About those liberal elitists looking down at those with no formal education...

The Resistance Continues, Mr Trump!

Resources To Help Immigrants Learn About US Immigration. Laws, Rules, Links, Videos, etc.

I’m from NJ. So you’re close to me. You’re safe Matt. Trump can’t get you in Massachusetts for sure.

And he'd get mugged in my town Bayonne, NJ. A crime committed every 40 minutes. 1 mile wide and 3 miles long. Upper middle class economically. 

America has problems bigger than trump. Amazingly true. 

Translation Hurray For Women. Resist!

They're in Massachusetts too. They're everywhere. 

Went to the movies last night in Amherst from Northampton and about 12 people with giant Trump signs were standing in the center of a rotary laughing and waving them at everyone.  So yes, they are definitely in Mass too

That’s what emotionally and spiritually unintelligent people do. Acting out schadenfreude is what insecure people do to get hits of Dopamine. IMHO it’s not the behavior of civilize people.

I’m sad and disappointed because so many people are unable to recognize the near perfect modeling of the intelligent, mature and benevolent behavior of good leaders such as VP Harris, Pres Biden and Obama. 

I don’t think what the Trumpers are doing waving signs counts as schadenfreude. They won, they got what they wanted, they are being poor winners, they are acting out the exact same hate and bigotry that led them to vote for Trump in the first place. 

Schadenfreude is what many of us will feel when the leopards they voted for start eating their faces. It won’t be our fault when it happens, because we voted for Harris, and we were not wishing that horrible things would happen to them before the election, we were hoping they’d see the light.

Because cheap eggs and gas were never on the Trump menu, but getting away with multiple, serious crimes against the nation, bigotry, misogyny and support for global fascism were, in flashing neon.

I’ve been fighting (not physically) and voting for the earth and for freedom and justice and peace for my whole life, and I’m not going to have any sympathy for the people who voted for hate and fascism when their poor choices come back to bite them, even — hell, especially — if their “excuse” is that they were voting for cheap eggs and gas.

Probably from Athol :-(  

Maybe Hadley-having worked there I saw a lot of hate in that community.  Funny-many of the farmers brought workers in from Jamaica and called them hard workers-not like all those other immigrants that they were against. Frustrating

This is simply one of the best diaries I’ve ever read on this site. Thank you, Matt.

Coming from you that means something, JoanMar. 

I’ve always thought, since urban folks look down on country folks as being “stupid,” but who are the folks who try to pet a buffalo?

(Not country folks.)

You may not have a college degree, but you write very well. You are obviously intelligent. That’s the difference between you and masses of Trump voters. 

Willful ignorance is still ignorance.

Yep. I'm white, genX, but educated, my wife as well. And I/we used to kinda think the issue with white,non college educated Murica is the lack of critical thinking. Boy did we had a rude awakening. As Matt was saying, when someone talks about inflation while shitting in a gold toilet, you should know right the fuck there what's up with that person. And people did. But they didn't fucking cared. They wanted to own us, the libs. I'm not even what's called a lib, and I bet the majority isn't. But owned we got nonetheless. No matter they voted against their interest. Owning us was the scope. Fuck healthcare. Fuck social security. Fuck clean air, water, democracy! As long as we own these motherfuckers! As long as we make identity politics a our main tenet, that's what's going to happen. Because feelings are way more powerful than facts. Fuck. Always hated this political correctness bullshit. And feared that catering to the most extreme left will doom us. Not Medicare for all, but plenty of other shit related to the same identity politics...and it certainly did. But no more. Not going to fucking care about people that think grabbing by the pussy makes you strong. No more care about the people that vote with their feelings. Fuck em. And Matt is right again. Uneducated doesn't make you stupid. There's no casuality there. But it certainly makes you malicious. Devoid of morals. And I'm an atheist. I should be the soulless one!! Fuck me, fuck that. You people wanna go to hell, your hell, not mine? Go right the fuck ahead. White, brown - yes I see you Hispanics also, with your macho bullshit. You're being called vermin, rapists, poisoning the blood of this country, and what do you do?! Allow yourselves to be pegged, Cancun Ted Cruz style! Macho? More like nacho, and a stale one at that! Black man also. God forbid you vote for a woman. Makes you less than a man. Fucking christ, I'm done caring. Fortunately I can afford it. I'm so sorry for all the people who can't. People that, as Matt, found joy in Kamala"s campaign. But I'm done caring. Good luck with these assholes. Cause they're here to destroy the fucking world.

Thank you for this post.

Welcome.

Thank you, Matt Z.

I got “schooled” Thursday (emergency babysitting trip 150 miles away) by my younger son the pastor’s in-laws. They’re a whole generation younger than me, a pair of people with not just college degrees but PhDs, and they’re in the six-figures-a-year bracket as retirees.

“Trump is the best president ever for veterans.”

“Project 2025 doesn’t exist.”

“January 6 was a peaceful rally until the Democrats pretended to be Trump voters and broke into the capitol.”

I’ve got a bachelor’s. My SO has an associate’s. I’m a vet (US Air Force, enlisted), and my SO holds up my sky.

We’re both retired, me from newswriting and him from networking/IT. We never were and never will be six-figures-income people. To us, being able to afford a home on one salary’s not a bad income situation at all, but my son’s in-laws think “their finances have never been stable.” 

Excuse the holy living fuck out of me, but you’re not just concerned solely with money to the point that you are stupid about every other aspect of life in this nation, you listen to Fox and believe what you hear. I don’t think you can be reached, never mind redeemed.

We didn’t raise our children to spit on immigrants or vote for rapists.

There are at least three couples with whom we socialize that ARE just concerned solely with money to the point that they are stupid about every other aspect of life in this nation.  And yes, they *do* listen to Fox and believe everything they hear there.  And they are SO proud of their ignorance, LOUD and proud. 

Those are people who are likely to have their faces eaten first. So think about how you will react to that and their suffering. 

Trump supporters believe that those who broke into the Capitol are simultaneously Democratic plants and Republican heroes. Of course, they can't be both.

Outstanding MZ. I was yelling some of these same points at smug Bill Maher last night. I don’t think he heard me thru the TV. Maybe he’ll read them here.

I don’t have a college education but I damn well have a life one. I too keep hearing “uneducated” Americans voted for 47. Uh no. My DIL/Son both have full college educations. (I think son voted 47 to keep peace in his house.)  Talk about living in a liberal state — I’m in California. Can ya get any more liberal than California?  I worked with special needs kids — many are brilliant in their own way. Just can’t express like everyone else. My daughter (now disabled and cannot work due to multiple health issues) has a masters from the Univ of Bath, UK in European Politics/Spanish. 

It wasn’t the uneducated that voted for 47. It was the brain washed. The ones who had their anger and fears fed more and more bull shit. Why? I don’t know. Racism? In the cult I was in in Berkelely there were six (6!) astrophysicists who worked at UCB or Livermore labs. If they were so uber smart why were they in a cult?  Same with the Maga’s.  My neighbor is a dentist (maga.) My ex-chiropractor is maga. Neither are uneducated nor dumb. 

We make a huge mistake labeling anyone on the right as uneducated and therefore voted 47. It’s a huge mistake to dismiss the life education anyone has had without a degree or even a high school education. We all can read and learn and don’t need a diploma to prove it as we grow. 

The only thing I disagree with you on — my Tribe is not racist, homophobic nor misoginystic.  That other tribe is. But…..they are not stupid nor uneducated. So how does our tribe try and break through into theirs to show them other ways and means???  

Venting in my comments due to your dairy. Hope it’s okay.  

It’s fine. Discussion is good. 

I saw a lot of polls saying uneducated voters broke for trump, so they have some responsibility for his win, however I never assumed you had to be educated to vote for Harris. Unfortunately education seems to have a less than optimal effect on whether or not one is misogynistic, racist, homophobic and xenophobic.

Family.  Heritage,  Background.

These count for much more than formal education.

Took it in with mother's milk, most of them.  But manosphere influencers have something to answer for, too, pumping up male supremacy and woman-hate.

x

x

Unquestionably.  

You know, you are right, except it seems that you are do not seem to be recognizing how ‘deep male supremacy and woman-hate ’ are embedded in our society. It will not just go away because of some sincere scorn for it.

Get to work!

Yes.  Add literacy to your list. That has nothing to do with formal education.

Literacy is part of one’s background.  One can choose to be literate, or one can be a Trump voter.  

The people who need to see this are the Republican propagandists who talk about “elitists” being these snooty intellectuals to divert attention away from their own elitism, giving tax cuts to the already wealthy who were born on third base and think they hit a triple.

I think the working class Republicans would benefit from knowing that not all liberals meet this image they’ve been sold about the snooty ones.

The high school I went to was in a district divided between dairy farms and a high tech suburb. I understand the class divisions and how it could lead to such perceptions about who is the real elite. I was the Hip Reaper—when I started following a trend, it was a sure sign that it was no longer trendy.

I’ve been saying this for days.

If you are truly educated and informed, then you don’t support MAGA.

Dentists and doctors may be smart enough to get a degree and become those things, but when it comes to politics and government, they can be dumb.  And/or misinformed.

That’s the thing.  People who are actually educated (not just trained) and actually informed don’t fall for this.  People- from less educated to professionals that are clueless- can and do.

And yet, I am NOT educated and don’t support MAGA. Because I can still choose to stay informed. 

Great!  Because you are truly informed.  But too many people that are in your Boat aren’t.

When this is all over I suspect we’ll ALL be in the same sinking Boat. And there won’t be much any of us can do about it. 

I hope we will be able to struggle against the sinking boat and the MAGA BS that is swamping it.  We all need to be in the fight.  Punch a Nazi Captn. America.  Or, if no punching possible, keep posting and arguing and treat others in need with kindness, care and empathy.  You have that in abundance Matt.  Thank you for your posting.

Matt, you don’t have to be highly educated to be smart, you’re proof of that! So please don’t short-change yourself, you’ve got this! 

Yay!

Yay indeed.  Yay, yay, yay!  Let’s keep the joy alive.  Thank you Kamala, we have absorbed your joy into our lives.  Wish you were president but keep us joying along.

Matt, you make more sense than anyone with a PhD. I too was a poor student all thru school because of poor nutrition. Always hungry and in Texas there were zero programs, food banks or any kind of help for people like my family. I found out I could learn any job if given the chance but in the 60’s sexual harassment was the norm and I was a victim with no recourse. Today at 80 years old I have signed on with the Resistance, refuse to take my Harris/Walz signs down because I want everyone in my neighborhood to know that in the next four years I voted for freedom, kindness, decency, and consider those who didn’t vote for those things are part of the problem today, and I want to be part of the solutions needed to cleanse our country of the cruelty being dealt like a worn deck of cards to those most vulnerable. Thank you for your wonderful rant, it was thing of beauty~

I meant ever word. And thank you!

EVERY word. Even the typos. 

I didn't see typos, I was enjoying your pearls if wisdom so I apparently read right over them.

I have always been able to read typos! Just keep on trucking, we need your voice!

The ship hit the iceberg on Tuesday.  She’s taking on water now.  Let’s see how long she stays afloat.

Well, there's about 70 million people manning the bilge pumps ...

Matt, uneducated means not having a HS diploma; which you have, so don’t knock yourself. However you earned it, you earned it. I was in education for 32 years, as a teacher and then school therapist, as well as outside counseling for all kinds of issues, including veterans. A HS diploma means you have passed society’s educational requirements. And yes, I know in some cases these degrees are awarded for people who don’t have to meet the same standards ( I case managed probably over a thousand special ed kids over the decades ) because those kids just can’t for good reasons, but in general a HS diploma is nothing to apologize for. As for spelling, F Scott Fitzgerald could not spell. And me, an excellent speller all my life, after Covid lost my ability to spell perfectly; I now confuse words like one and won, there and their, here and hear, so really, we all eventually know what it feels like, and as for math, I was always shit at it, and am far worse now, even losing 500 bucks from Chase when they stole my money over months when I was incapacitated by Covid.

The thing is most everybody on the site has post graduate degrees. So yeah, I feel uneducated in comparison. 

You write better than me and I taught English for ten years and wrote hundred of magazine articles. The late writer Joe Bageant had no degree; Michael Moore doesn’t have a degree. In fact in the old days many reporters lacked degrees; I knew one who started in circulation and worked his way to the editorial side; that was not unheard of once. He even got to interview HW Bush. Peter Jennings didn’t have a degree either IIRC.

Thank you! You actually write very well!

That means a lot tome. Thanks. My reader were all fishermen, and they weren’t looking for literature, just where to find the fish.

Joe Bageant’s book Deer Hunting with Jesus could add more fuel to this fire. He retired to West Virginia and it was educational. Good book, too.

And I’ve been on this site for years without an advanced degree, just a simple BA in accounting. But I was raised by Democrats.

This is a (Minor?) part of the problem, the routes off the factory/warehouse floor no longer exist.  “Management” trainees start with a BA of some sort (Business from the University of Arkansas at Walmart) (Local to HQ);  Used to be you could start stocking shelves & work your way up.  Those paths have been closed for a generation now. 

Oh, in case you were curious, Wahhabism is a radical branch of Islam, originating in Saudi Arabia, responsible for a lot of violence. Most of the 9-11 terrorists were of that sect.

Calvinism is an extremely Puritanical branch of Christianity, common in the early New England colonies.  They believe in predestination [God decides if you are saved or lost before you are even born]. Named for their founder John Calvin.

This is information I will have absolutely no retention of. 

Oh well.

Heh. 

Well, I didn’t know Calvin of Calvin and Hobbs was named for Calvinism! That’s a weird detail I’ll probably remember. Please don’t sell yourself short!

Hobbes was named after the philosopher Hobbes. 

How neat — I’ll share this with my son, who was five when Calvin and Hobbs burst upon the scene, and identified with him totally. We own ALL the books. You too must have been a very interesing child!  PS I have to go google philosopher Hobbes. I THINK I’ve heard the name, but that’s about iit.

I used to know the first name but I lazily forgot it. Also bats aren’t bugs. 

Or birds. True that!

But batty coders produce software with lots of bugs.  So there's that.  heh

A justification of a permanent government of Tyranny

[Thomas] Hobbes liberates those who are excluded from society—the unsuccessful, the unfortunate, the criminal—from every obligation toward society and state if the state does not take care of them.

They may give free rein to their desire for power and are told to take advantage of their elemental ability to kill, thus restoring that natural equality which society conceals only for the sake of expediency.

Hobbes foresees and justifies the social outcasts’ organization into a gang of murderers as a logical outcome of the bourgeoisie’s moral philosophy.

— Hanna Arendt. The Origins of Totalitarianism. 1967. applebooks.

There is hardly a single bourgeois moral standard which has not been anticipated by the unequaled magnificence of Hobbes’s logic. He gives an almost complete picture, not of Man but of the bourgeois man, an analysis which in three hundred years has neither been outdated nor excelled. “Reason...is nothing but Reckoning." “A free Subject, a free Will...[are] words...without meaning; that is to say, Absurd.”

A being without reason, without the capacity for truth, and without free will—that is, without the capacity for responsibility—man is essentially a function of society and judged therefore according to his “value or worth...his price; that is to say so much as would be given for the use of his power.”

This price is constantly evaluated and re-evaluated by society, the “esteem of others,” depending upon the law of supply and demand.

Power, according to Hobbes, is the accumulated control that permits the individual to fix prices and regulate supply and demand in such a way that they contribute to his own advantage.

— Hanna Arendt. The Origins of Totalitarianism. 1967. applebooks.

Every man and every thought which does not serve and does not conform to the ultimate purpose of a machine whose only purpose is the generation and accumulation of power is a dangerous nuisance.

[Thomas] Hobbes judged that the books of the “ancient Greeks and Romans” were as “prejudicial” as the teaching of a Christian “Summum bonum . . . as [it] is spoken of in the Books of the old Morall Philosophers” or the doctrine that “whatsoever a man does against his Conscience, is Sinne” and that “Lawes are the Rules of Just and Unjust.”

Hobbes’s deep distrust of the whole Western tradition of political thought will not surprise us if we remember that he wanted nothing more nor less than the justification of Tyranny which, though it has occurred many times in Western history, has never been honored with a philosophical foundation.

That the Leviathan actually amounts to a permanent government of tyranny, Hobbes is proud to admit: “the name of Tyranny signifieth nothing more nor lesse than the name of Soveraignty . . . ; I think the toleration of a professed hatred of Tyranny, is a Toleration of hatred to Commonwealth in generall. . . ."

— Hanna Arendt. The Origins of Totalitarianism. 1967. applebooks.

Quotes: Leviathan or The Matter, Form and Power of a Commonwealth, Ecclesiastical and Civil — Leviathan (1651; rev. 1668).

Masterpiece of political philosophy by Englishman, Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679). Its title derives from from biblical references, most notably in Job. Leviathan is a primordial sea serpent.

Perfect quotes from Hannah.  Everyone should read The Origins of Totalitarianism.  I read it again during Drumpf’s first run and it’s a very good reminder of the mechanisms of total control.  If anyone hasn’t read it, please give it a try.  It is valuable.

Rick Perlstein’s book Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus is also worth reading.

I hereby state my intention to be a nonviolent but dangerous nuisance!

Every man and every thought which does not serve and does not conform to the ultimate purpose of a machine whose only purpose is the generation and accumulation of power is a dangerous nuisance.

Good heavens!  I was about to  lightheartedly recommend to junipertree that they google “Monty Python/Hobbes” from their Australia skit.  I never studied (or read anything much about philosophy) or had bothered looking up the philosophy of the philosophers mentioned.  What a monster.  But, actually, everyone should check out Monty Python’s skit for a laugh.  But, oh, yes, there is some homophobia satirized.  Remember, Graham Chapman was gay. 

Matt, my mother was a teacher, and tolerated no grammar/spelling errors.  But I didn’t notice any in your story.  They might be there, but maybe apparently they weren’t egregious —  or maybe I was enjoying every word, correctly or incorrectly spelled.  And at 70, I now love spellcheck.  (Spell check?)

Of "nasty, brutish, and short" fame. 

Watterson was having his little joke. It doesn't affect the rest of the comic's message, but he did have to name them something, so I guess he decided "why not? Let's see if I can get this past my editors." 

But you only need to know who Hobbes was if you were a college history or politics major. 

Calvin, OTOH — damn. The inventor of predestination. Evil man. More need to know about him and how horribly dangerous his doctrines were and continue to be. The root of all of the religious right. 

I know a bit about John Calvin… Grandpa claimed to be a direct descendant, so I looked him up early. (I’ve always said that while no Calvinist I’ve ever met believed themselves to be predestined for damnation, every damned Calvin I’ve known and loved surely did. That should tell you something about Grandpa, and the rest of the clan.)

John Calvin was trained as a lawyer. Predestination was his way of making sense out of the fact that some people reject the Good News and persist in being miserable, nasty folks. A rather cynical way around the idea of Original Sin — blame God instead of the choices people make  — but I (unfortunately) have no more satisfying explanation for the Maga voters who threw away all that Love, Peace & Joy that was offered them by Harris/Walz for the mess of pottage they will be lucky to get in Trumpworld than Calvin could see for those who would reject the Love, Peace and Joy offered by Christ.

Of course, Calvin and his followers had to invent ways to show you weren’t one of the foreordained damned so they wouldn’t end up in the same Boat (or at least in steerage) with the damned, so we ended up with a lot of folks believing that success on earth — reward for working real hard — means blessing  and acceptance from above… and that if you are poor, it is your own damned fault. Nobody even considered that the system could be rigged or that a lot of times earthly success comes down to inheritance or luck.  

Simpler explanation of Calvinism: God knows everything, so he knows whether you’ve been good or bad or will be good or bad.

Janitor & babysitter here. Recently passed test related to assisting kids in school. Needed tutor. 

Congratulations!! A janitor taught me to pinch the tip of my nose to stop it from bleeding when I ws in elementary school. Kids remember things like that for a long time — because they’re important.

I started my career in education as….a janitor.

My first job at a performing theatre before I rocketed to scenic carpenter. 

I only graduated High School. 

Me too!

I was mostly a waitress for over thirty years. I was bullied from day one of school all the way to graduation, punched in the head and face, emotionally, all of it. I hated school. I had zero interest in going to college because of it. I went straight to work. I also think that the bullying helped me to see through all the bullshit from republicans, and asshole trump.  

Being bullied does help people gain empathy. And wisdom about avoiding assholes. 

It showed me what people do to others they consider "weak." 

Bullying is actually how weak people demonstrate their weakness. 

It is. 

Really nice diary, Matt. I'm going to bed. Have a great rest of your night.

You too. 

Hey I was a fry cook in those joints. And a busboy. I depended on waitresses to throw me a percentage of their tips.

I have done that job, too. Thank you.

I think that is the most important education we need, empathy, compassion, sympathy. I don't think they teach that in dentist school or big business school. That's the life education so many in any boat don't get. But that is what we need to defeat the hatred, racism, misogyny that is everywhere.

I too was bullied. I hear you. And I too have a high school education, tho I did get a year of college later in life. And I did hate school.

This post says what needs to be said. As for the Democratic Party, they need to figure out why they lost and get it fixed — FAST. If that means making some radical changes, so be it. In the end, politics is about winning and we are not doing that.

Yep. Very sorry you were bullied, as well. 

I was a backward and inverted kid and that was enough for bullies to attack.

Well,  I took a break from working two jobs to have a baby right out of miserable high school. Hands down the worst experience of my life. So I join the hands raised here and proudly proclaim: I am not conventionally educated but I am the smartest fecking person I know!

And just why is everyone up so late?

(Good diary Matt.)

I don’t ever sleep. Not anymore. 

I hear ya. I missed your diary because of the rarity of sleeping at that hour. Just being silly this morning.😉

Hello, fellow worker! 🙂

Me too. I was bullied as a guy because, get this, I was bigger than most of the other guys ( because I had stayed back a grade, slow reader! ) and they wanted to see what I was made of. On occasion when it got too much, they would find out what I was made of, which would stop the bullying for awhile anyway. So when I finished HS and took the SAT and failed to even break a thousand, because I left most of the math blank, because I couldn’t do it ( which meant I actually had an impressive verbal score ) I figured I was done with school. Someone talked me into county college, and when I got into history and psych classes it just clicked, and the English professor was like kid, can you help tutor some of the other kids in the class? It’s a good thing I found academics because i cannot wield a hammer to save my life; projects I attempted to do myself inevitably result in a desperate call to a friend in the trades, who told me look, don’t even bother. Call me next time….

I am happy to hear you found your place. So many are not able to do that.

I had help from parents with union jobs who had some real estate they bought that paid my tuition and allowed me to live at home while I scrambled to some sort of career. No boot strap bullshit here; I had help. And two important, educated Black women did more for this White boy than anyone; when I was in grad school and ill from a CFS like illness, a Black professor who had transferred in from Iowa went to bat for me against the administration who wanted this blue collar kid to leave ( professional programs like social work are very rigid in how the curriculum is taken; if you miss a part due to illness, you have to wait another year ) and got me into her independent study section, so I could stay on the rolls. Another Black superintendent took a chance on me and hired me to be the social worker in the school part of juvenile detention; she told me work here for a year, and you will be golden to everyone else. She was correct.

Cmae and Matt Z—2 of my faves here!!! Thank you for together hammering the nail in the coffin about “the uneducated.” I live in a rural area, and almost every Democrat I know here is a high school graduate. 

People CHOSE this. They aren’t victims. They loved voting for Trump. They don’t want equality, period. They don’t give a fuck about marginalized communities except to tell them to shut the fuck up and get back in their place. This is about maintaining a winners and losers system where they perceive themselves as natural winners without having to lift a finger. These Trump voters fucking LOVE inequality.

Love you, Cmae and Matt Z!!!

Yes. And they continue to prove it nearly a full week after the election by keeping up their lawn signs.  To me, these signs don’t say “I voted for this policy or that perspective” they say “I voted for the guy who won.” It enables them to, as you put it, “perceive themselves as natural winners without having to lift a finger.”

I’m one of those. Bachelor’s (double major in math and physics, minor in music), Master’s in math, and a Ph.D. in math. I’ve been a math professor for a quarter of a century, spending all of my working time around the highly educated and those seeking to be.

So I think I can speak with some authority when I say: there is as big a proportion of dumbasses with Ph.D.s as without. If all you knew about me was that first paragraph, you might think, “that guy must be pretty smart!” So I’ll tell a little story.

Once when my wife and I were vacationing at the beach, we ewer stopped at a side road waiting to enter the highway. There was enough traffic that it was clearly going to take a while, so, as I do, I started to fidget, pulling up on the parking brake lever and releasing it, tighter and tighter, wondering how tight I could get it. On the last attempt, I ripped the whole mechanism out of the steel floor of the car. It was stuck tightly in “on,” and I had no leverage anymore to release it since it needed a slight lift in order to disengage. Cars were lined up behind us, also waiting… I don’t remember now how I finally managed to release it, but I did, and we got out of there — but what a dumbass! You’d think someone studying physics would understand leverage… 

Anyway… Advanced degrees focus in a narrow area and attract people who are intensely interested in that area. That passion (admittedly coupled with aptitude in the subject) is what makes them able to complete the degree far more than being “smart” (whatever that means). They are definitely experts in those areas and should be listened to *in those areas*, but I wouldn’t assume they necessarily have any special insight into other areas. (Though there are exceptions.)

On the flip side, my wife started college but didn’t finish more than a year or so. She’s brilliant both intellectually and creatively (besides being one of the humblest people I know). Her brother dropped out of high school and may be the most intellectually gifted person I’ve ever met; his accomplishments would sound cartoonish if I were to list them. Dyslexic, but photographic memory (or nearly?), and his ability to make connections is unequaled by anyone else I know. (He, however, is not humble… :) )

My point is don’t sell yourself short! Formal education says something about a person, but there’s also a hell of a lot of informal education that doesn’t come with a certificate — that counts, too, even if we (as a culture) don’t always recognize it or value it as we should.

And *none* of that speaks to someone’s value as a person.

Professor’s occupational hazard: if you wind us up, we’ll go on for an hour...