Ignorance is Not a Virtue

By: Yvonne Kendall

Yvonne Kendall earned her doctorate at Stanford University. She currently serves time as an associate professor at a state university in Texas.

One night, after detailing numerous examples of poorly considered, anti-intellectual, ignorant, and downright stupid Republican candidate thought, Countdown (usually with Keith Olbermann)’s guest host David Shuster delivered an impassioned plea to the GOP.

He said (David Shuster on Countdown, Current TV 9/20/11):

Is that now the standard? A major political party is gonna demand less from a presidential candidate than our society demands from a college freshman? Do we really wanna say that educational achievement makes you an elitist and thereby unfit for national leadership?

Let’s be clear, ignorance is not a virtue, stupidity will not help us solve the complex problems we face, and academic failures should . . . be condemned, they should not be celebrated. I know there are some Republicans who still value intellectual thought and academic success; it’s time for you to get involved in the GOP presidential selection process. Your party and your country need you.

I like David Shuster; he’s smart. (But then – full disclosure here – I have a bias in favor of smart people, especially when problems need to be solved or even identified in a clear and cogent fashion.). Anyway, I like D. Shuster, but he misses the point. The GOP as it is currently constituted is not a place in which those “who still value intellectual thought and academic success” can honorably subsist. Too many of the beliefs that “Republicans” now hold are not beliefs that honest, honorable, intelligent, and reasonable people can even consider holding.

No, evolution is not being debunked by serious scientists (Rick Perry – D student). No, being mediocre at school is not a sure marker of future “success” (George W. Bush – Gentlemen’s C student). No, Paul Revere was not ringin’ dem bells (Sarah Palin – peripatetic school dumper). And no, you cannot believe everything you’re told about a useful cancer inoculation just because it agrees with what you’ve made up in your head (Michele Bachmann – tax lawyer who doesn’t read documents she signs while running for president – and yes I’m stilled p.o.’ed about that “black children were better off during slavery” thing).

Now, to borrow from D. Shuster, let’s be clear. When I say “poorly considered” I mean intellectually lazy – the person who cannot be bothered to take an idea to its logical conclusion or even question whether or not it has one. When I say “ignorant”, I don’t mean those who simply don’t know something there is no reason they should know. I could more specifically say “willfully ignorant”, as applied to a person who does not know (or apparently does not want to know) well-known facts that are (and have been for some time) widely available. When I say “stupid” I mean a person who does not have the intellectual apparatus to do any of the above. They should be pitied, not censured, but they SHOULD NOT BE ELECTED! Been there, done that, hated it.

The stated belief (in the “do you believe in fairies, then clap your hands” sense) that being ignorant or stupid makes you more like regular Americans is BS (and I’m not talking “bachelor of science” here). According to trustworthy polls (is that an oxymoron? – those who are not willfully ignorant can look it up), most Americans want to help the less fortunate (there but for the grace…). Most Americans believe gay people should have the same civil rights as everybody else (do unto others…). Most Americans want to respect and protect our seniors (honor thy…).

On a political history level, the ancient Greeks supported the liberal arts education in the belief (in the “this makes sense and has been proven to work” sense) that those who participate in a democracy need to be able to think rationally, and have the ability to express those thoughts clearly both verbally and in writing. And no, two out of three doesn’t count. Intellectually, I’ve met some ancient Greeks; I’ve gotten to know some ancient Greeks; and Rick Perry, you are no ancient Greek.

Additionally, on a more local level, most Americans of my experience think that honesty is a good thing. They also think that when you lie, you should feel bad. When you wrong someone you should apologize. When you make a mistake, you should admit it. And it’s not praiseworthy to sleep with somebody else’s husband (how did that get in there?).

This is why so many Republicans voted for Barack Obama. These voters believe America deserves the best and brightest. The hardworking and successful. The family man who actually stays with his family. Decent and honorable people can disagree about many things, like the best way to stimulate economic growth, but not about basic things. Treating people fairly is a basic thing. Helping people who have suffered from a natural disaster without running the calculator to make sure some other people suffer instead is a basic thing (are you listening, Eric Cantor?). Respecting expertise based on proof, facts, and experience is fairly basic as well.

Howard Baker is a decent, intelligent and well-informed person who happens to be a Republican. Formerly known as the “Great Conciliator,” he currently serves as co-founder of the Bipartisan Policy Center. To me, this former Tennessee senator who made his mark during the Watergate hearings will always be the epitome of the decent conservative. Nowadays, however, the word “conservative” has been hijacked by those who are anything but. What we have now is the John Dean-defined “conservatives without conscience” model. They are the opposite of what we need to move forward as an honorable and productive nation. To return to David Shuster, “ignorance is not a virtue; stupidity will not help us solve the complex problems we face.” To which I add, AMEN.