'educated beyond their intelligence' : catchy but meaningless phrase. No one can be educated beyond their intelligence. Either their intelligence level is lower than believed, or they were taught but not truly educated, or -- which view I myself favour -- or there is a considerable discrepancy between their reasoning and their beliefs.
Not my phrase, though I can't recall who coined it (Arthur C. Clarke cites it as well). I think there are plenty of people with letters after their names who do not display any great native intelligence. As Lichtenberg said, “The man was such an intellectual he was of almost no use.” In this case, the assigned categorically reject something they do not bither to argue against. It's sort of an ex cathedra pronouncement. I wouldn't hire any of them to be my lawyer. Their pomposity alone makes them worthy of ridicule.
Well, he mostly focuses on the idea that "more people want to countries ruled by white Europeans." Then he mentions the Chines who have moved to Africa, a continent where many countries have been influenced by white European rule. But the key point if the article he is objecting seems to be this: "That culture laid out the script we all were supposed to follow: Get married before you have children and strive to stay married for their sake. Get the education you need for gainful employment, work hard, and avoid idleness. Go the extra mile for your employer or client. Be a patriot, ready to serve the country. Be neighborly, civic-minded, and charitable. Avoid coarse language in public. Be respectful of authority. Eschew substance abuse and crime." Many of the people who come to this country perhaps do so because they already those norms, and even if American societ has deviated from them, the U. S. is still a safe place to practice them. But at least he does offer something resembling argument. Though he provides no grounds for categorically rejecting Wax and Alexander's article.
Frank, we are essentially in agreement. Having some letters after your name does not mean that you are necessarily educated. Lots of those who are degreed have learned to play the system -- possibly, however, a sign of a certain type of intelligence. The latter is notoriously difficult to define.
I figured we were, and you are dead right about playing the system. I could see that when i was in grad school, which is whyI left and went off to become, of all things, a journalist.
'educated beyond their intelligence' : catchy but meaningless phrase. No one can be educated beyond their intelligence. Either their intelligence level is lower than believed, or they were taught but not truly educated, or -- which view I myself favour -- or there is a considerable discrepancy between their reasoning and their beliefs.
ReplyDeleteNot my phrase, though I can't recall who coined it (Arthur C. Clarke cites it as well). I think there are plenty of people with letters after their names who do not display any great native intelligence. As Lichtenberg said, “The man was such an intellectual he was of almost no use.” In this case, the assigned categorically reject something they do not bither to argue against. It's sort of an ex cathedra pronouncement. I wouldn't hire any of them to be my lawyer. Their pomposity alone makes them worthy of ridicule.
ReplyDeletehttps://heterodoxacademy.org/2017/09/03/i-dont-care-if-amy-wax-is-politically-incorrect-i-do-care-that-shes-empirically-incorrect/
ReplyDeleteWell, he mostly focuses on the idea that "more people want to countries ruled by white Europeans." Then he mentions the Chines who have moved to Africa, a continent where many countries have been influenced by white European rule. But the key point if the article he is objecting seems to be this: "That culture laid out the script we all were supposed to follow: Get married before you have children and strive to stay married for their sake. Get the education you need for gainful employment, work hard, and avoid idleness. Go the extra mile for your employer or client. Be a patriot, ready to serve the country. Be neighborly, civic-minded, and charitable. Avoid coarse language in public. Be respectful of authority. Eschew substance abuse and crime."
ReplyDeleteMany of the people who come to this country perhaps do so because they already those norms, and even if American societ has deviated from them, the U. S. is still a safe place to practice them. But at least he does offer something resembling argument. Though he provides no grounds for categorically rejecting Wax and Alexander's article.
Frank, we are essentially in agreement. Having some letters after your name does not mean that you are necessarily educated. Lots of those who are degreed have learned to play the system -- possibly, however, a sign of a certain type of intelligence. The latter is notoriously difficult to define.
ReplyDeleteI figured we were, and you are dead right about playing the system. I could see that when i was in grad school, which is whyI left and went off to become, of all things, a journalist.
ReplyDelete