[lit-ideas] Re: Sunday waffle...
- From: Paul Stone <pas@xxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 02 Jun 2005 11:00:04 -0400
>A.A. I don't think intellectual talent is a prerequisite for being a doctor
>or lawyer. Anyone who wants to be a doctor or lawyer can be one.
That is total bull shit. Millions of people COULD NOT BE a doctor OR a
lawyer, or EVEN a plumber (no offense Mike). A lot of people can do
whatever they want... most still can't. And the big lie that has been
perpetrated is what you are posing. Of course tenacity and hard work are
required, even for the most intellectually talented person to become
"something", but without any brains, you're rather fucked. The problem with
lowering standards is that with hard enough work, some rubes can slip
through. The lower the standards, the more feeble-minded people get
through. In my opinion, that's a huge problem. And it's based on the
assumption (which I don't know the origin of) that everyone can do
everything. That's patently false and is putting people who don't belong in
positions they are unsuited for.
>Going through professional training is far more about drive than
>intelligence.
>Doctors, lawyers, engineers, even college professors, are no more
>intellectually talented than anyone else.
As a group, of course they are.
>They're not even particularly more intellectually curious than anyone
>else. For nearly everyone,
>whatever they do is just a job. Many doctors/lawyers, etc. are untalented
>and even stupid.
Many? MANY are stupid? Come on!!!
>I would say experience in any field is more important
>than intellectual talent. I would go one step further and say that many
>overachieving successful types are basically covering up some inner
>inadequacy, hence the need to overachieve.
Is EVERY doctor, lawyer, engineer, college prof an overachiever? If you
have talent and tenacity are you an overachiever? I would say that people
who want to become a doctor because their father told them to even though
they are sub-standard and have to break their balls to become a mediocre
doctor, ARE covering up their inadequacies, but even in today's society,
with pretty lax schools (oh I could tell some stories) the system does a
pretty good job of weeding people out. I saw our freshman class of 400,
whittled down to less than 80 graduating engineers 4 years later. Out of
those 80, there weren't any 'stupid' people. There were some assholes
(yours truly) and some socially inept (probably me too) but 'intellectually
untalented' doesn't describe anyone.
The fact is that the average IQ of a graduating class of professionals is
without question higher than that of the latest Earl Wood's Truck Drivers
school. This is not to take anything away from truck drivers -- my best
friend is a truck driver (really, he is) -- but let's be honest,
practically ANYONE CAN be a truck driver. A select few can fix your brain
tumour or design your tv.
>Not all, but many. None of this is to say that intellectual standards
>should be lowered for those who
>do go on to a university, only that intelligence per se is not a major
>consideration in career plans.
Wow!
Paul
##########
Paul Stone
pas@xxxxxxxx
Kingsville, ON, Canada
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