I’m a little confused (okay, label me “dumbest” if you like) but there are personages in the Levi Johnson thread about the relative intelligence of the principles in the Palin story. Who’s the dumbest on this list, in your humble opinion, and who’s the smartest? Write-ins welcome. Give reasons for your choices, and please show all work.
Well, I’m not tackling the whole list, but I do have some thoughts on a couple.
The dumbest, by any definition of the word, is Trig. He’s both an infant, and mentally handicapped.
I would venture a guess that of the people on the list, Obama is the the brightest. I base that not only on his education, but so too on his seeming ability to grasp rather complex ideas in a short period of time.
I’m not sure how her doctor is relevant. But I’d default to putting him somewhere near the top of the list based entirely on his professional degree, which requires some good scientific scholarship.
I think, too, that Peggy Noonan would be near the top. Fortunately, the question wasn’t about integrity or even just honesty, but about intellect. I think she’s a reasonably (no pun intended) bright person who, unfortunately, has only a passing acquaintance with the truth. Where she breaks down is in the idea that it’s perfectly acceptable to outright lie so long as her political ends are met. I think that does her a disservice, because she’d be able to well-argue (perhaps even better argue) for her politics if she’d just restrict herself to the truth.
David Letterman would have to be up there somewhere given that it takes some wit to be a good a comedian, wit is a sign of some intelligence, and the people he’s competing against isn’t a difficult competition.
The rest of the people I don’t really know a great deal about, but I’d surmise that Bristol and her erstwhile boyfriend are somewhere near the bottom.
Alas, Mrs. Palin would but a step above Trig. Not only does she lack honesty, she lacks the ability to remain consistent with her chicanery. And then we must consider what a great public speaker she is and how she always shows such a deep understanding* of, well, everything she’s bothered to talk about. In short, she has delusions of adequacy. One thing in her favor, though it pains me to say, is that she has demonstrated a supreme mastery of geography.*
