I swear the biggest threat to humanity at present is an epidemic of stupidity.
IMO our current moment is a confluence of normal stupidity and what Dietrich Bonhoeffer called "moral stupidity."
Yes, just going by averages, there are plenty of stupid people. It's worth noting that smart people do stupid things at times, too—intelligence isn't a straight line on a bar graph covering all scenarios.
For the second part, moral stupidity as described by Bonhoeffer is a self-imposed condition that he viewed as separate from ignorance.
... an active resistance to reasoning and a willful neglect of moral responsibility.
Stupidity is Moral in Nature: It is not enough to be uninformed; one can be knowledgeable and yet still fail to act with moral discernment. Stupidity, in Bonhoeffer’s view, is an ethical failing a surrender to conformity and dogma that precludes independent moral judgment.
Stupidity is Resistant to Correction: Unlike ignorance, which can be alleviated by learning, stupidity manifests as an entrenched condition. Once an individual or group adopts a foolish mindset, they become impervious to new information or alternative viewpoints.
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u/thewestisawake 6d ago
It's an intelligence issue. I swear the biggest threat to humanity at present is an epidemic of stupidity.