Is it me or is the general public becoming dumber and more divided?

I think it's fine to be considered dumb/stupid/ignorant since nobody will have the answer to every question. In some way, we are all dumbasses.

However, the thing I find really annoying and frustrating is the fact that people are content to be dumbasses to where they believe and argue for what they think is right even when all the evidence and information out there show otherwise. The problems come when there are so many people who are ignorant and still refuse to see things from other perspectives and are still somehow arrogant. Being close-minded doesn't help any person or the people around them.

Ignorance by itself is not a problem, but purposeful ignorance is just bullshit.

 

Very true. But I'm not suggesting we become a hivemind. Just helps to keep certain things in context. Quite often, it is enough to accept that you do not understand or agree. Everyone doesn't have to agree on everything. We're all just people. All of us flawed, each with our own sense of identity. There are times when you should think of yourself and times when it is important to consider the possibility that what is right for you is hurting others.

Everybody wants to occupy all of the space in the world. Nobody's content to stay in their lane and simply reach their destination. The pull of the ego is just too strong. We have to meddle.

We all have our utopias. I do agree with you that there's no singular utopia, but I also think there doesn't necessarily need to be. The world is so big, and people are so small. I can't help but think there have to be some boundaries and compromises that we can all agree upon. It'll never be this perfect, black-and-white scenario. There is not a single person out there who should not have a place in this world. Piecing that puzzle together is mankind's greatest endeavor. And all things considered, I think we have progressed quite a lot in that area. Perhaps it's best to simply not think of it as a path with an end, but rather a continual upward spiral. When it comes to civilized society, there is no endgame. It may just be that we will always be a work in progress.

Or at least, I'm okay with that idea. Leaves you with a lot of room to just be happy. But that's a call you have to make yourself. You have to ask yourself how much certain things really affect you and why. Why do you care? You gotta dig deep. Might not be what you think it is.

Ahh, yes. Good ole willful ignorance. Now that is truly a travesty.

 

It is. I personally consider Desiderius Erasmus and Montaigne as personal examples. Live and let live and adapt when necessary.

There is limit to what you can actively know. Today I fucked something up because I assumed something would simply work out and nope it did not. Adapt and live another day...

 

@robot zombie Lots of great stuff in the above posts. Some things that stuck you for me:

Reading these points, I realized that they all, to a degree, point to how the opposite of humility is narcissism, and that narcissism is dangerous to the self and toxic to others.