Category: Culture

The Dunning-Kruger Effect

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After years of trying to figure out what the hell is wrong with our society, last week (quite by accident) I discovered the problem.  It’s called the Dunning-Kruger Effect and it’s the reason our world is riding the Express bus to Crazy Town.

For those of you who haven’t googled it already, the Dunning-Kruger Effect is some serious scientific blah, blah, blah that boils down to this — incompetent people don’t know they’re incompetent.  In fact, they generally believe they’re actually good at what they do. (Explains a lot, doesn’t it?)

Okay, this has been accepted folk wisdom since the time of Socrates.  Most of us kinda know the world is full of arrogant assholes who haven’t got a clue; documenting it has just confirmed our suspicions.  However (and this is the scary bit) given the recent research, there’s a lot of speculation that this phenom is actually growing.  OMG!

The problem is, the 21st century has created a perfect storm for the Dunning-Kruger Effect.  Here’s how it works.  In our totally connected world, any nitwit can post the most cringe-worthy crap on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter etc. and within seconds, tons of people are calling it “incredible,” “amazing” and “awesome.”  This just adds fuel to the fire.  Now, throw in an unhealthy dose of celebrity worship, and suddenly the flames of nitwittery are out of control.  Let’s take a look:

Gwyneth Paltrow is a decent actress.  She was a great Polly Perkins and an acceptable “Pepper” Potts.  She has millions of fans.  But, here’s the deal, folks: she’s not a health care professional.  Her lifestyle, health and welfare company GOOP is nothing more than a walking encyclopedia of quackery, chicanery and out-and-out stupidity.  Yet she boasts millions of disciples.

Jim Carrey, a comedian with zero medical credentials, talks about vaccinations as if he were the Surgeon-General.

Leonardo DiCaprio (a spectacularly gifted actor who didn’t finish high school, BTW) truly believes he has the inside scoop on climate change.

Bono, Sting and Sir Bob Geldorf, a crew of used-to-be musicians, walk with presidents and prime ministers, chatting about the causes and cures of poverty, disease and starvation – and they’re taken seriously.

Russell Brand is not an economist.  Neither is Tom Morello.  And, it’s no stretch to say the accumulated political expertise of Susan Sarandon, Sean Penn, Alec Baldwin and Angelina Jolie is the ability to cry on cue.

And it goes on and on — from fly-by-night diets to Flat Earth athletes.

But the Oprah Winfrey Award for arrogant incompetence has got to go to Kanye West.  Mr. Kardashian, who freely admits he doesn’t read history books, somehow came to the incredible conclusion that slavery was a choice.  A CHOICE!  And this guy has 27 million plus Twitter followers!

This is insanity, people!

But here’s the scariest of the scary bits.  I haven’t even mentioned the Big Kahuna, the poster boy for the Dunning-Kruger Effect, the beginning, middle and the end of most arguments in 2019 — a certain politician who’s presumably the leader of the free world.  Now, that is scary!

 

Common Sense – What’s On Your Plate?

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The War on Common Sense continues and, in fact, has opened up a whole new battleground – automobile licence plates.  (FYI: if you have enough money, you can choose what is printed on your automobile’s licence plate.  For example, according the BBC, in Dubai, the plate “1” sold for over ten million dollars. (That’s right – over 10 million US dollars!)  However, you have to be careful.  Let me tell you a cautionary tale.

Way back in 1990, in my country, Canada, a guy by the name of Lorne Grabher bought a “vanity plate” with his name on it – GRABHER – no space, no lower case, just GRABHER.  For the next 26 years, he drove his car around the streets with his last name in full view of the unsuspecting (and, I’m assuming, unconcerned) Canadian public.  This all came to a screaming halt in 2016 when the government received an “anonymous complaint.”  I don’t know what the complaint said, but the government shot into action, and Mr. Grabher was informed that he had to surrender his licence plate because it was a “socially unacceptable slogan.”  I can only imagine the conversation.

Grabher – “It’s not a slogan, you idiot: it’s my last name!”
Bureaucrat – “We’re the government, and we don’t care.”

Anyway, our boy, Grabher, decided he wasn’t going to surrender his last name without a fight and took the government to court.  The government, who has more taxpayer money than brains, replied with the bureaucratic equivalent of “Okay!  Bring it on!” and called in the big guns.  They retained an expert, Dr. Carrie Rentschler, Associate Professor of Feminist Media Studies at McGill University, to deliver a report on the subject.  In the report, Rentschler maintains that, among other things, the questionable license plate is an “act of violence,” “supports violence against women,” “endangers women” and implies “by the pussy.”  Strong stuff!

However, Mr. Grabher also retained an expert, Dr. Debra Soh, who has a PhD in Sexual Neuroscience from York University. In her report, Dr. Soh wrote, “Mr. Grabher’s plate is not offensive or dangerous to women by any means, and I have found no evidence to support the idea that a license plate bearing his surname would increase rates of sexual violence against women or encourage societal attitudes supportive of sexual assault.  To suggest that Mr. Grabher’s surname is ‘a statement in support of physical violence against women’ is completely unfounded”

The battle rages, and the court date, after much jockeying by both sides, is set for April, 2019.

I’m no expert either way, but this is totally nutsy!  A two-year court case over a license plate that existed for a quarter of a century before it offended anybody?  I’m pretty sure the courts have better things to do with their time, like – maybe — hearing cases of real domestic violence?  Plus, it’s the guy’s last name, for God’s sake!  Which, according to Dr. Carrie Rentschler, means his very existence “supports violence against women.”  If that’s the case, where did the guy work?  There are not a lot of companies around that want an employee whose name implies “by the pussy.”  Who were his friends?  How did he ever get a date?  “Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. Johnson.  My name is “a statement in support of physical violence against women.”  Is Betty ready to go to the Prom?”  Yeah, that works!  And it goes on and on.  Given this kind of round-the -bend logic, postal workers should refuse to deliver Mr. Grabher’s mail just because it’s got his name on it.  Think about it!

Here’s the deal, folks.  Our society hasn’t lost its common sense: common sense is under attack, and we’d better start defending ourselves before it’s too late.

Just A Few More New Year’s Resolutions

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We’re less than a week into the New Year, and the salad eaters are already getting a little crabby, the non-smokers are downright belligerent and if Rashema, from accounting, tells you one more time why she’s not eating chocolate, you’re going to shove a Mars Bar™ up her nose.  But not to worry!  This happens every January when the “I’m-going-to-get-better” resolutions are still fresh.  In a couple of weeks, things will settle down and get back to normal.  Thank God!

However, in the interests of social progress, maybe it’s time our world made a few collective “I’m-going-to-get-better” resolutions.  Just a couple of minor changes that would enhance our society and make the journey from the cradle to the grave a little better for all of us.  Naturally, I have suggestions.

#1 — It’s time to limit the size of baby strollers.  Yes, parents have to move their kids around somehow, but they don’t need a vehicle the size of a Smart Car.  Some of those Infant Transportation Devices (ITDs) are big enough to have their own WiFi, for God’s sake!

#2 – And while we’re on the subject: let’s give some reasonable thought to carry-on luggage.  It isn’t necessary to haul that much crap onto an airplane that’s only going to be in the air a couple of hours.  And honestly, how much stuff do you actually need for a weekend in Vegas?

#3 — Let’s quit “checking our privilege” every five seconds.  Folks!  It’s still there.

#4 – And could we kindly remember that the collective wisdom of 50,000 years of science, mathematics, art and history isn’t merely a matter of opinion?

#5 – Perhaps we could overcome the burning need to constantly call each other with minute-by-minute updates on our global location.  “I’m on the bus.”  I’m around the corner.”  “I’ll be there in 10.”  If your friends are that worried you’re going to wander off like an absent-minded puppy, give the people around you a break and text them.

#6 – This is the year we should finally stop using the term “speaking out.”  First of all, it’s redundant and secondly, there’s an implication that, at some point, the speaker was silenced.  I can assure you: in our 24/7 Social Media universe, nobody is silent — unless they want to be.

#7 – Let’s not forget there’s a reason we have right and wrong.  Again, it’s not merely a matter of opinion.

#8 – At some point, we need to realize that a 140-character tweet is not a well-thought-out discussion of anything – ever.  Tweets don’t deserve that kind of respect.

#9 – The world would be a quieter, gentler place if everybody who has one would just shut up about their student loan.

#10 – We need to stop thinking people get extra points for being “authentic.”  They don’t!  It’s what people are supposed to be.

But the thing we all have to remember in 2019 – seriously — is:

#11 – It’s not about you!