I'm reading more and more about the rising tide of anti-intellectualism in America, and seeing evidence of it. From the rise of "Larry the Cable Guy" (see "Jake's Take" in Connect's Aug. 3 edition) to the "redneck revolution," it's leading us, as a nation, down a path we don't want to follow.
It's not anything new to me, though, and that's what's really scary. It's the same thing that got me and a million other bookish, intellectual kids beaten up in high school, just carried to the national level.
This may sound strangely like rationalization, but I think it's fear that drives it. Y'see, the old adage is true - knowledge is power, the current administration notwithstanding, and smart people can be a bit scary 'cause they've got that power. They can do things with their brain you can't. Heck, they might be able to trick you into doing something they want you to do that you might not want to do.
So you've got to beat 'em down.
Hopefully, this is just a phase. Who knows, Paris Hilton may decide to go to college, and it'll be cool to be smart - or at least interested in self-improvement - again.
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