Why People are Dumb and a Remedy for it

A while back, one of my friends wrote a blog post on his blog titled “Are People Dumb?.”  In this post, my friend quoted both John Stuart Mill from his very well known work Utilitarianism, which supports my argument and then he quoted Thomas Sowell from his work Intellectuals and Society, which supports his.  It is important to say, that I believe individuals are smart and rational people that make good decisions most of the time, however people (as in “the masses”) are, most of the time, irrational and generally, for the sake of the name of this article, dumb.  Now, before you get your pitchfork and run me out of town, let me explain my logic and what the remedy is to fix it.  

The reason I think people are dumb surrounds us, just look at what people watch on television, shows like Jersey Shore kind of proves my point.  But if you’re still not convinced (although watching Jersey Shore once should be enough) let’s examine what the founding fathers thought about the masses.

The founding fathers set up an entire government that would keep important decisions away from the people at large and put those decisions into the hands of a selected few (while also leaving most governmental powers to the states not the federal government).  That’s why the founders put the election of the Senate, the most important branch of the legislative branch, into the hands of the legislative bodies of each state and not into the hands of the people.  The reasoning for this is that the founding fathers were aware of the tragedy of history, that history tends to repeat itself.  Time and time again, democratic societies have given way to tyranny.  The example the founding fathers referred to most was the example of the Roman Empire which slowly gave it’s democratic process to the bureaucrats, the last one being Julius Caesar.  This is why the Founders were afraid of the people and how easy it is for them to be deceived by demagogues.  Just look at the modern example of Hitler and Nazi Germany and you will understand.  In fact in this country, all of the federal encroachments on liberties have been with the people’s consent and approval.  For instance the passage of the 17th amendment came from a populist movement of the people who thought the direct election of Senators would be in their best interest, when in fact it would be the exact opposite.  Thanks to the 17th amendment, the states did not have a say in any of the entitlement programs that bribed the people into voting for the re-election of the senators elected by the people directly.

Now that you’re good and depressed about how dumb people are and how they will vote for hope and change and then have only lint left in their pockets, there is actual hope.  It’s called the Constitution.  A return to the constitution and it’s principles of limited government will cure the ills of big government. 

Our current system has introduced moral hazard into society where people don’t have to take responsibility for their actions and can instead live on government handouts and the backs of the productive members of society.  It is also important to note that I have great faith in individuals and their ability to make rational choices and make decisions that are beneficial to society and the free market; this is why I believe in personal liberty and not government tyranny.  With a return to a constitutional government, we can take out the problems of our current system which depends too much on handouts for all and not on individuals making rational choices for their own betterment.

Slash or Burn

Liberals these days like to accuse conservatives of "slash and burn" policies that "kill Old people and children."  The truth is that we MUST Slash and Burn our budget or our government will go bankrupt and default.  In about 24 hours, the time will run out on the Continuing Resolution is that is currently funding our government and the government will effectively shutdown (although government slowdown is a better term).

Currently House Republican leadership, Senate Democrat leadership and the White House are trying to work out a deal for another CR or a complete budget.  The Senate Democrats proposed a $33 billion budget that Speaker John Boehner rejected and the White House has promised to veto a one week $12 billion cut from the House.  But their is a major problem with all of these proposals . . . it is not near enough.  During the last campaign, House Republicans promised $100 billion in cuts and now Boehner is pushing $61 billion in cuts.  Note to Boehner and all Republicans: 61 is NOT the same as 100, you're about $39 billion off.  I propose that if House Republicans cave and cut less than the promised $100 billion we burn them by not voting for their re-election.  This budget is too important to only cut 33 or 61 billion, we must at the very least, cut the promised $100 billion. 

The truth is that $100 billion is not enough, radical and drastic cuts must be made NOW.  Several months ago, Senator Rand Paul proposed a $500 billion cut and the Cato Institute proposed a $1.06 trillion cut and Paul Ryan has a 2012 budget proposal that would cut between 4 and 6 trillion over 10 years.  These are real cuts, drastic cuts, needed cuts.  The Cato proposal would balance the budget by 2020, the Ryan proposal by 2050.


I would also like to propose a deal on the debt ceiling and the 2011 budget: No deal on either without the passage in the House and Senate, signing by the president and ratification by the states of the Balanced Budget Amendment as proposed by Senator Mike Lee.  This will force Congress to cut spending to 18% of GDP (currently hovering around 25%), make desperately needed reforms to Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare and start to pay down the national debt that is currently at a staggering $14 trillion.

The time to act is now, not 5 years from now, RIGHT NOW!  For years politicians from both sides of the isle have been kicking the can down the road on spending cuts, and now one more kick will result in that can and person kicking it to plunge down the massive hole at the end of the road.  If the cuts that were promised to us are not instituted, it's time to Slash and Burn anyone, including my own Congressmen, who voted for cuts less than the promised $100 billion.

Time to Stop Using the Race Card

Earlier this week former NFL Quarterback Warren Moon suggested that NFL Prospect and potential first round draft pick Cameron Newton is being judged solely on his skin color and not his talent. Moon said this to CBS Sports:

A lot of the criticism he's receiving is unfortunate and racially based.  I thought we were all past this. I don't see other quarterbacks in the draft being criticized by the media or fans about their smile or called a phony.  He's being held to different standards from white quarterbacks. I thought we were past all this stuff about African-American quarterbacks, but I guess we're not.

The problem with Moon’s statement is that it is 100% false.  What Moon is commenting on is what ProFootballWeekly's Nolan Nawrocki had to say about Newton. Nawrocki wrote:

Very disingenuous — has a fake smile, comes off as very scripted and has a selfish, me-first makeup. Always knows where the cameras are and plays to them. Has an enormous ego with a sense of entitlement that continually invites trouble and makes him believe he is above the law — does not command respect from teammates and always will struggle to win a locker room.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t get a racism vibe from this statement, what I get from it is that Newton is cocky, me-first, screw-the-team type of player and that has nothing to do with his race.

Moon also implies that black quarterbacks in general don’t get a fair shake because of their color.  This, once again, is 100% false.  If a quarterback is skilled and good enough, he will make it, if not, he won’t make it, it’s that simple.  We need to stop playing the race card in this country whenever it is convenient.  The truth on this subject is simple, the reason black quarterbacks (generally) haven’t been as successful (no super bowls) is that their style of play (run first, pass second) isn’t all the contusive to the NFL, Period. 

We can also apply economics to this situation, if an owner of a team thinks Cameron Newton or any other mobile quarterback is going to win and make them money, he’ll invest in that quarterback.  The reason owner are starting to shy away from mobile quarterbacks (who tend to be black) is that they simply don’t get the same results as quarterbacks such as Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Aaron Rogers.

So once again, my message to Warren Moon or anyone else who wishes to use race as an excuse or reason . . . STOP!!  The NFL and it’s owners only care about one color, green.