I’m having a hard time differentiating between the technically stupid, those having a very low IQ, and those who are either crazy or emotionally disturbed. I used to think that people who were acting unreasonably about something were all half-wits. My wife patiently explained to me that that’s not always the case. Her claim was that some people are so emotionally immature/disturbed that that it overrides the logical thought process.
We were discussing the idiots who claim that 9/11 was perpetrated not by terrorists but by our government. She reasoned that some people, in spite of normal intelligence, are so emotionally invested, in this case with their hatred of Chimpy, that reasonable thought is simply not possible.
I countered with the fact that if that is indeed true, and that they can’t “think straight” due to whatever emotional problems they might have, that they are crazy. There was a debate about temporary insanity versus just plain crazy, but we decided that yeah, they’re crazy.
I have assembled the following formulas to aid in your understanding of these matters:
A genuine moron = a genuine moron
Normal IQ + emotional instability = a half-wit (for all intents and purposes)
A moron + emotional instability = an online customer service rep or blogger
High IQ + emotional instability = a serial killer or mad scientist
How crazy is crazy? I don’t know, but I suspect a lot of people I have contact with every day are a hell of a lot crazier than many people under lock and key on the 8th floor somewhere. I reckon it to alcoholics. You have your unemployed blathering hobos and your functioning alcoholics. Same with crazies.
And nobody knows what to do with the nuts. As long as they’re not killing people were content to let them walk around with the rest of us. It’s really the only explanation for a lot of the people I see every day. And the range is huge. I know a guy who walks around all day grunting, laughing too hard at almost anything anyone says and occasionally singing in gibberish like a toddler. He’s a fucking nut. All I can do is keep my distance and shake my head.
But I’ll tell you this. Not a day goes by where I don’t expect somebody to start clawing at themselves and jump through a first floor window.
What if you're of average or above average intellect but you still act like a nut? I mean, I do weird, not neccesarily violent, things sometimes but I don't consider myself emotionally unstable. Where do I fall? Am I deluding myself about my emotional instability? Who am I?
Normal or above average IQ + weird = eclectic. Depends how weird, it could cross over into mook.
A moron + emotional instability = an online customer service rep or blogger
Classic!