The Theory of Stupidity
1. The Core Argument: Stupidity vs. Evil We often think of evil as the greatest threat to society. However, Bonhoeffer argued that while we can fight evil, protest it, or use force against it, we are defenseless against stupidity. Evil is self-limiting: It often carries the seeds of its own destruction because it makes people uneasy. Stupidity is immovable: You cannot reason with a "stupid" person because they are not acting on a lack of intellect, but on a surrender of their independent faculty. "Against stupidity we have no defense. Neither protests nor force can touch it. Reasoning is of no use. Facts that contradict personal prejudices can simply be disbelieved — indeed, the fool can counter by criticizing them, and if they are undeniable, they can just be pushed aside as t rivial exceptions." — Dietrich Bonhoeffer 1 2 2. Stupidity as a Social Phenomenon 3 4 Crucially, Bonhoeffer believed 5 that stupidity is not a cognitive defect, but a moral one. There are...