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Republicans have dumbed down their voters so much over the years that it's ruining the country and creating candidates like Cruz and Trump
Watching the Republican debates completely transform into lucha libre-like wrestling matches has certainly been entertaining. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz tag team Donald Trump while he taunts his challengers by strutting around the ring.
Those relegated to the under-card are reduced to wishing that the rabid spectators would just give them a chance to show what they can do. In reality, they sadly realize that those watching at home get up and make a sandwich if the entertainment no longer amuses them.
It is certainly entertaining. It is also extremely telling of a large portion of the Republican Party and those who support it. The very fact that Donald Trump is the presidential front-runner for the Republicans, and by such a large margin, gives us significant insight into the mind-set of a fair number of our fellow Americans.
In February of 1963, Richard Hofstadter wrote a book titled; Anti-Intellectualism in American Life. In this Pulitzer Prize winning book, Hofstadter traced the social movements that altered the role that intellect plays in American society.
In part, he argued that anti-intellectualism was a consequence of the democratization of knowledge, the notion that we could all be equal in knowledge because we are all free to pursue it equally. What he concluded was that anti-intellectualism came about not by democracy but by our cultural heritage.
But anti-intellectualism doesn’t make us more unified, equal or better in any way. In fact, it does exactly the opposite. Anti-intellectualism is loosely defined as hostility and mistrust of intellect, intellectuals and intellectual pursuits. The arts and humanities, education, philosophy and science all become hallmarks of detriment rather than benefit.
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