Preface:
I spend a great deal of time "observing" people and trying to learn from them. This is largely due to my own issues such as Social Anxiety Disorder. Over the past few years I have noticed a disturbing trend. It appears that Humanity, at least Americans, have gotten STUPID(ER). Now I know what you are probably thinking, but here me out, please, before you go and Flag this post or leave a Nasty Comment.
What do I mean by STUPID(ER)?
Well, in short, I mean that people lack any common sense or ability to reason. They also, appear to, lack any ability to Focus and/or maintain a train of thought for more than a few seconds. To give an example this conversation occurred yesterday between me and a cashier at Jimmy John's.
Me: Hello, I would like a Gargantuan Combo with Cherry Peppers
Cashier: So, umm, a Gargantuan with Hot Peppers?
Me: Yes Hot Peppers
Cashier: Would you like chips and a drink with that?
Me: Yes I asked for a Combo
Cashier: So you want chips and a drink?
Me: Yes I want chips and a drink!!!!!
Cashier: What sized drink?
Me: Small please
Cashier: Medium?
Me: No a small drink please
Cashier: We only have Medium and Large
Me: Your smallest drink please
Cashier: Okay so I got a Gargantuan with Hot Peppers, a Medium Drink and Chips, will there be anything else?
No that is all, for here please!
It literally took almost 5 minutes from the time I got to the register to the time I finished paying for my food. Sadly, this is a trend I have noticed almost everywhere I go nowadays. In the above conversation the cashier was unable to Remember that I ordered a COMBO, then unable to Reason that if I wanted a small drink and the medium is their smallest drink then I wanted a medium drink.
Before I go any further, I should point out that almost every example for my article here is from 30 and under age group. This will become important a little later in this article so please keep reading.
Another recent example I can give happened a few weeks ago when I went to the store in Idaho Springs, CO to get a couple packs of cigarettes. I had coupons that clearly showed Pall Mall Silver 100's on them. The conversation went like this:
Me: Two of these please (and I handed the coupons to the cashier)
Cashier: (Looks at coupons and then grabs two packs of Marlboro White Shorts)
Me: Pall Mall Silver 100's please, look at the coupons
Cashier: Well I am color blind
Me: You can't read either I see, the coupons say Pall Mall Silver on them
Cashier: Well they look white to me
Me: Okay well I want Pall Mall Silver 100's please
Cashier: Here, but I can't take the coupons
Me: Why not
Cashier: I don't know how
Me: just press Coupon, $1, Override - Your manager takes them all the time
Cashier: Umm.....okay your total is: $11.53 (don't remember exact total)
Me: Debit (then I swipe my card)
Cashier: It was declined
Me: I told you Debit, you pushed Credit so yeah it declined cause I pushed Debit....now run it as DEBIT please
Cashier: Oh I didn't hear you!
There are so many things that went wrong with that interaction I don't even know where to start. One the guy couldn't listen, two the guy had no common sense, three he lacked any ability to think or reason (for himself), four he was an asshole. In all fairness I had several other interactions with him after this one and they all went smoothly. Not sure if he was just having a bad day or woke up on the Dumb Ass Side of the Bed that morning.
Other common things I see along these lines occurs while I am driving, whether I am in a car/truck/van or an 18 wheeler they constantly happen:
* People come to a complete stop at a YIELD sign, even when there is nothing coming
* People only yield at a STOP sign, even when there is something coming
* Roundabouts are beyond most people's comprehension or understanding (and Utah is putting them everywhere)
* Cars merge on to the freeway (in front of semi trucks) doing like 30 mph, then hit their brakes when they realize they just cut off a semi truck
* People think a Yellow Light means slam on the brakes, but a light that turns Red means SPEED UP before the other direction gets a Green Light
Now I could tell you that these things occur because of:
* Poor Parenting
* Crappy Education System
* Too much television/video games
* Lack of social interactions
* The crap we eat, drink and breathe
But I won't do that.....oh wait yes I will so keep reading!
Why Society has an ever decreasing Intelligence Level!
Above I gave a few examples as to why, now I will elaborate on them some.
Poor Parenting
In today's modern society, the traditional family no longer exists. Over the past 30 years the cost of living in the United States has gone up approximately 10 times but the average hourly wage has only gone up about 3 times. This means that we no longer have single income families, with one parent always at home raising and teaching their children. Both parents are forced to work now and many times they both work multiple jobs just to make ends meet. As a result of this our children are being raised by strangers, taught by no one and largely left to fend for themselves while at home. When the parents are around they are too tired or stressed to do any actual parenting or teaching to of their children.
Crappy Education System
In almost all of the United States we no have what is referred to "Common Core". The theory behind this craptastic system is that it doesn't "discriminate". In truth it doesn't teach either. Our teachers have been handicapped by bureaucratic red tape. They have been handcuffed by low wages. They have been chained by Social Justice Warriors who cry foul over every little thing. Our Educational Text Books have been stripped of "accurate information" such as history, science and even math. Our kids are taught to "memorize" so they can "pass the test" and are no longer taught to "learn" or "think" or "reason". Art and Music have been cut from most school curriculum as well. With Physical Education programs also getting phased out now. Our teachers are some of the lowest paid (adjusted for cost of living) in the entire World.
Too much television/video games
Due to poor parenting and crappy education systems our children are free to "entertain themselves" as they see fit. For almost all of them this means hours a day on their cellphones, social media, television and/or Video Game machines. They have little to no real world interactions with other children (outside of school), they do not learn any common sense or real world abilities. All they know is what the learn behind the screen of some electronic device, which lets face it is wrong more than it is right.
Lack of Social Interactions
Whenever you see children today, they are almost always ill equipped to deal with other people in the real world. They lack manners, kindness, empathy, conversational abilities and are often times rude, vulgar, irate and throwing a tantrum until they get their way. It is no longer "acceptable behavior" to punish your children and god help you if you actually "spank them". When I was growing up, if I misbehaved someone was gonna whip my ass and I knew it. It might be a teacher, it might be a total stranger in a store but I was gonna get a beat down. Usually, I would wind up getting multiple beat downs cause if it wasn't a parent/guardian doing it they would find out what I did and give me another one.
The crap we eat, drink and breathe
Now this is a touchy subject for sure and some of you will likely scream "Conspiracy Theory" after reading this, so I will attempt to keep it to the "FACTS" and not throw in too much "Speculation or Theory".
Almost every municipality in the United States has "Public Water Systems" that "clean and treat" the water we drink, bathe in, swim in, cook with, etc. Now the process of treating and cleaning that water varies from municipality to municipality; however they all use some kinds of chemicals to treat and clean the water. Additionally, almost all water systems in the United States treat the water with Fluoride as a final stage of the treatment. Meaning that just before the water is pumped into the city water grid it is treated with Fluoride so that when it reaches your house it has relatively high levels of the stuff in the water. It has been proven, repeatedly, that Fluoride in extended and high usage causes learning disabilities, tooth decay and numerous other issues.
Our food is no better, virtually everything you buy at a grocery store has seen some form of chemical in it's life time. From the fertilizers and pesticides sprayed on the food while it is growing, to the chemical wash used to "clean the food" before delivery to the market, to the Hormones and Steroids pumped into the Livestock, to the massive amounts of antibiotics given to farm animals intended for human consumption. Then you have the Packaged Foods which are ALL LOADED with Salt and other Chemical (not natural) preservatives. Then you have Processed Meats like Hot Dogs, Bologna, Ham, etc. that are riddled with Hormones, Steroids, Antibiotics, Artificial Coloring, Artificial Preservatives and other things that are not good for you. Even most Chocolate sold in the United States is loaded with "butyric acid" the same chemical found in Bile (Vomit) that gives it that acidic and bitter taste.
Lastly the air we breathe is loaded with all sorts of nastiness pumped into the Atmosphere by plants, factories, vehicles, machinery and most other symbols of modern civilization. Then there are the "rumors" of HARP which is supposed to be a Top Secret Government program designed to "Control the Weather" using all manners of potential harmful (to life) means.
What can be done?
There are numerous things that can be done to help, at least our children's children.
* Change the laws so that protecting people is foremost instead of protecting business and corporate interests
* Shut down any Secret Government programs that might or might not exist to do things like control the weather
* Purify our farm lands and livestock sources and encourage/enforce "Organic" food sources
* Immediately stop the use of Fluoride in all Water Treatment facilities intended for Human Consumption. Instead encourage the use of Hepa Filtration Systems in homes and businesses that do the "final cleaning" before the water is used by Humans
* Encourage/enforce more development of Alternative Energy Sources that do not pollute the atmosphere, ground, water supply continuously (yes I know the manufacturing will but not the actual use of the Alternative Energy Sources)
* Encourage/enforce the development of Alternative Energy Source powered machinery and transport vehicles.
* Raise the minimum wage while taking actions to reverse (or at least freeze) inflation so that the Average Family can once again afford to be a Single Income Household.
* Disband the "Department of Education" and let "Local School Jurisdictions" determine the curriculum that is taught to their children. This will put the education of our children back into the hands of the Parents and Teachers and not some Government Bureaucrat.
* Find the time (even if it is only 15 minutes a day) to "Get In Touch" with your children and to "Teach them something".
* Limit your children's access to Cellphones, Television and Video Games.
* Encourage your children to Play Outside (with others) and to Read when inside.
* Setup a schedule (and follow it) of "Family Time". It can be a half hour a day for a meal where everyone is together with NO CELLPHONES or it can be an hour on the weekend when you get together as a family to play cards, board games or enjoy some other activity as a Family.
* Grow your own food (when and where possible), shop for Organic Foods and Un-Processed Meats and be conscientious of what you put into your body and your children's bodies!
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