VOCABULARY: Dummheit — collective stupidity

Tuesday, March 24, 2026

https://www.thefocalpoints.com/p/war-the-father-of-all-mind-viruses?publication_id=1119676&post_id=191045812&isFreemail=true&r=3snn7d&triedRedirect=true

WAR: The Father of All Mind Viruses
Fear of an enemy — real, perceived, exaggerated, or fabricated — is the emotional incubator and superspreader of all mind viruses.
John Leake
Mar 15, 2026

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Dietrich Bonhoeffer concluded that they had been afflicted with collective stupidity (German: Dummheit). He was not being flippant or sarcastic, and he made it clear that stupidity is not the opposite of native intellect. On the contrary, the events in Germany between 1933 and 1943 had shown him that perfectly intelligent people were, under the pressure of fear and propaganda, rendered stupid—that is, incapable of critical reasoning.

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“The ultimate test of a moral society is the kind of world that it leaves to its children.” — Dietrich Bonhoeffer

“Fear is not real. It is a product of thoughts you create. Do not misunderstand me. Danger is very real. But fear is a choice.” — Will Smith

‘Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past me I will turn to see fear’s path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.’ — Muad’Dib in DUNE

“To learn what we fear is to learn who we are. Horror defies our boundaries and illuminates our souls.” — Shirley Jackson

FEAR = False Evidence Appearing Real —  I Kings 19:1-15

Maybe this is where our English word “dumbshit” originates?

AI Overview — “Dumbshit” is a vulgar slang term referring to a very stupid, foolish, or incompetent person. It is used as a derogatory noun or, less commonly, as an adjective to describe extreme foolishness. Originating in American slang around the 1940s, it serves as a harsh term of address.

That’s about the right timeframe for Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s observation to appear in the USA.  

Seems like a good label to apply to a lot people in today’s population.

Maybe to plagiarize Jeff Foxworthy —  

— if you have any of these “derangement syndromes”, you maybe a dumbshit!

— if you believe anything a politicians or bureaucrats says, you maybe a dumbshit!

— if you echo anything to see or hear on “social media” without citation or evidence, you maybe a dumbshit!

Nota Bene:  Everything I blog about starts with a link of what prompted it.

“My first rule: I don’t believe anything the government tells me.” — George Carlin  

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2026-03Mar-24 0841 — Revised to fix format.

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POLITICAL: We have more to fear from stupid people than evil ones

Monday, February 6, 2023

https://bigthink.com/thinking/bonhoeffers-theory-stupidity-evil/?utm_campaign=weeklynewsletter&utm_source=rejoiner&utm_medium=email&utm_content=02%2F02%2F23+Smarter+Faster&rjnrid=1Qrp0MR

Thinking — January 26, 2023
Bonhoeffer’s “theory of stupidity”: We have more to fear from stupid people than evil ones
Evil is easy to identify and fight against; not so with stupidity.
Credit: Giovanni Battista Recco, Annelisa Leinbach

Key Takeaways

  • When we know something or someone is evil, we can take steps to fight it.
  • With stupidity, it is much more difficult.
  • Dietrich Bonhoeffer argues that stupidity is worse than evil because stupidity can be manipulated and used by evil.
  • He also argues that stupidity tends to go hand-in-hand with acquiring power — that is, being in power means we surrender our individual critical faculties. 

Jonny Thomson

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There’s an internet adage that goes, “Debating an idiot is like trying to play chess with a pigeon — it knocks the pieces over, craps on the board, and flies back to its flock to claim victory.” It’s funny and astute. It’s also deeply, depressingly worrying. Although we’d never say so, we all have people in our lives we think of as a bit dim — not necessarily about everything, but certainly about some things.

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I never heard the internet adage before but it certainly hits the bulls eye.

I’m not sure how we overcome the stupidity of our fellow Americans.

Perhaps it’s the result of Gooferment Skrules that make “We, The Sheeple” so stupid?

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