The right wing is very fond of stressing the term “Republic” in reference to our country lately. They like to lecture us heathen liberals about the intent of the Founding Fathers, who, they are quick to point out, built our system of government based on representative democracy, not direct democracy, where the majority rules. Since they are not in the majority, it is understandable that they would cling to a view which legitimizes minority rule.
Wikipedia defines the term Republic as “a form of government in which the people or some portion thereof retain supreme control over the government, and in which the head of government is not a monarch. The word “republic” is derived from the Latin phrase res publica, which can be translated as “a public affair”.”
The Merriam Webster definition for “mediocrity” lies below:
Mediocrity:
a : the quality or state of being mediocre
b : moderate ability or value
And since there is some circular reasoning there, the Merriam Webster definition of “mediocre”-
Mediocre:
of moderate or low quality, value, ability, or performance : Ordinary; So-so
The citizens that follow Beck like to paint themselves as ordinary folk; humble, hard-working. They seem to resent anyone that possesses a higher intelligence or more knowledge on a subject than they do. Yet, they also seem to resent the suggestion that they take the time to get themselves informed rather than letting others inform them. It seems to me that they would like to pull the whole society down to their level. Do you think that is what Beck means by “Restoring Honor?” Is it now somehow deemed honorable to be mediocre and uninformed?
Following are some quotes on the subject of mediocrity:
“A talent somewhat above mediocrity, shrewd and not too sensitive, is more likely to rise in the world than genius.” -Charles Horton Cooley
“All greatness of character is dependent on individuality. The man who has no other existence than that which he partakes in common with all around him, will never have any other than an existence of mediocrity.” -James F. Cooper
“In the republic of mediocrity, genius is dangerous.” -Robert Green Ingersoll
America, it seems to me, is on the precipice of entering a dark age. If we allow mediocrity to become the measuring stick, we are aiming too low and dooming our future.
A recent attendee at Glenn Beck’s “Restoring Honor” rally said of America, “This is the last bastion of hope. And right now we’re on very shaky ground.”
We are indeed, on very shaky ground, especially if the country has to depend on mediocre people to lead the way out. But I wonder what we are the last bastion of hope FOR? Freedom—already gone. Unfettered Capitalism—proven failure. Mediocrity—we are headed there like an out-of -control freight train.
Another attendee, a woman this time, said this of Barack Obama, “I can’t believe this country would elect someone so anti-progress and pride of America, that would that would willfully destroy the country and divide us so sharply again on the issue of race.”
Geez. I thought Bush already did that. But what do I know? If the facts are whatever the common man believes, I guess I don’t know anything. And I am one of them already.
PrairiePopulistsAndProgressives.net 
Sorry this is so late–lunch was later than usual today. (At least I was able to take a lunch today!)
“…that would that would willfully destroy the country and divide us so sharply again on the issue of race.”
Yes, of course Obama chose to be born to a white woman and black man. It’s his fault he’s of mixed race, and then dared to marry a black woman, just to divide the country on the issue of race!
(I’m trying to think like these people do so I can figure out how they get to the points they do. It’s not working real well.)
A piece of advise my dad gave me about being an employee and work:
The company loves a super star i.e a Prima donna, someone that seem to out work everyone else.
Someone that always finishes first and it is always the best.
They wish everyone of their employees were just like them!
The problem is that anyone that is a Prima donna never feels that they are getting what they are worth.
They will not be reliable, it does not take long before they will just suddenly quit and go elsewhere.
That is why companies would rather hire the mediocre, those who show up when they are to and work when they are to. Those who will be on time and be there when ever they are scheduled to and work over time when needed.
Those people that never impress them enough that they will even remember their names.
It does get alarming when I see that people seem to favor those who are not all that smart.
Almost as if they are afraid that a smart person can not be trusted not to out smart them.
If you hang around with smart people there are several things that can happen.
You actually learn from them.
You end up feeling dumber then you thought you were.
Or they finally get tired of your ignorance and start belittling you.
LOL my immediate family are the only ones in my family that do not have college degrees.
It was a treat to meet Jack Anderson at my cousin’s High school graduation.
But being around them long I had to show them I am not so dumb or another Kansas heck.
I have a extensive vocabulary, so the roles seemed reverse in Oklahoma.
I was often accused of trying to show how I was smart then they were.
I was not, even as a kid I would impress adults with the words I used.
But it came to be they felt they had to show me how smart they were.
It was just uncomfortable for them to be around me.
So I did not make friends there oddly other then some of the guys that the rest did not like.
I violated a rule I had set for myself long before and considered my boss a friend. He was from Oregon and I was from Kansas so we were both damn Yankees in their eyes.
But they would talk with me when the rest would not.
I have been accused of using “ten dollar” words myself sometimes. I am not trying to impress anyone, but just to be precise. I make fun of myself all the time for my love of words. English is such a rich language; we have borrowed from so many cultures and there are so many words from which to chose!
But I think it says more about the person who is offended by my use of words outside their daily norm when they are irritated or offended by it. Why so sensitive and insecure? Anyone can increase their vocabulary; it doesn’t make you smart, it just makes you someone with an extensive vocabulary.
And, for the record, my father never got a college degree and he’s one of the smartest people I know. I know many young people with business degrees that I wouldn’t consider to be particularly intelligent.
“Since they are not in the majority, it is understandable that they would cling to a view which legitimizes minority rule.”
Yes, they do that. And, they also are quick to point out how the majority is ignored, ie, the community center in New York, health care reform, Prop 8 in California…
As usual they take whatever position fits this time and forget all about taking the exact opposite position on the last issue.
I was thinking about that when I wrote this blog. About the fact that they all want to stress that this is a representative democracy, not a majority rule, but, when a stupid poll comes out that says most people wouldn’t want to put a mosque at Ground Zero, they want to use that to support their notion that they have a right to tell these people where they can put their community center.
Irony is defined many times a day by the know-nothings, Tea Partiers and members of the GOP.
When Republicans begin lecturing us libaruhls about the intent of the Founding Fathers I realize they truly want to take our country back to the time of landed aristocracies, when blacks weren’t humans and women didn’t vote.
I don’t know if you can see it at all, in the mosaic that I made for this post, there is a woman wearing a t-shirt that says this country was founded by right wing extremists and it has a few of the founding fathers on it. I would have loved to have had the chance to ask this woman, WHAT IN THE WORLD would make her think they were right wing?
Do you think that is what Beck means by “Restoring Honor?”
I think that slogan, like many other of the talking points that draw in stupid people, sounds exemplary. It sounds like something everyone would be excited to be involved with. The stupid people who tell us Christianity is being attacked, that Obama is [choose an] —-ism. They fall for Beck University as a place where they become informed on all things political and how to keep America ‘godly,’ like those Founding Fathers intended. Don’t the words sound righteous and good? They think they are well informed. Telling them differently is simply asking for arguments, giving them the opportunity to tell you how wrong you are, and an exercise in futility.
No Child Left Behind is a rush to mediocrity. Its very premise is to make all children mediocre.
I don’t know? When I did my little impromptu survey of those who knew who painted the sateen chapel?
And found the majority of people did not know and when I told them they had never heard of him.
I was stuck by the fact that what was once common knowledge was not useless information.
When I was in school, you were expected to learn and know a great deal more then today.
I was one of the worse students and the fact be known graduated by GPA 352 out of 355.
There were three people out of my entire graduating class that did worse then I did and still graduated!
It is becoming inescapable to me that in part the reason for the seemingly lack of interest and resentment of knowledge and information is the result of the school system.
Isn’t some of the appeal of Sarah Palin is that she is common sense and not just educated?
How many times do we hear Republicans demonize Obama for being a Harvard lawyer but yet their own candidate for Tiarht’s old job graduated from Harvard and was a lawyer in Washington DC.
But yet these same folks do not see the hypocrisy in that scenario.
Oh, but! There is one more HUGE difference readily apparent — one of them has a small “R” beside his name.