Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Are we stupid or what?


Have I gotten so old that I've seen it all so many times that life seems like it's on a perpetual loop. Every year it's the same thing. In spring somebody goes on a river trip only to realize that the rivers are running too fast. The boat/raft they are riding in goes over and one of them gets killed but they can't find him for several days. In summer there's the lake drownings at least one for the season. On fourth of July somebody looses a hand or a house gets torched by fireworks. Then there's the brush fires. Started by a cigarett, campfire, firework, lawnmower, barbeque or car malfunction. What season would be complete without a lost hicker. And over and over it goes same thing different year. Maybe it's just a new round of idiots having to learn the same things that's been happening for generations. And with all the safety gear required now you'd think things would be better. Not to brag but when I was little we didn't wear helmets and arm pads and knee pads and we made it okay. I don't recall anyone having servere head injuries from skateboarding or biking. A few skinned knees and arm abrashions and it was back out the next day for more of the same. I can only assume we were in better physical shape than the kids today not having spent hours staring at computer screen or video game.
Then there's stupid on the roadways. When we took drivers ed we all got to see that great film Signal 30 (I think it was called) Something made in the 1940s it shows the double dating teens out on a Friday night. Boys in suit coat and tie and girls in full dresses. One of the crew pulls out a bottle hidden under the seat and proceeds to coax the rest to take a swig or two. Even the driver is coersed into taking part. You can figure the outcome with the car wrapped around a tree at the end. Today I'm amazed anybody makes it through their teen years. With alcohol, drugs, cell phones, texting, twitter and street racing there's enough distractions and imparements that even a pro driver on a closed course couldn't overcome.

Then there's the truly greatest method of documenting stupidity ever invented - You Tube. I think it promotes stupidity. Make sure you get ever detail when you douse the cat in lighter fluid and pop him into the micro. "Hey Jimmy let's see if we can ride our bikes off the roof. What do you think will happen? I don't know but don't forget to bring the video recorder."
How many rounds of this kind of stupid make up a life? Is it ingrained in a base level of our genetic make up?

2 comments:

Holte Ender said...

Stupidity: A poor ability to understand or to profit from experience.

pygalgia said...

Cleaning out the shallow end of the gene pool. It's our only hope.