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How Smart *Are* Billionaires, Anyway?
Only in the Age of Foolishness (our current age) would you see a headline like the following: “Billionaires could leave Earth behind for space colony as climate collapses.”
This comically preposterous headline, which sounds like something from some stinkaroo sci-fi flick, begs a very serious question; and no, not one about the climate or the technological feasibility of a space colony. Those pale in comparison to the more trenchant question, which is: If an incredibly wealthy person really believes that the climate is in danger of “collapse,” and collapsing so bad that the only way to survive is by leaving the planet, how is it possible that such a person could ever have been smart enough to make a billion dollars in the first place?
Or to put it more succinctly: How can obviously smart people be so stupid?
That is the question of our time, and it’s a doozy. Because never in the history of humanity has there been such a paradoxical dichotomy on such a grand scale. Never have there been so many well-educated people with access to virtually all knowledge and information, and yet, the modern, or maybe we should stipulate “postmodern,” world is utterly swamped in unprecedented foolishness.
We see it everywhere around us. The incessant climate claptrap that has us doomed if we don’t give up fossil fuels, which would, oh, by the way, destroy the world’s economy; the never-ending love affair with socialism, the most failed, not to mention murderous, economic system in history; the LGBTQ and transgender madness which denies immutable biological science while encouraging sexual depravity; the supposed virtuousness of open borders and endless immigration from the Third World, which can only lead to the overrunning and destruction of the country as we know it; criminal justice reform and doing away with bail, the only result of which will be to unleash more crime and mayhem on the public.
And don’t forget: free college, free healthcare, free everything!
All of these obvious idiocies, and much more, are being promoted by the most well-educated people in human history! How is this possible? How can universities full of brilliant people (in terms of IQ) believe in things that are so foolish and destructive?
It may not be possible to definitively prove as causal, but one thing is certain: in the absence of Judeo-Christian religion and values, human foolishness and depravity absolutely flourish, like bacteria in a Petri dish. And make no mistake; we are already, for all intents and purposes, a post-Judeo-Christian society and the left wants to stamp out even the remnants if at all possible. Why? Because Judeo-Christianity is one of the only remaining checks on sexual depravity, most forms of which they are hell-bent on normalizing.
But it’s not just sexual matters; it’s all matters, everything under the sun. That’s because for the average leftist, indignation, combined with ingratitude, is an unalterable state of mind and everything that came before he/she/it popped into the world was stifling, oppressive, racist, homophobic, outdated, wrong and just generally sucked. So naturally, when things are that messed up, the only solution is to chuck it all and start over from scratch. And universities full of brilliant people with Ph.D.’s galore are generally down with that.
So it’s pretty easy to see that without the strong foundation of morality, wisdom, gratitude, and moderation provided by Judeo-Christianity, leftism takes root and foolishness runs amuck. The complexity of human life and the insatiability of human desire afford endless impulses and opportunities to basically ruin any and everything. Add to that the hubris of our supposed intellectual superiors – most of whom recognize no transcendent intelligence greater than their own – and there is no depth to which we cannot sink.
And thus, “Billionaires could leave Earth behind for space colony as climate collapses.”
Our civilization is in deep trouble alright, but not because of the climate. It’s because there are so many people who actually think it’s because of the climate. And we all know that the reason leftists have glommed onto climate change is because it’s the greatest available excuse for imposing some kind of green socialism on the world, which would destroy widespread prosperity and turn the entire world into, basically, Cuba.
Now that would be a good reason to leave Earth behind for a space colony. Despite the fact that American leftists love to fawn over the socialist island paradise (the literacy rate is spectacular!), nobody’s packing up and moving there. And if Cuba becomes basically everywhere, it’s “Adios, Planet Earth” for anybody with enough bucks to vamoose.
Published in General
I agree with the general thrust of your essay. I believe our current elites (which includes more than just billionaires – it’s the public intellectuals, the media, the universities and so forth) are the worst in our nation’s history. Some percentage of them are toe-tag leftists; but many, I think, spout the nonsense they spout mainly out of fear of the Left. They are more fearful of being called a racist, bigot, homophobe or sexist than they are interested in either the truth or of preserving the foundations of what made America so exceptional.
Greg, you’ve got one great rant there. It’s also full of good sense, common and otherwise.
Does not!
The big thing about all this BS is that no matter what you did to the planet, it would still, by far, be the most hospitable place in the solar system.
Even a city-sized meteor (unless you were under it) would leave the rest of the planet much more habitable than anywhere else.
Which is true. IF there was a space colony already out there to go to. There’s not. Who’s going to be the first to tell that to his billionaire boss?
It would be on Golgafrincham Ark Fleet Ship B wouldn’t it?
If they want to go live in space colonies, they’re going to need a lot of gear – most of it of the “glamping” variety; they’re billionaires after all. Awesome space tents, space latte makers, some kind of six-wheeled balloon-tired space limo. Think of how much business that will create for us poor schmucks who must remain behind. I mean, they can’t take it with them, there’s nothing to buy up there (according to both Elton John and David Bowie). So they may as well spend it before they leave. The only legitimate “wealth redistribution”. Go Elon! Go Jeff!
We shouldn’t rule out a space colony for billionaires out of hand. Maybe have a pilot project to test it out. Let’s start with Bloomberg, Steyer, Soros, Bezos and any like-minded billionaire friends they want to take along. Shovel ’em all into a rocket, blast it off, and let them get to work building that space colony. Since most billionaires are men, some of them will have to decide to be women to keep the species procreating. Meanwhile, back here on Earth with temperatures one or two degrees higher than they are now, the rest of us will be dying like polar bears.
My first thought too. :-D
But remember, didn’t everybody on Golgafrincham get wiped out from disease that started from an unsanitized telephone?
It’s been a lot of years since I read that but I think you’re right.
I wonder if they will take dollars or euros along?
It suggests a good exercise for students of economics: what would be the economic effects if they did that?
(I promise not to grade any answers unless requested by the student ;-)
It would appear to me to be the ultimate example of the supply and demand curve. Might be some inflation with too much money chasing too little goods and services. I can see Bloomberg trying to outbid Bezos for a jar of freeze dried peanut butter.
Does to!
Those people at universities calling for “free college” are really calling for much more tax-payer funds for their own pockets. You don’t see those elites calling for wage controls on professors to lower the cost ofcollege. Nope.
All the panic over COVID-19 has really exposed the lie of climate change being an existential threat. Nobody has ever or will ever fight over a box of toilet paper in Costco, because of their fear of climate change. Nope.
From the Guide itself (and actually the usless 1/3 of society of Golgafrincham Ark B)
The idiot who wrote that article is another reason to never succumb to Gell-Mann Amnesia.
Later Nietzsche wrote that,
https://bigthink.com/scotty-hendricks/what-nietzsche-really-meant-by-god-is-dead
Mankind needs religion. Socialism is a perverse echo of Christianity. It promises charity (agape) and belonging to individuals and groups. Christianity is a competitor. It is a religious war.
Gold! To barter with the aliens . . .
Big mistake to call these people well educated. Many are technically trained and some are smart as hell and we used to require that they also be educated, but that’s not necessary any more. Our universities don’t educate kids unless the kid actually wants an education or has parents who care enough to provide guidance.