America, We Need to Talk

America, I wonder if you have the time for a little chat. Yes? Please sit down. Oh, anywhere. That’s a nice banking crisis you’re wearing. Where did you get it? Same central bank as the last one? The quality shows.

Actually, that’s not what I wanted to talk about. America, we need to talk about stupid.

Now, before you get defensive, let me say, I know how important stupid is to you. After all, nearly half of all Americans have below average intelligence. —Proof? Ah, let me get back to you on that. The question I want to ask you is: do you really think that is a reasonable way to run government?

You see, stupid is not a right. What? No, I’m sorry — compulsory public education wouldn’t exist if it were a right.

Stupid has a right, and that is the right to vote.

Now that I think about it, your banking crisis is related. While stupid was creating controversy about topics it thought it could understand, the financial system got back to its old tricks unnoticed. Stupid tricked you.

I know you’ve been making fun of stupid. I’ve been reading your tweets. But is that going to make stupid smart? Or is it just going to make stupid resent you? After all, stupid is stupid.

There is only one reason stupid elects its own to high office: the alternatives are worse. The problem isn’t with stupid. It’s with clever. Clever is not taking care of anyone but itself.

The financialization of the economy was a clever way for smart people to make themselves mind-bogglingly rich without doing anything useful. That led to a financial crisis.

What was clever to do, other than blame immigrants for the pain they caused? After all, clever is clever.

Which brings us back to stupid…