Why do you think stupidity is so common?

Question

This isn't a rhetorical question.

I once read an article that stupidity has some kind of evolutionary benefit, and I can't imagine how society would function unless there was some stupidity. While stupidity is not the sole requirement for the following examples to work, it certainly does make things easier: advertising, the required effort to find a mate, scaling groups of people and maintaining order, etc.

Also, I wanted to know what sort of responsibility does living in such a world place on people (of a different intelligence) who see that things can be different, and perhaps better?

Answer 1

Because it's easier. Evolution is like water in that it always seeks the past of least resistance -- whatever works with the smallest application of effort or brainpower.

Answer 2

Stupidity is relative. As we educate ourselves, we continually raise the bar. Those not catching up are thought of as falling short (or stupid). Some stupid questions on Y!A are not so stupid. They are well-thought out. The stupidity comes when people answer these questions believing the point is to produce an answer, when many times the point of the questions is to gauge the way people respond. Call it a type of psychological experiment if you want, but observing this response process is the answer to most "stupid" people's questions.

Answer 3

I'm not so sure I agree with your choice of words as I think a different understanding would have been better.
Often times those that are labeled as stupid are strictly looking at something and making a judgment from their perspective.
It only stand to reason that a Mother of five with no husband would look at things differently than a women with five children and a husband that provides support and comfort.
We must always remember that while some answers may seem stupid if we were able to understand their perception we would better understand their answer.

Answer 4

Stupidity is the result of thinking that you know something. It manifests its self in two slightly different ways.

In one form you think that you know something so your mind is closed to any new information. Consequently anything that you hear that does not agree with your perconceptions on the subject sounds like stupidity to you, even if it is the truth. This form makes you think that people around you are stupid.

The other way is similar again you think that you know something so your mind is closed to any new information. People around you try to assist you be explaining that their are other was to see the idea, but you are bolcking the information they are trying to give you. This makes you appear stupid.

Keeping an open mind is the antidote for this problem.

Answer 5

Stupidity in the main is down to lack of knowledge and experience. So in a way it can aid learning when we say "well I will never do that again".

There is an ample example in an answer already given. Someone seeking to thrust religion at you because they cannot give a rational answer to a rational question.

Answer 6

The evolutionary bias against stupidity has largely disappeared. When H. Sapiens was still struggling for survival, stupid people tended to not survive. Nowadays, intelligence is not nearly as much a requisite for survival -- almost anyone can survive and reproduce, no matter how witless -- and they do.

Answer 7

I think it's common because it's passed down from mother to child or father to child or teacher to pupil, etc. I used to work in a day care center and the teachers would always use bad grammar and mistake an owl for an eagle. It's like the blind leading the blind.

Answer 8

""Why do you think stupidity is so common?""

We are being dumbed down on purpose!

TRAINING FILMS! == every time you watch TV, even the news, read comics, Hollywood.

I worked with 3M for many years-they would not put a high IQ person on the job to sell copy machines ----the 3Mr would loose interest too fast.

Dumbing down population makes us easier to control, sell to , and regulate.

Worker Ants get lots done at a lower price.

Answer 9

Personally i think everyone has the potential to be a genius. But i think the thing is that people are wasting their mind on things of no use ( i m not trying to say that i dont; sometimes i do). And i dont think stupidity could get anyone to anywhere.

Answer 10

You must maintain a certain amount of ignorance in order to survive, if you knew the truth about everything your brain just couldn't handle it. Quite often the more stupidity you see, if you don't laugh at it, you get angry because of the ignorance.