Stupid Is As Stupid Does

Does it seem like stupidity is taking over the planet to you?

Everywhere I turn, there's someone doing something really dumb--and usually getting away with it which makes it all the more infuriating.

While I'm generally a pretty laid back guy, some things really bug me (in case you haven't noticed from other posts).

For example, about a year ago, a post office in my area changed the flow of traffic in its parking lot by designating one entrance and one exit instead of the free-for-all that it had been.

Now there are HUGE signs that read "EXIT ONLY" on the way into the exit so that cars won't try to come in that way. It's been a year, but people still refuse to read the signs and try to come in against the flow of traffic.

Everyone is then expected to get the hell out of their way so they can steal the parking spot you were waiting for, by the way.

If you try to warn them with a polite toot (which only makes them more stubborn) or gently point out (with your middle finger) the huge signs they're not reading or just flat out refuse to be complicit in their stupidity by moving over and letting them terrorize the rest of the motorists, they look at you like YOU are doing something wrong.

Worse, my partner told me, "Move over so she can get in".

"ABSOLUTELY NOT" I then explained to him that I was not on her side, she was going the wrong way. Both cars sat their facing each other for a few minutes (nobody was behind me, thank goodness) while we waited for a lightbulb to go on. Whether she got it or not, eventually, the other motorist did have to back out and go in the correct way.

Score 1 for society and following the rules! Hopefully she learned the correct way to enter the parking lot from then on.

Then there are those who do something stupid and then want to blame everyone else for it. You've met these people, I'm sure. They're practically entitled to do anything they want and never suffer any consequences (or at least don't think that they should have any consequences).

Just yesterday, a couple friends and I went over to Woodfield Mall at lunch time for a quick stroll through the shops. I parked quickly and we were off toward the mall.

On the other side of the car that I'd parked next to was a woman complaining about the same car.

"I should let all of the air out of his tires" I heard her exclaim as we walked up. "I cannot get my door open to get into the car. They parked too close!"

Notice she said "THEY" parked too close. In actuality, SHE had parked her car right on the line, had rather large doors that needed a lot of room to open and an even larger ass that needed more room yet.

The car, presumably, came in after she'd left her car and parked normally in its parking space. However, now that her poor parking job was inconveniencing her, she felt it was within her rights to flatten their tires and rant about it to strangers walking by.

I quickly looked at the situation and determined she was a victim of her own stupidity. My friends, however, were more easily suckered into helping.

After a few minutes, they'd managed rearrange the seats in her car and wedge her (all of her) into the back seat of the car so she could hopefully maneuver the state of Ohio into the front seat and drive off.

I'm sure she was swearing about that "other driver" the entire time and never realized she was the one in the wrong.

Oh well, I guess you can't win them all.

Have you made a stand against stupidity lately? Tell me about it.