A sucker is born every minute. LOOKING BACK.

I used to always wonder why people were called naive when I was younger. I suppose the very thought made myself naive in some way. In the reformative years, we don't have the same wits about us, do we?

Moving on to years later with my share of experiences things seemed to fall together. Years of witnessing lies, cheats, frauds, thieves, predators and prey, it all started to fit together.

What I would say to my old self many years ago, is that "You may know what you know, but you sure as hell don't know what you don't."

If you think about it, perhaps reflect on this saying something might come to mind. Plenty of people can be experts in their own field, but know absolutely nothing in another field. Not what you would call well-rounded individuals. Sure as hell not a critical thinker.

There you have it!

So then someone wanders over to me and says, "Bonch, what the heck has this got to do with anything?"

And I say "Well... Just listen."

We have people making decisions for industries they know nothing about. Politicians call shots for things they know nothing about. Affecting entire industries, entire groups of people, without being an expert on the matter. Look over the past few years as the Banks were being discussed in Congress. It seemed as though no one knew what any of the testimonies were about.

And that is just the tip of the iceberg.

There was a Senator (Now deceased) who believed netflix was going to destroy the "series of tubes" that make up the internet. Not only that, but "He had an internet sent on Friday that didn't get there 'til Monday" because of this reason.

Hmmm...

Not just the US either. Canada is in the same boat. Ministers change hats like Parliament is one big costume party. They should just be called Ministers of Politics. Not "Minister of Transportation" etc.

Because the majority don't know anything about Transportation, or any other field they are responsible for. Every now and then you get lucky with one that has a background in their assigned task, but who knows if they even liked their previous job. (They obviously had grand aspirations)...

Get to the point!

Okay, okay, here it is. My point is that no matter the expert you are in one field, that doesn't make you and expert in another.

Or is there one field that might?

Maybe critical thinking. Maybe questioning things that are in front of you. There are numbers of people out there that are so qualified in their daily task, but given something unfamiliar and they are a Freshman in Highschool vs. College kids.

Point given.

Take a Dr. who is accustomed to his wife lying to him. Maybe he doesn't understand girls. Take a Teacher who just loves new technology but he's an English major that seems to fall for energy scams looking for investor money. Take the Good Church Going farmer that would never believe his daughter would do anything wrong, yet she moved to the city and has since broken every rule every laid out for him.

Why are people gullible? Two reasons:

They were taught that way, and, the truth hurts.

We have all grown accustomed to white lies (Or just plain BullSnip) Either from our friends and family, or from our politicians. Not many people notice because they are developed in sniffing these lies out, instead they are developed in their professional field.

They may be a brain surgeon, but when it comes to the girl down the street, she is an angel that never met someone like them before. When it comes to their investment portfolio, the account manager tried his very best, and when it comes to the vote he cast at the ballot box, the person he voted for tried real hard to do the best for him, and his new girlfriend.

Things will be alright though, he just signed up for a year membership at a gym he will never go to, to relieve stress for the new year.



Somewhere in all of this, there's a message...

reply to post by boncho


Good post, enough material that everyone can read their own message into it...this part resonates with me:

We have people making decisions for industries they know nothing about. Politicians call shots for things they know nothing about. Affecting entire industries, entire groups of people, without being an expert on the matter. Look over the past few years as the Banks were being discussed in Congress. It seemed as though no one knew what any of the testimonies were about.

I'm tired of living in a world where corporations rule through their lobbyists' manupulations of politicians who have no clue about the things they are regulating/deregulating...I want physicists dictating energy policy and doctors writing health policy...not the oil/coal industry and the health insurance industry.

reply to post by madhatr137


Well put. I thank you for adding to my post.

Here's a fun video.

reply to post by boncho


Boncho, wouldn't this mean that we are the suckers?

3rd line (2nd was blank).

Originally posted by chr0naut
reply to post by boncho

 

Boncho, wouldn't this mean that we are the suckers?

3rd line (2nd was blank).

Anyone except yourself my friend.

During my school years I was always the brightest kid and I knew this....people would ask me to help them and i would just think to myself on my head why can't they understand something so simple...it was like this every year pretty much till graduation. Every year in middle school through highschool I hadthe moat absences in school cause I strongly disliked it...now after graduation everyone's off to college in debt literally like %90 of fellow classmates...me I'm a dj and work in a big car company making more money and a lot happier than those who stuck to " college or u will not make it in this world


What I'm getting at here is that you have to choose ur own paths bot be told what to do....every Sunday my mom tells me let's go to church...knowing that I don't believe in anything ..I tell her "why don't u stay at home instead of wasting gas to pray at church its the same thing!!!! God is everywhere according to what she told me once....my parrents are sheeple

Originally posted by boncho

Originally posted by chr0naut
reply to post by boncho

 

Boncho, wouldn't this mean that we are the suckers?

3rd line (2nd was blank).

Anyone except yourself my friend.

edit on 30-12-2011 by boncho because: (no reason given)

Now i feel so alone....

A very valid point Boncho. It's a shame that people don't realize that they don't know as much as they think they do.

I work in industrial maintenance and it never ceases to amaze me that the engineers I work with think they know the mechanics of machines.(most of them have degrees in Chemical engineering) They know nothing of mechanics and will demonstate their ignorance at any given opportunity.

The more I learn , the less I realize I know. My grandfather used to tell me that I could learn something new every day of my life, and in the end I would never know everything. The older I get the more I am aware that he was completely correct.

Great post S&F