Intro LO: A 1 December 2024 SCMP article (see below) caught my immediate interest as I’ve had a similar idea mid 2022 that was based on an earlier idea in my 2018 blog: 2022: Is stupidity the flip side of beliefs? 2018: Knowledge = Power and the Great Filter in civilisations (5) I prefer my 2022 diagram in this specific stupidity context. Source: my 2022 blog...
Stupidity
Will Tory incompetence transfer to Labour?
9 Jul, 2024
The incompetence of UK Conservatives (a.k.a. Tories) has been severely penalised after their chaotic reign of 14 years (2010-2024). However, incompetence seems to be a British rather than a Tory attitude. Hence, the question in my blog title. Also see my related blogs on (legendary) British incompetence: 2018: Why the UK excels at mismanaging expectations (FT);...
Absolute immunity for Joe Biden
3 Jul, 2024
Most articles claim that Donald Trump has won following the recent SCOTUS verdict about (near) absolute immunity for (former) US presidents. That would only be true if Joe Biden would not use this verdict to his advantage. SCOTUS has also given Joe Biden a near absolute immunity. Interestingly, a dissent SCOTUS opinion may also be read as a very implicit advice to...
When (and how) to believe compulsive liars??
26 Jun, 2024
In principle, my blog title is a contradiction in terms. Hence, the answer to my question above might well be: never. Still, some compulsive liars will allow us to use a (simple) technique, like reverse speech. I suppose that most liars are (much) more sophisticated. In my view, nearly everything that Donald Trump says is the (exact) opposite of facts or objective...
Rights & duties: vaccination
21 Mar, 2024
The Netherlands is considering following a German law: mandatory vaccination in child care facilities against common child diseases (eg, measles, DKTP). In my view, the right of the majority (ie, health) is more important than the (ideological) right of a minority (ie, freedom). Nevertheless, this entire vaccination issue is the result of government stupidity. Any...
Centrism
20 Dec, 2023
In several of its articles, British newspaper The Telegraph claims that centrism is dead (eg, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023). That view makes sense because most Anglo-Saxon countries have bipartisan political systems (eg, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, UK, USA). The (extreme) political turbulence in most of those bipartisan Anglo-Saxon countries makes you wonder if...
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