The following excerpt comes from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, taken from a circular letter, addressing many topics, written to three friends and co-workers in the conspiracy against Hitler, on the tenth anniversary of Hitler’s accession to the chancellorship of Germany:
"Stupidity is a more dangerous enemy of the good than malice. One may protest against evil; it can be exposed and, if need be, prevented by use of force. Evil always carries within itself the germ of its own subversion in that it leaves behind in human beings at least a sense of unease. Against stupidity we are defenseless. Neither protests nor the use of force accomplish anything here; reasons fall on deaf ears; facts that contradict one’s prejudgment simply need not be believed- in such moments the stupid person even becomes critical – and when facts are irrefutable they are just pushed aside as inconsequential, as incidental. In all this the stupid person, in contrast to the malicious one, is utterly self-satisfied and, being easily irritated, becomes dangerous by going on the attack. For that reason, greater caution is called for than with a malicious one. Never again will we try to persuade the stupid person with reasons, for it is senseless and dangerous.
"If we want to know how to get the better of stupidity, we must seek to understand its nature. This much is certain, that it is in essence not an intellectual defect but a human one. There are human beings who are of remarkably agile intellect yet stupid, and others who are intellectually quite dull yet anything but stupid. We discover this to our surprise in particular situations. The impression one gains is not so much that stupidity is a congenital defect, but that, under certain circumstances, people are made stupid or that they allow this to happen to them. We note further that people who have isolated themselves from others or who live in solitude manifest this defect less frequently than individuals or groups of people inclined or condemned to sociability. And so it would seem that stupidity is perhaps less a psychological than a sociological problem. It is a particular form of the impact of historical circumstances on human beings, a psychological concomitant of certain external conditions. Upon closer observation, it becomes apparent that every strong upsurge of power in the public sphere, be it of a political or of a religious nature, infects a large part of humankind with stupidity. It would even seem that this is virtually a sociological-psychological law. The power of the one needs the stupidity of the other. The process at work here is not that particular human capacities, for instance, the intellect, suddenly atrophy or fail. Instead, it seems that under the overwhelming impact of rising power, humans are deprived of their inner independence, and, more or less consciously, give up establishing an autonomous position toward the emerging circumstances. The fact that the stupid person is often stubborn must not blind us to the fact that he is not independent. In conversation with him, one virtually feels that one is dealing not at all with a person, but with slogans, catchwords and the like that have taken possession of him. He is under a spell, blinded, misused, and abused in his very being. Having thus become a mindless tool, the stupid person will also be capable of any evil and at the same time incapable of seeing that it is evil. This is where the danger of diabolical misuse lurks, for it is this that can once and for all destroy human beings.
"Yet at this very point it becomes quite clear that only an act of liberation, not instruction, can overcome stupidity. Here we must come to terms with the fact that in most cases a genuine internal liberation becomes possible only when external liberation has preceded it. Until then we must abandon all attempts to convince the stupid person. This state of affairs explains why in such circumstances our attempts to know what ‘the people’ really think are in vain and why, under these circumstances, this question is so irrelevant for the person who is thinking and acting responsibly. The word of the Bible that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom declares that the internal liberation of human beings to live the responsible life before God is the only genuine way to overcome stupidity.
"But these thoughts about stupidity also offer consolation in that they utterly forbid us to consider the majority of people to be stupid in every circumstance. It really will depend on whether those in power expect more from people’s stupidity than from their inner independence and wisdom."
Stupidity is not an intellectual defect but a moral one. As Bonhoeffer points out, "There are human beings who are of remarkably agile intellect yet stupid, and others who are intellectually quite dull yet anything but stupid." The stupidity we are witnessing among Millennials, Snowflakes, Social Justice Warriors, and Liberals/Progressives is due mostly to their moral bankruptcy. They have no moral compass. They deny science and nature and claim there are more than two genders/sexes. They deny reality and think men can be women and women can be men. They lie to themselves daily and demand that the majority aid them in their lies by placating to their delusions. This stupidity cannot be reasoned with because it rejects reason as “bigoted.” These stupid individuals are more dangerous than any Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, etc. Evil we can fight against. Against stupidity we are defenceless.
"I'm a liberal professor and my liberal students terrify me. I have intentionally adjusted my teaching as the political winds have shifted.... hurting a student's feelings, even in the course of instruction that is absolutely appropriate and respectful, can now get a teacher into serious trouble." —Edward Schlosser"The tyranny of the minority is infinitely more odious and intolerable and more to be feared than that of the majority." —President William McKinley
"The further a society drifts away from the truth, the more it will hate those who speak it." —George Orwell
"Never confuse education with intelligence. You can have a PhD and still be an idiot." —Richard Feynman
"Most men would rather deny a hard truth than face it." —George R. R. Martin"The easiest way to solve a problem is to deny it exists." —Isaac Asimov"The human brain can protect us from seeing and feeling what it believes may be too uncomfortable for us to tolerate. It can lead us to deny, defend, minimize, or rationalize away something that doesn't fit our worldview." —Bandy X. Lee
"Science is the organized skepticism in the reliability of expert opinion.""Science is the belief in the ignorance of experts.""Don't pay attention to 'authorities' [i.e., "experts"], think for yourself."
"If it’s consensus, it ISN'T science. If it’s science, it ISN'T consensus. Period. Consensus is invoked only in situations where THE SCIENCE IS NOT SOLID." —Michael Crichton
"In questions of science, the authority of a thousand is not worth the humble reasoning of a single individual." —Galileo Galilei
"SCIENCE:If you don't make mistakes, you're doing it wrong.If you don't correct those mistakes, you're really doing it wrong.If you can't accept you're mistaken, you're not doing it at all." —Richard Feynman
"To find yourself, think for yourself." —Socrates"When all think alike, no one is thinking very much." —Walter Lippmann"Great minds think alike but weak minds seldom vary." —Unknown"Most people would sooner die than think; in fact, they do so." —Bertrand Russell"What luck for rules that men do not think." —Adolf Hitler"We are discreet sheep; we wait to see hot the drove is going, and then go with the drove." —Mark Twain"If a million people say a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing." —Anatole France [Jacques Anatole Thibault]"Whenever you find you are on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect." —Mark Twain"Those who are able to see beyond the shadows and lies of their culture will never be understood, let alone believed, by the masses." —Plato"The difference between genius and stupidity is; genius has its limits." —Albert Einstein"Only two things are infinite; the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former." —Albert Einstein"The two most common elements in the universe are hydrogen and stupidity." —Harlan Ellison"There is more stupidity than hydrogen in the universe, andit has a longer shelf life." —Frank Zappa"We have enough youth. How about a Fountain of Smart?" —Unknown