# In which I pit John Stossel for the dumbing of America **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 8, 2003, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730 "2003-12-08T18:10:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Hyperelastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Hyperelastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hyperelastic)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/21 "2003-12-09T00:30:53Z")
Since this is the Pit, I declare Stossel to be a pudwhacking dingaling. ---
**Author:** ![Tars\_Tarkas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Tars\_Tarkas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tars_Tarkas)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/22 "2003-12-09T01:21:10Z")
I bet he thought the Philospher’s Stone/Sorceror’s Stone wasn’t dumbed down enough, and wanted it “Shiny Rock” ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/23 "2003-12-09T01:44:51Z")
Dr. D, your services are needed once more. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_of\_the\_CC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58956e/32.png) [@Earl\_of\_the\_CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_of_the_CC)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/24 "2003-12-09T03:50:46Z")
I was a major lover of the little lego sets. By little I mean the pieces themselves were little and there’d be hundreds of 'em. I’d get 'em and spend the time it took to assemble it property, which can be graphed with a nice curving slope. About 3 seconds a piece for small sets. About 10 a second for huge ones (because it takes a while to find the right pieces and make sure it’s all secure). But that was only the first, oh say, 1/10th I’d get out of it. Eventually, I’d lose interest in my product and disassemble it. Then, I’d pool those pieces with ones from other sets and build my owns stuff. I’d redesign cars or make a snowmobile out of what was once a spacecraft. That’s the real fun, the real draw. I never owned K’nex, but I’m sure kids who love them have similar experiences. Stossel is a moron with a broom up his ass. Lighten up John, and build whatever you conceive. ---
**Author:** ![Dizzy\_Fingers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dizzy\_Fingers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dizzy_Fingers)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/25 "2003-12-09T04:10:09Z")
For God’s sake, make sure Stossel never gets near an Erector Set. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/26 "2003-12-09T04:55:38Z")
Ya know, when I was about 9 or so, I built my own dollhouse out of a balsa wood kit. Probably took me six months, what with gluing on the shingles and all. And _then_ I had to paint and furnish it. And after all that work, it didn’t even look like the one on the box!!! What a rip off!! But I was so young and stupid the time I actaully thought I was having “fun”. I was so naive, I was even _proud_ of the damn thing. Thank god we now have Stossel around to explain to children that the important thing about a toy is that it provide instant gratification and look “impressive” in the living room. I mean…even the kids in his article said they had fun trying to put the thing together, proving just how much they need his guidence. I can only hope he goes after those bastards in the model airplane kit industry next!!! ---
**Author:** ![Mac\_Guffin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/2bfe46/32.png) [@Mac\_Guffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mac_Guffin)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/27 "2003-12-09T05:11:27Z")
I would think he would have felt pretty silly not being able to put together a children’s toy. If I were unable to put something together that was meant for ages 8 and up, I sure as hell wouldn’t be telling the world about it. I would be seeing to it word never got out, for fear of being thought of as a feeb. Stossel is a feeb. ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/28 "2003-12-09T05:19:12Z")
If it makes you feel better, Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting [thinks he’s a tool](http://www.fair.org/extra/0303/stossel-break.html), too. Robin ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/29 "2003-12-09T05:27:55Z")
Lemme guess. . . Stossel’s gonna start whining about how ramen noodles don’t come out looking like they do on the package because they take effort to cook that way. Not like the package itself says “serving suggestion” or anything. . . :rolleyes: Jeeezus fareeekin’ Cripes. Tripler When news runs slow, slow run the news reporters. ---
**Author:** ![BrandyFine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrandyFine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrandyFine)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/30 "2003-12-09T05:41:09Z")
“FAIR” are basically tools anyway. I would like to see the report, because it seems pretty stupid. The entire point of K’Nex is that they are activities. It isn’t supposed to be assembled, the child is supposed to do it, or the child and parent. We have this coaster and also more advanced robotic type K’Nex sets that one of our kids still uses. Putting it together first for the child would be **really stupid**. Seems odd for Stossel to be off the mark like this, I wonder if he isn’t being taken out of context. As someone noted on the last page he was talking about annoyances of the season. Still, he should be alerted to the raison d’etre of K’Nex sets, if he isn’t already. ---
**Author:** ![BrandyFine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrandyFine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrandyFine)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/31 "2003-12-09T05:45:45Z")
Ah, I read it. Yep, he’s wrong on this one. Not about the other toys, but about K’Nex specifically. John, you’re going to hear about this one! I am not surprised the lady laughed. What do you expect when you’ve missed the whole point of an activity/product? ---
**Author:** ![Boo\_Boo\_Foo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@Boo\_Boo\_Foo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boo_Boo_Foo)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/32 "2003-12-09T06:58:04Z")
Does anyone remember Maccano? I don’t know if it ever sold in the United States, but it was a hell cool thing to play with. Made in Italy I believe. Real steel. Real nuts and bolts. Real spanners and wheels and little pre drilled sheet steel and sheet plastics. The stuff you could build with Maccano was priceless. And I remember playing with it as young as oh, 8 years of age I suspect. All those little spanners and wrenches and nuts and bolts. Heaps of fun. And it was safe too. No sharp edges. All rounded. Simply great stuff. I dunno - probably too cost expensive to make these days. But man, you could build little dune buggies which, no kidding, were almost indestructible. Absolutely magnificent to play with because it taught you so much about being inventive, and using your eye hand co-ordination, and using tools. Yeah, it’s a sad day when kids think that playing with a DVD is the Himalayan peak of entertainment. No wonder the world is getting fatter. ---
**Author:** ![SeekingTruth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@SeekingTruth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeekingTruth)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/33 "2003-12-09T07:13:56Z")
Maybe I’m getting old, but follow me on this, time for a mini-rant. First, I never liked Stossel. Now, to the crux of this dumbing down business. k’nex is for the imagination, sort of. Lego’s are the king for creativity. There are no CGI programmers telling the kid what it’s supposed to look like. Most of these sets come with some sort of map of what you’re supposed to build. Where does that build abstract thinking at an early age (that, BTW, helps build critical thinking skills later). I remember when I was a kid (shit, I do sound old) I had a huge bucket of Lego’s, and my friends and I would build whatever the hell we thought was needed for fun. This usually involved the ice-cream bucket of green plastic army men. We didn’t need Ritilin because we spent our energy just making shit up that amused us. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730/34 "2003-12-09T12:56:34Z")
**Boo Boo Foo** , that’s an Erector set in the US. It might even be made by Maccano, as the name sounds familiar. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-i-pit-john-stossel-for-the-dumbing-of-america/217730.md?page=1)