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adam

I'm With Stoopid

by adam at 01:23 PM on September 21, 2005

I'm starting to believe that our society is simply too stupid to live. Once upon a time, the big bugbear of American government was good old-fashioned corruption. But a corrupt government, while horribly inefficient, is still capable of making at least some constructive decisions. When government is dominated by institutional and personal stupidity, however, we have a problem. How can the bureaucrats and politicians make good decisions when they no longer know what a good decision looks like?

I would like to see every government agency simply dismissed and rebuilt from the ground up, but I lack the faith that there are enough people of what was once called normal intelligence in this country to effectively re-staff them. It's not that I believe that governments in general are this dumb - it's our government, from the President at the top all the way down to your local sanitation inspector, that couldn't find its collective arse with two hands.

What brought this rant on was recalling one definition of stupidity: doing something which actively harms or angers others while bringing no benefit, or even harm, to oneself.

comments (7)

It reminds me of the fiasco when the US dropped pork chops on Afghanistan.

by anna at September 21, 2005 6:39 PM


smart people don't bother with the government. they don't even 'rant' about it.

by lockheed at September 22, 2005 10:50 AM


OMFG. That "news" story/rant does nothing to try to explain why the food is being detained. What is the fucking regulation holding it? Hell, it might even be almost reasonable, but the author didn't do his research or just wants to shit on "Americans." As if the victims of Katrina aren't americans either. What a rag.

by MrBlank at September 22, 2005 1:12 PM


This is food from major industrialized countries with inspection regimes similar to our own. This is the same food that NATO soldiers eat when they're in the field. There might be a reason to perform additional inspections, but to incinerate a massive, expensive donatiion...I would say that it's a calculated insult, but I don't believe that the Dept. of Ag people who are behind this are smart enough to consider how their actions are affecting our friends. It's not just the food - Swedish water purification systems that (from news reports) were needed sat on runways for days because no one in the administration could be bothered to give permission for their reception. Offers for aid were ignored.
Years ago there was a huge earthquake in Turkey. The Greeks used the opporunity to reach out to their oldest enemies, and largely as a result of that effort the two countries finally started down the road to real peace. Twice now we've had a similar chance, and twice we've blown it. But we're also pissing off countries that are supposed to be our friends - that's inexcusable. Blank, the fact that you focus on the possibility of a reasonable regulation that allows tons of donated food to be incinerated instead of on the blind adherence to that rule that makes it ok to accept donations given in friendship and concern to begin with and then destroy them is a reflection of how this kind of nonsense happens to begin with.

by Adam at September 22, 2005 4:04 PM


Oh, and lockheed: who are these smart people you're talking about? Your taxes go to them, your country's defense and foreign relations are conducted by them, your schools and roads are maintained by them. You can choose not to get involved if you like, but don't try to call that refusal "smart." Refusal to take an interest in something that directly affects you isn't smart - it's dumb.

by Adam at September 22, 2005 4:12 PM


I too refuse to get involved. I can't choose between two forms of corruption and deceptive lies. But I'm damn generous with donations.

by anna at September 22, 2005 6:14 PM


What suprises me in your post is you say,

"I'm satrting to think..."


Ive been raised in a family that has always knew our society was corrupt and was going down the tubes, and that you might as well hang on for the ride and pick up some tuna fish and a loaf of bread while your at it.


-1138

by Clonereject1138 at October 18, 2005 11:25 AM