(overheard at work) - "Hey, they speak Dutch in Sweden, right?" - "No, they speak Swedish in Sweden" - "You mean it's not the same language?" - "No - Dutch is what they speak in the Netherlands" - "Okay" (pause) "Then how do you spell it?" - "D-U-T-C-H" - "Really? You sure it's not D-E-U-T-S-C-H ?" - "No, that's German. It's German for "German"" - "Hold on... that's a separate language ALSO???" (the scary thing is, all the questions came from a bright, tech-savvy guy who graduated college(!!!) at about the same time as I did)
As I remember Dan Quayle, Vice President under Bush the Elder, had a wealth of publicly recorded, scary statements. Compared to these, others pale into insignificance. 'Most of our imports come from abroad' 'I love California, I practically grew up in Phoenix.' 'It isn't pollution that's harming the environment. It's the impurities in our air and water that are doing it.' 'It's time for the human race to enter the solar system.' 'One word sums up probably the responsibility of any vice-president, and that one word is 'to be prepared'.' Finally, a comforting last word of re-assurance... 'We're going to have the best-educated American people in the world.'
A college or university education is not proof of intelligence. It merely proves that the person or persons are capable of memorizing (not understanding, but merely memorizing) very specific pieces of information, and possibly even understanding one tenth of them, should there be a practical aspect to the studies. And it certainly doesn't involve learning anything other than those required to get that bit of paper in the end... you know, the one that future employers want to see. And what a uni or college education gives with that bit of paper, is the illusion of intelligence and a sense of superiority toward that segment of the population that doesn't hold similar bits of paper. The idea that a higher education is better than other paths in life is, quite frankly, pure BS. In any case, yes, your colleague is rather ignorant when it comes to general knowledge of the world. He's not the only one around. The world is full of them - this is because most people simply don't care all that much beyond their own backyard, for better or for worse. I personally think that at least basic understanding of the world beyond the borders of your country is a must, but I also think that there are more important issues to teach at school. Give me ignorant, but largely decent people, and I will be content.
No, you won't be. Because a well-meaning fool can do at least as much damage as an educated bastard, if not more. edited: Not to suggest that all ignorant people are fools - far from it! But, before you try to fix anything, be it your toilet or the world at large, you better be damn sure you know how it works in the first place!
As you said, ignorant is not the same as stupid. A decent individual is someone who won't try to help when he knows that he's much likelier to cause harm. What I fear isn't kind fools. What I am truly scared of are smart and kind zealots. People who are smart enough to make their dreams happen, but who walk such a narrow path in their own minds that they refuse to see the bad consequences of their actions. I mention the Soviet Union often. Too often, at times. Possibly because it was such a fine example of misguided, well-meaning lunacy. They all meant well, the people who followed Lenin's vision. And because that vision had to happen, they massacred anyone who didn't believe in Utopia. This resulted in a country whose Special-Ops soldiers, the best of the very best (or possibly the worst of the very worst, depending on your point of view), the Spetznaz, coined the following phrase - "Fear only the man who wants to help you." Or so the urban legend goes.
