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  1. Susan Quinn Contributor
    Susan Quinn
    @SusanQuinn

    I hate calling people stupid. I would hate to be called stupid. But they are stupid. And seem invested in staying that way. Thanks for the chance to vent, Seawriter.

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  2. Vectorman Inactive
    Vectorman
    @Vectorman

    Seawriter: but one must work hard to remain stupid

    I’m reminded of a corollary from Ronald Reagan:

    It isn’t so much that liberals are ignorant. It’s just that they know so many things that aren’t so.


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  3. Derek Simmons Member
    Derek Simmons
    @

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):
    I hate calling people stupid. I would hate to be called stupid. But they are stupid. And seem invested in staying that way. Thanks for the chance to vent, Seawriter.

    I agree with absolutely everything you said. Except….the first sentence.

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  4. Mim526 Inactive
    Mim526
    @Mim526

    Archie Bunker/Obama mashup on the subject….

     

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  5. drlorentz Member
    drlorentz
    @drlorentz

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):
    I hate calling people stupid.

    Why? It’s a possibly legitimate characterization of a person’s inability to think deeply or clearly. There are more verbose ways of expressing the same idea but stupid encapsulates it in one word.

    By the way, some people seem to take ignorant as an insult also. To me, it means there’s something I don’t know. I admit to being ignorant about all kinds of stuff. But it turns out the word has a couple of other meanings (New Oxford American Dictionary):

    informal discourteous or rude: this ignorant, pin-brained receptionist.
    black English easily angered: I is an ignorant man—even police don’t meddle with me.

    I’ve gotten into trouble saying that another person was simply ignorant. It turns out to be surprisingly difficult to clear up the misunderstanding.

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  6. Seawriter Contributor
    Seawriter
    @Seawriter

    drlorentz (View Comment):
    By the way, some people seem to take ignorant as an insult also. To me, it means there’s something I don’t know. I admit to being ignorant about all kinds of stuff.

    There is an old saying I subscribe to: “It is better to know nothing than to learn nothing.” The list of stuff I don’t know is a whole lot longer than the stuff I do know, although I keep trying to reduce what I do not know through learning.

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  7. Susan Quinn Contributor
    Susan Quinn
    @SusanQuinn

    drlorentz (View Comment):
    Why? It’s a possibly legitimate characterization of a person’s inability to think deeply or clearly. There are more verbose ways of expressing the same idea but stupid encapsulates it in one word.

    @drlorentz, I think the term stupid is often used to denigrate another in an arrogant way. People have different kinds of smarts–street smart, intellectual smart, down-to-earth smart, and so on. It certainly can be used accurately, but I think it is usually meant to insult. I agree with your use of ignorant, actually. But again, people often use it to attack another. Then again, others can take it that way unjustly. Ah, language–so complex! ;-)

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