My Humble "Moronic" Opinion

“Class consciousness is not one of our national diseases; we suffer, indeed, from its opposite--the delusion that class barriers are not real. That delusion reveals itself in many forms, some of them as beautiful as a glass eye. One is the Liberal doctrine that a prairie demagogue promoted to the United States Senate will instantly show all the sagacity of a Metternich ... another is the doctrine that a moron run through a university and decorated with a Ph.D. will cease thereby to be a moron ...”

-- H.L. Mencken (1880-1956), journalist, satirist, critic, scholar

I have unwavering faith that only a moron would believe a doctrine which states "a moron run through a university and decorated with a Ph.D. will cease thereby to be a moron."  As I have stated in a few previous posts, I have known many people with doctorates who exercise a deep lack of common sense.  Oh, they are very intelligent; they just aren't all that smart.  Smart is pretty much what you get from the "school of hard knocks."  Smart is described as a "learned application" and an "earned status."  Intelligence, on the other hand, is described as "the measurement of your ability to become smarter through learning."  Well, I don't think that last is correct.  For one thing, it seems some people believe everything they're taught simply because someone teaching them has a university degree or a teaching certificate.  So, you believe someone simply because they have a sheet of paper saying you have to believe them?  I'll bet you also believe fake news and everything you read on the internet.  Bonjour!  What happened to freethinking by considering the validity of the mindless crap flowing out of the instructor's pie hole?  Good common sense just isn't that common anymore.  

My view of intelligence is that it is a measurement of your ability to learn.  Whether you can use good sense, usually learned in the "school of hard knocks," in order to correctly apply what you learn and, thereby, also become smarter than the next person would remain to be determined by those you seek to serve.  You can get a doctorate and still be perceived as stupid, or an egotistical ass, by those with better sense.  You will find no respect from those you deal with if you've egotistically filed your doctorate along with your with your misplaced humility.

With all the school violence in the news recently, a student bringing a gun to school, even to a university, is pretty moronic, especially for a graduate.  Universities have, for some time,  been considered frontline bastions of socialist doctrine in our country, along with Hollywood, and since most liberals ascribe to socialist doctrine this means the universities are rife with members of the League of the Perpetually Offended.  They are perpetually offended because they will spend the rest of their lives being victims.

We give unto these ill prepared students, these "adults," crying rooms on campus and participation awards for sports.  They expect to have immediate respect upon graduation and immediate gratification of a job, a position with respect, and whimper when that doctorate in basket weaving garners them nothing.

I will admit that this is, perhaps, a narrow view, but preparing our youth to be perpetual victims in life is ridiculous for the survival of a society, and it's certainly not the way I was brought up, which bodes the question, "When did child rearing go so wrong?"  Well, even when I was in high school I could see the impetus for this mess was the infamous Dr. Benjamin McLane Spock.  The true blame for society's current state of affairs, however, still needs to be owned by the parents who might have "misread" his books.

Today, the basic tenets of Dr. Spock's child care philosophy might seem obvious to most parents. Hug your child. Tell her she's special and loved and unique. Feed him when he's hungry. Discipline with words, not corporal punishment. But in 1946, this was new. Parents had long been encouraged not to shower their children with affection as this would make them weak and unprepared for the world. Feeding and naps were to be done on a strict schedule, regardless of the baby's immediate needs. And a child who just got a mild spanking for an offense got off easy – physical punishment was the norm. Spock changed all that with his encouragement for parents to follow their instincts, be attentive to the baby's needs, and be generous with affection.

-- Legacy.com, "Dr. Benjamin Spock: Child Care and Controversy"

Discipline with words!  Really?  That's it?  Punishment is just a good tongue lashing, followed by a hug and some ice cream?"  Well, woohoo!  I'll be bad more often if I get positive reinforcement that outweighs the tongue lashing.  When I grow up I can look forward to drinking heavily after my boss chews me out.  This "philosophy" of child rearing either doesn't take into consideration the real world or it's a socialist (re: government) contrived plot to control the minds of the populace.  Then again, maybe it's both!

I guess my point is, too many parents bought into this drivel simply because a doctor, someone we think should know best, said it was best.  How many times have doctors been wrong?  Hmmm, needless to say, many parents, for all their sparing of the rod, did an about face when they discovered little Billy had gone from torturing bugs to skinning cats.  Okay, that might be a little extreme, but you get my point.  Our children and our society are suffering because of some moronic, bleeding heart philosophy on child rearing.  Does it work for some kids?  Hell yes!  Even a blind squirrel finds a nut, sooner or later.  Do yourself a favor and keep the term "victim" in mind when you find one.  Chances are they'll crumble if you raise your voice or break into tears if you touch them.. 

I had to refresh my memory, on the good Dr. Spock, in order to try and get some facts straight.  I found the following, at Legacy.com, which I shall paraphrase:  For three decades, from the 1940s through the 1960s, Dr. Spock influenced generations of child rearing parents and "experts" in the field.  It wasn't until, during the Vietnam War, Reverend Norman Vincent Peale alleged "the U.S. was paying the price of two generations that followed the Dr. Spock baby plan of instant gratification of needs."  In defense of his position Dr. Spock clarified his methodology by stating there was no instant gratification, as advocated in his books, without "clear firm discipline."

And yet, in this very same article, the Legacy staff writes that this "obvious" child care philosophy says to "discipline with words, not corporal punishment."  So, which is it?  A stern talking to, for many, is not "clear firm discipline."  Discipline does not have to be doled out with a willow switch or a belt, but there are those who will be worse off for the sparing of that rod.  Luckily, I had an old school upbringing (a hunting belt) which I can say, without reservation, kept me from ruining my life until the military got hold of me.  Like tag team wrestling, dad would dole out the discipline and mom would rush in with the love and affection.  More times than not, I have found that old school is the best school.   

Before Dr. Spock's books, and even for the few old school holdouts today, many people believed that children reared with only with love and affection, rather than constant strict discipline, would grow up "weak and unprepared for the world."  The "intelligent" parents did as they were told.  Some, like me, would say the "smart" parents actually read the entire book, used good sense, and achieved a sense of balance in the universe; they gave their children a healthy and appropriate dose of affection, and clear firm discipline.  Clear firm discipline, in my humble opinion, taught many of us to survive so we can protect the victims of society, even if they don't like us... or want us.

So, after all this time, almost three-quarters of a century, who was right?  Try watching the evening news, and you judge.  Better yet, try thinking for yourself.  You don't have to goose step to some professor's failed moronic socialist ideology just because they have a piece of paper saying they can teach and you have to listen.  Listening is fine, but no one can force you to buy into it.  If it sounds too good to be true, it usually isn't, I don't care how much education they throw behind it as justification.

Thank you, God, for another glorious day in paradise and another chance to excel in life!  What will you do with it?

"Just as any moron can destroy a priceless Ming vase, so the shallow and ill-educated people who run our schools can undermine and destroy from within a great civilization that took centuries of dedicated effort to create and maintain."

-- Thomas Sowell, economist, social theorist

Editor's Note

(Re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card)

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and while engaging in peaceful and constructive discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning those opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience, and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 23 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with a world renowned Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects in pharmaceutical research. Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As the weapon for his war on intolerance he chose the pen, to wage his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He currently resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteers as lead Chaplain and Chaplain Program Liaison, at the regional medical center.