George Parker: The Dumbing Down of the Dumb!

It seems like every time I put on the “telly” I am bombarded with pictures and breathless stories about Susan Boyle, the Scottish lady who left fucktard Simon Cowell speechless (for about one minute) when she opened her mouth and belted out some show tune or other. Yeah, I’m one of the ten zillion people who’ve watched the clip on YouTube and I’ll admit she has a pretty good voice… But all the chat since that performance isn’t about her voice; it’s about her eyebrows and the frumpy dress she wore etc. World War III could break out tomorrow and all the communications channels, both old and new, would be full of mind numbing chat about when she’s going to get her first kiss.

Yeah. There’s no question “Pop” culture has always been about crap like that, the problem now is that with the ever proliferating wonders of Information Technology, there are so many more ways to disseminate it. I would go so far as to suggest that there is a case to be made that as IT gets cheaper, easier to use and more accessible, many of the people using it are getting more stupid. Yet we are constantly told that kids in school need more of it if they are to get ahead in an increasingly complex world. Arguments are made that when kids have easier access to information, the educational benefits are enhanced. Yet, in my opinion, the over reliance of technology is destroying literacy amongst the young. If you don’t believe me, just read the comments on any MySpace or YouTube page.

And no, it isn’t merely because texting shit on a mobile phone, or using my favorite bete noir, Twitter, encourages the bastardization of language while developing tactile dexterity, it’s because little, if any thought is given to the content of these texts. Logic often goes out of the window, to be replaced by rapid response. The new message is blasted out to large circles of friends or followers, who are busy cranking out more gibberish in an effort, not only to keep up with you, but to outdo you in the volume of replies from like minded churls.

It ends up being one giant circle jerk, where the speed of communication and the disregard for reasonable grammar leads to abbreviated words, phrases and sentences. And yes, with its 140 character limitation, Twitter is a culprit. But mobile phone texting shares equal blame, leading to a decline in logic and literacy. Even in some extreme cases to death, when idiots text while driving or using a cross-walk.

So, accuse me of being an old fart (there are lots of members of that club!) But I have to note that even though we are being buried under a tsunami of information (including advertising, as I discuss in The Ubiquitous Persuaders) we are reading things of substance far less. If it isn’t bite sized, homogenized and dumbed down, we don’t have the time or inclination to assimilate it. Probably because it might cut down on our Tweeting time.

George Parker is a guest columnist for psfk.com. He is the perpetrator of adscam.typepad.com, which is without doubt, one of the most foul and annoying, piss & vinegar ad blogs on the planet. He is the author of MadScam and his new book, The Ubiquitous Persuaders, which is currently setting the ether ablaze (and which you can order now on Amazon). He will continue to relentlessly promote the crap out of it until you are forced to stab yourself in the eyes with knitting needles.