Saturday, August 20, 2011

Today’s question: is Idiocracy replacing Democracy in our society?

Did you ever see "Idiocracy," the 2006 sci-fi comedy set in an utterly dysfunctional nation 500 years in the future? Here’s a summary:

“The premise of "Idiocracy" is that a guy named Joe, with a "perfectly average IQ," is selected — along with a prostitute — for a hibernation experiment that inadvertently keeps him asleep until 2505, when he awakes to a world where, as the prologue explains, evolution "began to simply reward those who reproduced the most and left the intelligent to become an endangered species."

The result is a trash-strewn society in which crops are watered with a sports drink called Brawndo, people have names like Frito and Mountain Dew, and the most popular form of entertainment is a reality show called "Ow, My Balls," which consists of footage of a man repeatedly getting whacked in the groin.

Meanwhile, Costco is where you go for toilet paper and a university education, and IQs are so low that "average Joe" is considered a genius.” – source           

                                           Idiocracy in the News:

“The latest issue of the Economist has an article about the business-sabotaging effects of the battles in Washington, headlined "American Idiocracy." A recent blog post on the Psychology Today website was headlined "Idiocracy: Can We Reverse It?" Meanwhile, it's popping up in causal conversations, Internet comments and, most notably, on Twitter.”  - source

           Idiocracy entertainment:

“Judging by popular culture in 2011, it's hard not to wonder if 500 years was a too optimistic prediction, since "Jersey Shore" just might make "Ow, My Balls" look like "Masterpiece Theater." But mainstream entertainment has been the domain of idiocrats for a long time. A bummer of more recent vintage is the way our political system has followed suit.”  - source

                                                              Idiocracy in our Government

“What else can you call it when Congress gets the nation's credit rating lowered thanks to toddler-like stubbornness over an issue that many of its members barely seem to grasp? Put simply, fearing idiocracy isn't a matter of being liberal or conservative. It's a matter of not being an idiot. At least in theory.”source

                                     Idiocracy – the downfall of society:

“Maybe it's naive to think that ideological opponents can be brought together by a common fear of mass stupidity: Call it idiocraphobia. After all, the downfall of society is in the eye of the beholder; for every progressive who sees the "tea party" as the equivalent of Costco U., there's someone waving a Gadsden flag who earnestly believes Michele Bachmann emerged from a time capsule to protect babies from being named Frito.”  source

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