How To Protect Yourself From Idiocracy
What started out as a pet peeve and then become a frustration of mine is the devaluation of intellect in the modern world. While technology continues to improve at a rapid rate has it really been as beneficial as it should have been? Technology has made it easier to do plenty of things faster but at the same time its encouraged one of our easiest vices, sloth! We have become lazy, we look for instant gratification at every turn, so much so that anything that requires a long-term commitment to work we see as absolutely crippling.
Social Media Manipulation
One tool that has taken full advantage in the shift in thinking and one of the most apparent is social media, these guys are the Enron of their time and yes they are the smartest guys and girls in the room, don't be mistaken. As a digital marketer by trade I've had to use their platforms and extract customer data, review it, design targetted campaigns and advertise on these platforms so I think I have a fair bit of knowledge on how they work.
These platforms have analysed the lowest common denominators in consumer behaviour and encouraged us to consistently create more of this types of content and then in a genius move create these echo chambers and feedback loops of consistent dopamine hits through positive and sometimes negative reinforcement. These platforms have given people a false sense of authority without having to earn it and bypassed a fundamental social constraint, which I personally feel is lacking, a meritocracy.
This unlimited access has allowed anyone to have an opinion and in this so-called "digital democracy" numbers mean more than context and quality fo content, it is essentially mob rule. The tribalism we've kept with us through generations has also transcended into the digital age and instead of fighting it out on the battlefield, the new battlefield has become social media. Where the uninformed battle it out for supremacy and whether you one or lost it doesn't really matter because nothing is achieved, only a sense of achievement engagement.
There is no real action post discourse and this type of behaviour is one of the reasons we've slow to react when real action is needed.
Apart from low-quality content, shoddy sources, feedback loops and pseudo-action is content bias, social media has helped create a place where you can curate exactly what you want to see and see more of it more often creating a content bias to one opinion.
Now once you combine all these elements with daily usage the human brain was never ready for you to create a space for idiocracy to thrive. It's like the "dopstelsel" (Tot-system - being paid with alcohol) of the modern ear and keeps users isolated to certain parts of the internet and certain information and not exploring all the world has to offer, encouraging creativity or a thirst of passion for anything.
Everyone just wants to aspire to be a social media star, blogger or influencer, these are rent-seekers professions that offer no value in society, something I will deal with later when I tackle Game A Vs Game B theory.
Chamath Palihapitiya once a senior at Facebook has even stated that he thinks they've made a fundamental mistake in growing the company into the behemoth it is today. The power and influence it has been unprecedented as they helped create a generation of digital spoon feeders.
Not only the internet
While I probably sound like a raving lunatic to many or an old head who just doesn't 'get it" I still feel the user experience of the internet in its current form is not beneficial to society. The popular opinion is that intellect is something we should keep to ourselves.
Allow me to draw some anecdotal evidence from some of the biggest TV shows in modern times, in Freinds Ross was the smart one of the bunch and whenever he tried to share his interests he was shut down
In the TV show Big Bang theory the characters are always insulted for their intelligence and more is made of their socially awkward to devalue their intellect.
When intellect is finally displayed in a positive manner it's usually because they were born with it the person was a sarvant of some kind and it's depicted as something you don't work towards and is unattainable to many.
What kind of message do all these influences drive home to our generation? That being a dumbass is the epitome of modern life. One only needs to look as far as the Kardashians and their success in media to see the extent of how far we've fallen off the path of intellect.
Tangent alert
Maybe this is why so many kids are diagnosed with autism or other learning disabilities lately! Many are simply spritely young kids with a thirst for knowledge or creativity, a hunger that is never filled and for those who do have it, they will understand. Maybe if you just gave them the tools to go out and absorb the information they are interested in and not force feeding them facts to regurgitate they might show a bit of spark.
Evolution is merely mass production at this point
We're the largest population the world has ever seen, thanks to the help of a select few, the industrial revolution and capitalism advance in modern medicine, food and availability of produce has seen the human race explode in numbers. Many of our archaic systems like the schooling system, the job market and political climate were and are still not ready to manage the number of people we've created and with access to resources becoming increasingly limited it becomes a case of the blind leading the blind.
Allow me to illustrate with a clip from the start of the movie:
1: Read a damn book.
Something special happens when you set aside the inane distractions of modern culture and immerse yourself in a novel. You open yourself up to new ideas, new experiences, new perspectives. It’s an experiment in patience and mindfulness. The New School for Social Research in New York proved that reading literature improves empathy. It’s true. Reading makes you less of a jerk. So, read often. Read difficult books. Read controversial books. Read a book that makes you cry. Read something fun. But read.
2: Learn something.
Your brain is capable of so much. Feed it. Learn something new. The greatest threat to progress is the belief that something is too complex to fix. Poverty is permanent. Racism will always exist. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is too difficult to understand. The public education system is broken. Educate yourself, so you can be part of the conversation. Learn something scientific, something mathematic. Explore philosophy. Study paleontology. Try to learn a new language. You don’t even have to make fluency your goal, just get a few more words in your head. Listen to an educational podcast. Professors from colleges — such as Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Stanford — are offering their lectures online for free. Think of what you could learn. One of my greatest challenges as a teacher was convincing students they were smart after someone had told them they were dumb.
3: Stop buying so much shit.
This may seem like a non sequitur, but I’m convinced consumer culture and idiot culture are closely linked. Simplify your life. Idiocy dominates our cultural landscape because it sells more Nike tennis shoes and Big Macs. When we thoughtfully consider what we bring into our home, we are less likely to be manipulated by empty impulses.
4: Protect the nerds.
A computer programmer from Seattle is doing more to alleviate world poverty, hunger, and disease through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation than any other person in America right now. Nerds create vaccines. Nerds engineer bridges and roadways. Nerds become teachers and librarians. We need those obnoxiously smart people because they make the world a better place. We can’t have them cowering before a society that rolls their eyes at every word they say. Ross and the big bang gang needs better friends. Encourage your inner nerd or nerds around you to follow their dreams, excellence is never out of fashion, the rest of the world will catch up and have to shut up
5: Start writing
You have literally 1000s of thoughts a day many of them are absolute rubbish but every so often you'll think of something worth taking further when you do right the damn thing down and start researching, create a post on it, start a business because of it, create a podcast it doesn't matter what you do just don't let ideas fall by the wayside. Give into what your mind wants for once, feed it that brain food.
6. Speak to people
In the world of digital connection, texting has become a dominant form communication but is it effective for brain development. Having the ability to stop and think before you reply, shortening your replies because you're too lazy to type limits you in so many ways, in ideas, thoughts and vocabulary. You're always trying to get your message across as fast as possible.
Having a discussion helps you keep your brain on your toes, it needs you to respond on the fly and engage with elements of your brain that were usually left dormant. Try it, You may be surprised at how far off topic you go and how deep into topics you can dive without researching a single thing!
7. Reduce your consumption of mainstream media
I'm not saying become a recluse but take MSM content with a grain of salt, limit it because it is bad for out. Cut down on the social media, drop the reality shows and do your research when you see a topic on the news, don't expect unbias journalism, they're all pushing an agenda, from the political right, left, corporate or federal levels.
Learn to be a free thinker and formulate your own opinions even if they're unpopular they are yours!
8. Travel
Instead of travelling just so you can take pics for the gram and make sure everyone back home is jealous of your trip, travel with the intent to immerse yourself in other peoples cultures, experience life as a local, get a feel for how people think and interpret things on the other side of the world or in different walks of life. You may be surprised at how ignorant and close minded you've been all this time. I know that's happened to me from personal experience.
9 Excercise
Keeping your brain in tip-top shape isn't just about what you feed it and how you use it but also the body it is in. I know intellect is associated with either a fat dude behind a PC or a skinny scientist with glasses but it doesn't have to be. I'm not saying you need to put on major gains bro, but get out a bit, hike, run, hog, play a sport, get some fresh air and get that prefrontal cortex lit up in differnt ways
10 Eat right
I'm just going to come out and say it man cannot live on pizza and pizza alone! Unfortantely no one has thought of a way to do it, if you have, hit me up i'm keen to try it. Try to keep a balanced diet and stay hydrated, limit your sugar and booze and keep your brain functioning at its peak. Not saying you can't go off on a bender now and then, even the best brain needs to be shut down once in a while!
Formulating my thoughts
Forgive me for rambling on and being all over the place throughout this post but I have so many thoughts I'd like to put down on this topic and I probably will in future as I come up with a coherent series of how to group these thoughts. This was merely something that has been bothering me for a while and I thought i'd put it out there and see if any like minded people have similar experiences.
Have your say
What is your opinion? Do you think the modern lifestyle drains us of our intelligence and our need for critical thinking? Do we still have a thirst for knowledge? Have we become over-obsessed with documenting everything that quality content has been drowned out by what appeals to the lowest common denominator?
Share your thoughts with me in the comments below
Let's connect
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