How America Got So Stupid – and Why the Rest of Us Shouldn’t Laugh
I’m not young.
But I can still be dumb.
And that’s the point.
This isn’t a finger-wag. It’s not “kids these days” or “back in my day” or any of that tired, smug sh!te.
This is a confession.
And a warning.
Because dumb didn’t just happen.
It was built. Layer by layer. Greased with Super Slurps, poor food, cheap gas, algorithmic dopamine, and 40 years of “shut up and shop.”
America was the perfect test kitchen.
And now the rest of us are next in line for the same greasy spoonfeed.
What is Dumbinisation?
Dumbinisation is not about intelligence.
It’s about interference.
It’s what happens when systems deliberately make you too distracted, overwhelmed, sick, broke, or busy to think clearly never mind act collectively.
It’s not a glitch. It’s a feature.
Because confused people don’t rebel. They refresh the page.
From Dream to Duh
A Timeline of American Dumbinisation
1. The Post-War Peak (1940s)
- GI Bill = affordable college + homes for white veterans
- Unions strong, wages rising, pensions promised
- Government funds science, builds roads, backs dignity
- The mood? We can do big things together
This is what they now call socialism. Back then, it was just policy.
2. The Cracks in the Dream (1950s–60s)
- Civil Rights movement says: freedom should include everyone
- Cold War says: not if they’re red
- “Communism” becomes the catch-all slur for anything fair
- Corporate lobbyists start circling like flies on a democracy pie
3. The Slow Turn (1970s)
- Vietnam breaks hearts; Watergate breaks trust
- Inflation rises, wages stall, hope drains
- Business forms PACs—politics becomes pay-to-play
- Blame starts drifting from the top to somewhere else
4. The Reagan Years (1980s)
- Reagan: “Government is the problem” (but he is the government)
- Taxes slashed for the rich
- Unions busted, industries gutted
- Trickle-down sold like it works (spoiler: it didn’t trickle, it pooled)
- Culture wars introduced: God, guns, and gays used to distract from pensions being robbed
5. Neoliberalism with Jazz Hands (1990s)
- Bill Clinton carries the torch with a saxophone
- NAFTA signs the death warrant for American manufacturing towns
- “Welfare reform” turns poverty into personal failure
- Wall Street wins. Poor people lose. News becomes entertainment
6. Reality TV Nation (2000s)
- 9/11 trauma weaponised into endless war + mass surveillance
- Fox News rises. So does broadband. And rage.
- 2008 crash wipes out millions of homes and dreams
- Banks get bailed out. People get blamed
- Social media arrives to monetise misery
- Conspiracies and capitalism form a joint venture
7. The Chaos Candidate (2010s)
- Citizens United ruling legalises political bribery
- Misinformation becomes an industry
- Trump appears: the symptom, not the cause
- “Tells it like it is” = speaks like your drunk uncle but louder
- Voters stop hoping for better. They vote for revenge
- Chaos is not a bug. It’s a ballot strategy
8. Peak Dumbinisation (Now)
- Expertise is elitism
- Truth is optional
- Rage is currency
- Healthcare = job perk
- Housing = pipe dream
- Teachers = enemy
- Trump = messiah (for some)
- Billionaires shoot themselves into space while you crowdfund insulin
How Did It Work?
Because for 40+ years:
- Education was gutted
- Journalism was sold off
- Entertainment was weaponised
- Community was replaced with “content”
- Empathy was turned into weakness
- The middle class was strip-mined
- The poor were blamed for being poor
- And billionaires made sure you were too tired to notice
Eventually, people stopped expecting help.
Stopped demanding better.
And started looking for someone – anyone – who’d burn it all down.
Even if he couldn’t spell infrastructure.
Why This Matters
Because it’s not just America.
The Dumbinisation model is export-ready.
And we’re importing it fast.
Britain’s practically there.
Ireland’s on the road too – wrapped in green tech and blue tick politeness, but heading the same direction.
Screens instead of schools. Brands instead of news.
Health apps instead of actual healthcare.
And now, they want to break Ireland’s Triple Lock.
The one that keeps us out of war.
The one that says we need:
- A UN mandate
- Government sign-off
- And a vote in the Dáil
before we send Irish troops into combat.
Scrap that, and neutrality is gone.
In its place?
Participation in NATO missions, EU armies, proxy wars and the exact kind of military-industrial suck system we were once proud to resist.
Breaking the Triple Lock isn’t modernisation.
It’s militarisation.
And it matters.
Because if they can rebrand neutrality as naivety, they’ll rebrand resistance as extremism next.
🔧 So What Do We Do?
We think.
We talk.
We question.
We notice who profits from our confusion.
We remember that systems are made by people.
And they can be unmade by them, too.
The cure for dumbinisation isn’t becoming clever.
It’s becoming clear.
This isn’t a call-out. It’s a call-back.
To common sense. To solidarity.
To whatever bit of your brain still knows the difference between truth and content.
America went first.
We don’t have to go next.
Speak Now: Defend the Triple Lock
Whether you’re in the North or the South, now is the time to act.
Don’t let this slide quietly past.
The Triple Lock in the Republic protects our neutrality.
The creeping dismantling of it isn’t progress. It’s participation in war.
In the North, we know what happens when war becomes normalised.
Don’t stay quiet while the UK ramps up arms spending and the South flirts with NATO.
WRITE TO YOUR REP. IT TAKES 2 MINUTES.
🧭 Find Your Representative
NORTH (UK MPs & MLAs):
Search here: https://members.parliament.uk/members/Commons
Or email your MP directly via: https://www.writetothem.com/
SOUTH (TDs in Dáil Éireann):
Find your TD here: https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/members/
Or search by constituency here: https://www.whoismytd.com/
Email Template
Subject: Protect the Triple Lock – Defend Ireland’s Neutrality
Dear [MP/TD Name],
I’m writing to you as a concerned constituent to urge you to defend the Triple Lock mechanism that protects Ireland’s military neutrality.
The Triple Lock – requiring a UN mandate, government approval, and a Dáil vote before Irish troops are deployed overseas – is a vital safeguard. Weakening or removing it would mark a dangerous shift towards militarisation, undermining our long-standing tradition of peacekeeping and diplomatic independence.
This is not about being naïve. It’s about preserving a clear national stance against illegal wars, imperial agendas, and participation in NATO-led or EU proxy conflicts.
I’m asking you to publicly support Ireland’s continued commitment to neutrality – and to oppose any moves to dismantle or bypass the Triple Lock.
Thank you for your service and attention.
Le meas / Yours sincerely,
[Your Full Name]
[Your Address / Constituency]
Domesticky 
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