomo Stryker said:
but its the idiots that just make you hate to be human.
Really? Because for me it's the arrogant "intellectuals" who look down on such people.
Or maybe its the ones who sit in the middle and take pot shots at both parties at their own convenience because they have nothing better to do.
Nope.
 

EllEzDee

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Maybe they were in a rush and only wanted to play 2 games, saving a total of $1. Unless the $15 special also required the $4 boots, in which case those people are sillies. Hur hur.
 

UrbanCohort

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Nah, we aren't declining in intelligence. I'd say it's more that idiocy is becoming more apparent because the world is getting smaller due to cars/planes/internet.
 

iamthelizardqueen88

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MaltaElvoret said:
At work today, I had a large group of people walk through the door. They asked me what the best deal we had was and I told them. They then asked for what the regular price was, which I told them. So you have some context, I work at a bowling center. The special was 3 hours for $15, regular was $5 per game and $4 for shoes. The group had to stop and think about it. They literally had to stop for at least 10 minutes to figure out what was the better deal. I wouldn't mind so much if they had moved out of the way, but no. Instead they stood there like cows blocking the road for others.
its extremely sad that i can do this but i think i got you beat. ok i work at a pizza place and every week (almost without fail) someone usually and old person calls and wants to order for delivery ok fine not big deal BUT heres the idiotic twist when we ask for their address they refuse to give it to us. theres a few reason why they do this (all stupid as hell) but by far the most mind numbingly brain dead answer is quote "im not gonna give you my address because i dont want you to find out where i live".
 

Ghengis John

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UrbanCohort said:
Nah, we aren't declining in intelligence. I'd say it's more that idiocy is becoming more apparent because the world is getting smaller due to cars/planes/internet.
How does that make "idiocy" any more apparent?

iamthelizardqueen88 said:
but by far the most mind numbingly brain dead answer is quote "im not gonna give you my address because i dont want you to find out where i live".
How do they get their pizza then? Do they come in to pick it up? Do you have to hang up on them? Perhaps they're ninja turtles and don't wish to be seen?
 

UrbanCohort

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Ghengis John said:
UrbanCohort said:
Nah, we aren't declining in intelligence. I'd say it's more that idiocy is becoming more apparent because the world is getting smaller due to cars/planes/internet.
How does that make "idiocy" any more apparent?
Iunno, maybe it means you run into more idiots than you would if say...you were limited to using a horse and carriage. Being exposed to more people naturally means you'll run into a proportionally larger number of idiot...well it makes sense to me at least.
 

Ghengis John

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UrbanCohort said:
Ghengis John said:
UrbanCohort said:
Nah, we aren't declining in intelligence. I'd say it's more that idiocy is becoming more apparent because the world is getting smaller due to cars/planes/internet.
How does that make "idiocy" any more apparent?
Iunno, maybe it means you run into more idiots than you would if say...you were limited to using a horse and carriage. Being exposed to more people naturally means you'll run into a proportionally larger number of idiot...well it makes sense to me at least.
Ah I see, but that doesn't mean you're running into proportionally higher numbers of idiots, simply that you see more incidents of idiocy as your sample size increases. It's like crime statistics. The average person thinks that there's more crime than there was 20 years ago, simply because incidents of crime can be reported to them from around the world, while region by region the rates stay mostly comparable. Nothing has been made more apparent, other than the fact I suppose that people see pandemics where there are none thanks to sensationalist reporting.

Bezz_Ad said:
I work at a customer service for a mobile company, actually from the US. So yeah, I can relate. Maaan, why can't people read bills...
Because reading Bills is not fun. Also as a meticulous bill reader myself, sometimes I miss something, it happens. Probably 99.9% of your customers never call you. Also as someone who used to sell mobile phones, a good salesman will explain these charges before hand. I bet you're hearing a lot of "Nobody told me about that.".
 

UrbanCohort

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That's essentially what I'm getting at. I think...

EDIT - I meant that the number of idiots you run into grows in...fuggit, you know what I meant.
 

Ghengis John

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UrbanCohort said:
That's essentially what I'm getting at. I think...

EDIT - I meant that the number of idiots you run into grows in...fuggit, you know what I meant.
Don't sweat it I got ya. lol. See what I mean though? We all make mistakes. Doesn't mean the person who you only see making a mistake is stupid. True stupidity is something that transcends the occasional duh, derp or brain fart moment.
 

Midnight Crossroads

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Our intelligence is definitely on the rise. It's not an unprecedented rise where even Aristotle would be of average intelligence today, but it's measurable. Don't think stupid TV shows or music is a sign of some decay. People have always done stupid shit for entertainment.

My friends in the chemistry department with me think ARSE is hilarious, and they even put it on the shirt for our chapter of the ACS. Some of these guys are future doctors.
 

WanderingFool

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MaltaElvoret said:
At work today, I had a large group of people walk through the door. They asked me what the best deal we had was and I told them. They then asked for what the regular price was, which I told them. So you have some context, I work at a bowling center. The special was 3 hours for $15, regular was $5 per game and $4 for shoes. The group had to stop and think about it. They literally had to stop for at least 10 minutes to figure out what was the better deal. I wouldn't mind so much if they had moved out of the way, but no. Instead they stood there like cows blocking the road for others.

Is it just me, or is the intelligence of the human race slowly declining? Maybe its just an American thing, but this is happening on a daily basis. Thank you for letting me rant. I would also like to hear some other experiences like this.
Did the special include the shoes? For if it did, than they were idiots. But I think its like the ninja theory, the more ninjas there are, the weaker they all are, only instead of ninjas, its regular people, and instead of power, its the ability to think. The whole "mob mentality" bit, what the flock there needed was a shepherd to make the choices.

[sub]Disclaimer: I dont actually adhere to this philosophy... but sometimes I do think about it more than I would like...[/sub]
 

emeraldrafael

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Oh the human race has long been dumbing itself down.

not even 200 years ago, it was still acceptable to castrate a young boy (and was infact "the sure thing" to get rich) just so he maintained his boyhood voice and didnt go through puberty.

... I think I see why Bieber is still like he now.