Population “I” ???
Originally published in medium.com on March 8/2024
“Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity, and I’m not sure about the universe.”
Albert Einstein
“No one is more hated than he who speaks the truth.”
Plato
I have the audacity to believe that I’m onto something — no, it’s not a discovery, it’s not even an invention — it’s just a definition.
I came up with a new term — Population “I” for a large group of people that have always existed but since 1994, it started to grow exponentially up to the current level.
“The Law of Raspberry Jam: the wider any culture is spread, the thinner it gets” Alvin Toffler
Currently the age of these people ranges from about 65 to, let’s say, 10 year- old-kids. Old geezers like me could be in this group as well but for a different, I’d say, ‘natural’ reason - in cases when age comes alone, not accompanied by knowledge or wisdom.
The letter “I” stands for: Illiterate, Ignorant, Ill-informed, Incompetent, Immature (such as Generation Z bringing their parents to job interviews) - hence the “I” Population.
Illiteracy, in a broader sense, does not necessarily refer to the inability to read or write, but rather signifies a lack of knowledge in areas such as music/geography/literature/cinema/history/arts/architecture/poetry and more or primarily an overall illiteracy.
Dear friend, read something worth reading, but beware, as it can seriously damage your ignorance. O better yet, become a lepidopterist at least.
Who are these people?
They are from all walks of life (in no particular order): a lawyer, a fitter, a doctor, an office plankton, a plumber, a cruise aficionado, a fool or a brainy one, a musicals lover, Hollywood celebrity, ‘a snowflake’, IT horde, a business person, a carpenter, a politician, a pop star, an engineer, a CEO,
a no-skill laborer, a farmhand, an Ivy League professor or a student,
Mr. & Mrs. Ignoramus, Ms. Simpleton and Darwin award participants.
Professionally they can be good, so-so, or bad but I’m not comparing functional deficiencies here.
Just imagine how much harm a bad dentist can cause to some people, a quack engineer to his clients, or a country leader to a country or the world.
The scale is the only difference — hundreds or millions are affected.
A deep, must-read, inside look into an Incompetency problem is below:
https://www.palladiummag.com/2023/06/01/complex-systems-wont-survive-the-competence-crisis/
The world peace is on the verge of collapse: Russian war crimes in Chechnya, Georgia and Moldova, as well as the 2014 annexation of Crimea with the USA not lifting a finger in protest.
The shameful US retreat from Afghanistan with its tail between its legs was one of the causes that created the world we are facing now — the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the 2023 Hamas genocidal attack on Israel. The Middle East is a powder keg and Iran is moments away from a nuclear bomb.
Emperors, Shahs, Kings, Sheiks, Tsars, Fuhrers (Stalin, Mao Zedong, Hitler, Putin, Pol Pot…), Premiers, Presidents matter.
I’m sorry, I digressed but the decision makers are in our group as well.
Majority of the people we put under the microscope, especially the younger ones, are excellent in using their phones, communication skills, manners and etiquette. They can speak (often incessantly), write (usually with lots of mistakes), and read.
Sounds honky-dory but is it enough?
Well, any language whether it’s English, Swahili, French, Russian or Ebonics consists of basic skills (ability to speak/write/read) and advanced ones. Here, the Population “I” is facing a problem that they usually don’t even notice.
Any newly obtained and noteworthy information (documentary, book, article, radio, TV, Internet) needs to be fully understood (the first difficulty right here), compared to historical precedents, evaluated, source reputation/affiliation/bias analyzed, fact-checked and only after that, one has a chance to arrive at a correct conclusion.
Unfortunately, knowing something doesn’t mean that you understand it yet.
Alvin Toffler regards “knowledge as the highest quality power because it implies efficiency and used to punish, reward, persuade and transform”. “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” George Santayana.
History is the most important subject in the world.
“All our knowledge, our beliefs, our world-view, our identity, and those of the generations to come are rooted in the verities of history, which are based, in turn, on the infallible and inerrant historical truths. Without history — religion and philosophy, the arts and sciences, mathematics, language, music and literature have no meaning.” David McCullough
If you know history no political revolutionary fool will be able to dupe you.
Can you name a revolution that made people happy and prosperous?
Just the opposite: bloodshed, inevitable dictatorship, equally distributed poverty, and misery.
The greatest damage that the IT (Illiterate Tard) crowds with fluent know-how of their phones do, by bringing down statues, renaming colleges and streets, is not the money wasted — they erasing the History.
In our Post-Truth era of cover-ups, it’s imperative to see the truth and facts through a thick cloud of propaganda smog.
Instead of trying to separate the truth from lies and form their own unbiased opinion (which is practically impossible given their lack of knowledge), the “I”-ers are usually totally incapable of deciphering partisan brainwashing and conveniently prefer second and third-hand information. Why should we read reports from B. Mueller, J. Durham, J. Smith, R.K. Hur, D. Weiss committees, or listen to US Congress/Canadian Parliament sessions grilling someone when we can have all the information we need — cleaned, cut, spiced, and pre-cooked for us.
By the way, all these governmental documents abstracts can be found online. Truth matters.
“A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on.” Winston Churchill
Below is a random selection of what the majority of the Population “I” doesn’t know. Let’s open Pandora’s box:
Race relations.
The last recorded lynching in the US took place in Alabama in 1981. In just 27 years thereafter the US made giant leaps towards racial harmony. What happened then?
A 2016 CNN Poll found that most Americans believe race relations worsened under Obama.
Can you make a list of what Obama did to deserve this opinion?
https://www.cnn.com/2016/10/05/politics/obama-race-relations-poll/index.html
Right to Abortion
Despite what some may think, SCOTUS did not abolish abortion rights in June 2022. It simply returned the issue to the jurisdiction of individual states where it had been for over 100 years. I am not anti-abortionist, but I find it equally ridiculous to have 9-months (in 7 States) or 6-weeks (in Florida) time frames, or an outright abortion ban.
The 1973 Roe vs Wade and Doe vs Bolton rulings made abortion legal through all nine (how do you like it ?) months of pregnancy.
Palestine is NOT a Country
Palestine is a Geographical region in the Middle East bounded on the East by the Jordan River, on the West by the Mediterranean Sea, on the North by the Lebanon border and on the South by the Negev Dessert.
The original inhabitants of Palestine were Semitic peoples, notably the Canaanites, who established fortified cities and were also part of various Semitic nomadic groups. Later, during the Iron Age, the region was inhabited by two related Israelite kingdoms, Israel and Judah, along with the Philistines.
The Philistines were Greek sea people with no connection to present day Palestinians. The name was based on the Hebrew word “plishtim”, meaning invaders. So, closer to our days the region of Palestine was inhabited by Jews, various Arabs (Egyptians, Jordanians, Syrians, etc.) and Christians.
In November 1947, the UN ended the British Mandate and voted to partition Palestine into two states, one-Jewish and the other-Arabs.
Jews accepted the UN resolution, while Arabs NEVER (even today) did.
Right after the Israeli Declaration of Independence, five Arab neighboring countries attacked Israel.
All together Arab countries attacked Israel eight times: the 1948 Palestine war, the 1956 Suez war, the 1967 Six-Day War, the 1969–70 War of Attrition, the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the 1982 Lebanon war, the 1991 Gulf war and the current 2023 Black Saturday War.
If Arabs had won a single war the Jewish state and its people would have been annihilated.
Prior to the 1967 War, Egypt and Jordan controlled the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, respectively.
The Six-Day War ended with Israel capturing the Sinai (later returned), the Golan Heights, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
Israel left Gaza in 2005 dismantling all 21 Israeli settlements (with 4,000 greenhouses left intact) and continued to supply Gaza with water, gas and electricity, as part of the Oslo Accords, to help Gaza become independent.
On October 7/2023, Hamas started the most devastating attack on Israel since its independence. It began with 2.200 rockets, providing cover for at least 1.500 militants accompanied by ‘peaceful’ Gazans who infiltrated Israel at dozens of points along the fortified border using explosives, bulldozers, and paragliders. They not only attacked military outposts but also killed families inside their homes and attendees of a nearby music festival.
Within hours, about 1,200 people were dead and some 240 others (including 46 Americans) were taken hostage. It was the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust.
Arabs don’t want a ‘Two countries’ solution. They want ‘One Palestinian country’ with no Jews ‘From the River to the Sea’.
In 1964, to create problems for Britain, the Soviet KGB invented the
so -called ‘Palestinian people’ and its terrorist PLO.
Would you call East-Londoners a nation?
Russians successfully achieved their goal and ignited the Middle East forever .
Below are Links to — “SOVIET RUSSIA, THE CREATOR OF THE PLO AND THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE” by Wallace Edward Brand and “THE SOVIET UNION AND THE Palestine Liberation Organization- An Uneasy Alliance” by Praeger.
https://www.readcube.com/articles/10.2139/ssrn.2387087
https://www.theleftberlin.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/the_soviet_union_and_the_palestine_liberation_organization_an_uneasy.pdf
There has never been a Palestinian State in Palestine.
No archaeological artifacts (coins, pottery, manuscripts, tools etc.) or Palestinian writers, scientists, rulers (name just one before Yasser Arafat) have ever been discovered.
Jews are the real Palestinians — 1st Israel Prime Minister Golda Meir and some of her Cabinet members had ‘brown’ mandatory Palestinian passports issued by the British Authorities in 1927–48.
Mordechai Golinkin pioneered a Palestinian Opera in Israel with the first presentation at the Tel-Aviv movie theater ‘Eden’ on July 28/1923.
64% of the Jerusalem population in 1912 were Jews, while the rest were mostly Christians.
At the end of the 17 Century, the population was about 500 people with a 50/50 split between Jews and Christians.
There are no “Palestinians” mentioned in the Bible. The Bible uses names such as “Canaan”, “Judah”, “Palestine”, and “Israel” for the land. Other historical names for the region include the Promised Land, the Land of Israel, or the Holy Land.
The ill-informed young and not-so-young people demonstrating with banners that say “From the River to the Sea Palestine will be free” are, in fact calling, for eradication of Jews and the State of Israel, whether consciously or not. It is quite useless to ask them the names of the sea and the river — they have no clue.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:1695_Eretz_Israel_map_in_Amsterdam_Haggada_by_Abraham_Bar-Jacob.jpg
United States of America
In 1917 Russian Bolsheviks, using threats, lies, intimidation, broken promises and the populations poverty, usurped power to establish One Party rule. Bolsheviks were members of the majority faction of the Russian Social Democratic Party, which was renamed the Communist Party after seizing power. Anyone even slightly interested in history knows how it ended up: Civil War, government-imposed terror, expropriation of private and business property, intentional starvation of millions of people, murder of millions of their own innocent citizens, total poverty, total censorship of everything, and the creation of a new kind of humans who were equally poor and miserable — the Homo Sovieticus.
In November 2020, 103 years after the 1917 Great October Russian Disaster, a similar event occurred in the heart of the free world, the shining beacon of democracy, the United States of America.
American Democratic Bolsheviks were unable to seize power in the same manner as the Russian Bolsheviks did, as it was difficult to find a significant number of people living in poverty in the US.
I can’t find a single country in the world where Blacks are better off than in the US — Senators, Congress men/women, CEO’s, government workers, millionaires, lawyers, entrepreneurs. I don’t even want to mention sports and Hollywood stars.
The tested and trusted Systemic Racism card has been played once again, and the USA has been transformed into the USSA — United Socialist States of America with Lady Liberty holding a Hammer and Sickle.
In the late 1980s the USSR collapsed, ceased to exist and became Russia —
a capitalist country in the early stages of barbaric capitalism run by a criminal mob. The experiment that ruined the lives of several generations was over.
Nowadays, I watch in total disbelief as naïve Republicans talk about their hopes for 2024. They still haven’t comprehended that they have been canceled — it’s over. They think that the Founding Fathers Constitution will save them but haven’t we seen recently how the Swing States Constitutions were changed to guarantee the Bolsheviks election victory?
The G-d will not save America — Bolsheviks are Godless. The moment
the Bolsheviks mastered the Art of Counting votes they will be in power indefinitely. Look around you, the New Order has already started: shameless-in-your face Censorship, losing your job or business or rejection of your bank loan application — all that just for having a different opinion.
For a good number of years I listened and watched attentively to the people who were at the helm of the US government, including current figures such as Adam Schiff, Jerrold Nadler, Chuck Schumer, Eric Swalwell, Maxine Waters, Kamala Harris, AOC, Bernie Sanders, Richard Blumenthal, and Bob Menendez (remember the gold bars).
They coyly call themselves Democratic Socialists fearing that the name Communists has too much negative connotation. But as Lenin said — “The Goal of Socialism is Communism”
I don’t know these people personally but I can give you a portrait of an average Bolsheviks, regardless of the country they live in: ruthless, vengeful, totally deranged, mentally disturbed, hate and venom-spewing rabid lying hyenas whose place is in a mental institution.
There is no difference between Communists and Fascists as Russia clearly demonstrated on February 24/2022.
Countless words have been written on the topic of “Communism and Fascism: Twin Brothers” by people far more qualified than I am, but I’ll try to summarize it as briefly as possible.
“Socialism/Communism” (Russian-Stalinist/Chinese-Maoist/Cuban/Venezuelan/North Korean/Cambodian/any): Dictatorial one-party rule with Nationalization of private property/means of production; State-run media, stores/healthcare/transportation; Indoctrination in schools/universities; Destruction of the middle class/dissent/freedom of speech; Poverty among the majority of the population, empty store shelves, famine, fear, terror, defenselessness, man-made Holodomor, and most importantly, the Gulag of labor death camps - the killing fields with millions of own innocent citizens, friends, and comrades “declared enemies.”
I’ll stop listing—all countries of the former socialist bloc went through this, but poorly educated (Harvard, Berkeley, Yale, Columbia, etc.) youth, the undaunted, well-fed Western society, useful idiots, and the lumpenproletariat—who haven’t worked for generations and are accustomed to freebies—know none of this and want only one thing: free cheese. Well, as the old proverb goes: “The only free cheese is in the mousetrap.”
“National Socialism/Fascism” (German-Hitler): Dictatorial one-party rule with Private ownership of everything, and “Arbeit Macht Frei” concentration camps that resulted in the Holocaust, and the extermination of millions (worldwide) of Jews, Gypsies, rival Communists, the mentally ill.
The conclusion is clear: the Fascist regime is abominable and heinous, but the Communist regime is even worse.
I don’t have much to say about the “C’mon Man”- spineless, good-for-nothing, totally corrupt weasel. China, Russia and Iran are smiling and find him extremely useful, with their arms and wallets wide open.
Of course, the Republicans have their own drawbacks and wrongdoings but they are minuscule compared to the damage already inflicted by Democrats. The main Republican liability is former/future President Donald Trump himself. They cannot control his witless mouth and erratic behavior but they can control his actions and that’s what they successfully did in the past. One thing is absolutely clear — they are proud patriots who love America the way She was and will do their best to “Make America Great Again.” I’ll be glad to be wrong but even if they win the 2024 election I don’t think they will triumph and succeed.
My dear Americans of any color, including blue and red, please accept my condolences for what you have done to yourselves. For 48 years, I was fortunate to see America in its Old Glory. Now, I am grateful to be old enough not to witness Her distraction. My Past is your Future. For more details read “1984”.
As you may have noticed, I do not use the term “African Americans”, as
I find it extremely racist, derogatory, degrading and insulting. They were born in America, have never been to Africa, speak American English, and are just a part of American people and culture. They are simply Americans like yellow Americans, brown Americans or white Americans.
At the moment, it’s quite irrelevant to discuss who will win the next election — elephant or donkey.
The United States of America has already crossed the point of no return. I hope I’m wrong but it doesn’t look that way.
If Biden (or someone else) wins--the way to the Abyss will be shorter.
If Trump wins — the death convulsions will prolong this process.
Now, one might ask, what does all of this have to do with the Population “I”?
The common denominator is that all these people don’t know the history.
If they knew they would act differently???
Using Your Phone
Several surveys show that Chatting (71%), Texting (88%), Emailing (70%), using Facebook (62%), Taking photos with the camera (61%), Reading news (58%), Online shopping (56%), Checking the weather (54%), and using WhatsApp (51%) are the most common activities of phone users.
Every now and then, people visit Wikipedia which is better than nothing. However, the biggest flaw of Wikipedia is that it is written and edited by volunteers who may have limited competence. Additionally, Wikipedia is multilingual and often driven by ideology. In other words, it is not Encyclopedia Britannica at all.
Just check the same topics in English, Russian, Farsi or Hebrew editions.
So, as you can see, your little plastic technological marvel is used as a phone, calendar, reminder, watch, wallet, camera, navigator, weatherman…and not as a source of cultural enlightenment. Quite regularly, because nothing ‘rings a bell’, the “I”ers make all kinds of small and big mistakes that a cultured person wouldn’t do.
Here are several recent examples.
The 37th Speaker of the House Anthony Rota (not to be confused with the brilliant Nino Rota), invited a man who served in a Nazi unit during WW2 to the Canadian Parliament during a historic visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
As a result of this scandal and calls to resign, he was forced to step down. The lack of elementary historical knowledge was the cause.
It even didn’t occur to him or his staff to go online to consult history.
To top it off, he is a proud alumnus of Wilfred Laurier University (political science) and Ottawa University (finance).
The latest revelation, of course, was a Tucker Carlson’s flight into the Evil’s nest. The entire Russian population, sweating profusely from wood- burning stoves and moonshine, nervously glued to their TV sets silently expecting a duel.
In the wrong corner — the hero of the American press; in the right corner, the Kremlin monster himself (or his double) wearing elevated shoes and his usual suit of lies with pockets full of marked cards.
After a historical/hysterical 30 minutes of Putler’s speech Carlson was allowed to open his mouth and, oh my goodness, he had no questions.
He could have asked:
Question 1 — Why did volunteers from around the world come to Spain during the 1936–1939 Civil War? Answer — They came in masses to fight fascism.
Q 2 — Why did Britain and the US fight alongside the USSR during WWII?
A — They were fighting together to defeat Hitler’s fascism.
Q 3 — Why have 20,000 volunteers (including 2 Russian, 1 Georgian, 1 Chechen, 1 Baltic battalions, and foreign nationals) from 52 countries come to Ukraine now to fight Russia?; A — ???
Q 4 — Russian media reports that Ukrainian losses are greater than Russians losses in a 10 to 1 ratio. Western media reports that Russian casualties are over 300,000. Does it mean that Ukraine casualties are over 3,000,000?
Q 5 — How many political prisoners are currently in Russian jails?
Q 6 — Why was the Dove of Peace declared illegal?
A — The War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.
Q 7 — Don’t you find the criminalization of Sergey Parajanov, Sergey Diaghilev, Pyotr Tchaikovsky (the famous Russian homosexuals) and others ridiculous? Hitler began his purification agenda by slaughtering gays before targeting Jews.
What music will an orchestra play at your funeral if Tchaikovsky is canceled?
Q 8 — Herr Putin, as a former agent and Head of the KGB, what’s your opinion
on the CIA?
A — I believe that Americans are grossly overestimating the power of the CIA. Of course, the CIA has made some doomed attempts to overturn regimes and install democracy in countries that are totally unsuited for it. On the other hand, the KGB has immeasurable know-how in supporting stability, law, order, power continuation, and a real ‘non-Western style’ democracy. The CIA has no experience in imprisoning, mutilating, freezing, poisoning (at home and abroad), starving, and killing millions of their own innocent citizens.
So, in answer to your question, the CIA is like a Kindergarten compared to the KGB.
Q 9— In 1970, German Chancellor Willy Brandt fell to his knees at the Warsaw Ghetto Memorial asking for forgiveness.
Are you going to ask Ukrainians to forgive the Russian people and you?
No, Mr. Carlson asked nothing of that sort!
As the amazed American public has discovered, the ‘King of Journalism was naked, playing the ‘Useful Idiot’ role and is totally Illiterate with a capital ‘I’ in Russian and international affairs.
The end result of this interview — the Serial Murderer received a worldwide audience, and Tucker, instead of asking for a guided excursion to Lubyanka prison punishment cells, went to a supermarket where he was amazed by German (similar to American) made grocery shopping carts. He obviously never used a cart in his entire life. The groceries are either being delivered to his family house or most likely they go
out for a meal.
Carlson also vastly expanded his cultural horizons by visiting and falling in love with the Moscow subway, Bolshoi Theater and former McDonald’s.
Not sure if he is aware of the London, Paris, and Milan Grand Opera houses
and museums.
As a privileged Trinity College graduate, he was familiar with the existence of Russian Matryoshkas (nesting dolls) beforehand.
When socializing with an “I” crowd, it’s best to stick to small talk topics that are the norm for them such as weather, travel, food, calories, and plans for tomorrow.
Avoid discussing controversial topics like Global warming, the ban on gas stoves, Operation ‘Warp Speed’, slavery reparations, and cows flatulence depleting the ozone layer. Interestingly, horses, sheep, hares, boars, goats, chipmunks, commoners, and even King Charles III, who famously farted (with a Nobel gas, of course), during his coronation, are often overlooked by the less informed.
Avoid asking questions — any question, even a harmless one, can make your conversation partner feel uncomfortable and reach for their phone.
When I asked a few Torontonians about the existence of an Opera House in Toronto, their puzzled expressions said it all.
A half a dozen of young people (US and Canada born), all with degrees in ‘English literature and language’, had no idea who William Saroyan was.
While everyone is familiar with “The Three Musketeers”, the author remains unknown.
The names of notable figures such as Art Buchwald, Stephen Leacock, Denys Arcand, Ken Kesey, Xavier Dolan, Annie Proulx, Saul Bellow, Evelyn Waugh, Erskine Caldwell, Moshe Safdie, Frank Gehry and many, many others are Terra incognito.
To prevent any potential mental overload I deliberately left out numerous renowned European and Asian names.
In conclusion, a farm boy is still a farm boy even if he now carries an encyclopedia
in his back pocket.
Does a smartphone make you stupid?
“.. research shows — that smartphones are causing real damage to our minds and relationships, measurable in seconds shaved off the average attention span, reduced brain power, declines in work-life balance and hours less of family time. They have impaired our ability to remember. They make it more difficult to daydream and think creatively. They make
us more vulnerable to anxiety. They make parents ignore their children. And they are addictive, if not in the contested clinical sense then for all intents and purposes”. Full text is bellow.
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/technology/your-smartphone-is-making-you-stupid/article37511900/
Does a smartphone make you smart?
“Today, scientists have begun to uncover something that is both intriguing and disconcerting. While we have greater access to knowledge than ever before, the smartphone in some ways is making us less smart. It negatively affects our intellect…Dr. Arian Ward wrote “the integration of smartphones into daily life” appears to have caused a “brain drain” that can lower such vital mental skills such as “learning, logical reasoning, abstract thought, problem solving and creativity.” Full text is bellow. https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/artificial-maturity/201711/do-smart-phones-make-us-smarter
“IBM announced the first smartphone in 1992, which wouldn’t be available for purchase for two more years. The Simon Personal Communicator (or SPC, commonly called IBM Simon) included many features familiar to smartphone users, such as a touch screen…”
PS. Dear relatives, friends, acquaintances, readers, passersby, bystanders, strangers, anyone:
If you feel that you are in the Population “I” category — accept my congratulations. Ignorance is bliss. Know that you are not alone,
so don’t worry, be happy.And if you are not, accept my condolences. There isn’t much you can do about it: it’s your hard lot in life.
Nota Bene
1) In December, Oxford University Press selected ‘Brain Rot’ as a the 2024 Word of the year. Brain Rot is defined as deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state viewed as the result of overconsumption of online content.
2) The 5 Laws of Human Stupidity That Rule the World
Thanks for reading