Sułkowski: Out with a suckerocracy!

Most readers most likely associate a class B American comedy movie from the 1980s with the eloquent title of Revenge of the Nerds. The Polish translation does not give precisely what social group it is about, due to the fact that English "nerd" is individual who is above average intelligent, loves to gain knowledge, surpasses his peers in terms of substance, but at the same time negatively affects his social relationships – he is withdrawn, there is no success in the other sex, so he is willing to give amusement to appropriate nerds, specified as games, comic books or another activities that do not require interaction or let it within another "nerds". The title loser gives only these negative elements of the above description, but for the purposes of this text this meaning confusion will be rather useful. We have in Poland, especially in the X and Y generations, a image of a disciple worthy of imitation, a model for others. specified “primus” is frequently referred to. It is individual who has good grades, the school engages him in many competitions and, as in the travelling films, the master of Kung-Fu is Mr. Miyagi, so the primate is the traveling master in all possible activities that can bring both the student and the school any benefits. Unfortunately, the most common kind of primacy is not an entity that responds to the affirmative characteristics of the definition of "nerd". If you're more precise, it's most likely the best thought to image the form of a student like that. individual who can memorize certain formulas repeats them under the key and thus achieves the educational goals set by the system. That is the complete other of a capable erudite—the perfect posed by classical thought.

And this is where the crucial problem that is the essence of the title suckerocracy, which can besides be called nerdocracy, is to be noted. specified a student is simply a model product of the modern Polish education strategy and acceptance of this strategy by society. He always obeys his teachers’ instructions not to compromise his average judgment, so he never reflects or thinks critically. Humblely, what he has forged on the sheet, looking carefully or the stream of spoken words is met with a mimic acceptance of what depends on individual success in the form of a affirmative evaluation – a teacher. The same, of course, will be satisfied with the humility of his pet, faithfulness in reciting the basics of the program and being the 1 who, by nodding his head, will give a sign that the student has done his work perfectly and can thus be a model for others. specified a student is simply a treasure on many levels – perfect fit to the requirements of the strategy allows you to boast about a peculiar case both at meetings, open days and just leaving school to represent her. Of course, all of this is happening at the social applause – who would not like to have a Primus in their family, which is simply a mention point for siblings, cousins and another children in the household and among friends? The aunt on the immensity can tell a long time about the consolation which on Monday beautifully recited the poem at the competition, on Wednesday she stood in the scratches in the mathematical competition and on Friday she gave up work for the art competition. 1 might think that this is simply a real Renaissance man, a polyhistory like Leibniz! Unfortunately, the Polish public education strategy is built in specified a way that it is very hard to separate a truly capable and forward-looking student from a clump of trained verbal punches on the basis of ratings and peans from the teaching body. What is more – a geeky figure is simply a fulfillment of expectations not only of the education strategy and a large part of the society in love with worthless indicators but besides part of the labour market, which gladly absorbs people unreflexively devoted to corporate lines or smaller companies. After all, the nerd is an excellent worker humbly applying even the stupidest ideas of the company, as he considers them essential for efficient and good functioning. He was trained in taping formulas in the education system, and was rewarded by society (family and its surroundings), so he replicated the pattern in adult life by doing so most frequently with affirmative results, due to the fact that for the boss specified a primate is the 1 that can be set an example for another workers. The product of specified a way of reasoning does not ask questions about the reasonableness of what it does – it is incapable to do so, and even if in any cases it is capable, it does not go beyond its sphere of comfort, so it does not competition what allowed it to succeed.

However, the question may be asked, why do I describe this phenomenon and why should I even reflect on it? Well, years after the end of education in the Polish system, and in adult life having small contact with both nerds and environments supporting specified attitudes, I experienced this phenomenon again. I watched respective materials of 1 of the candidates for president – the Ph.D. of economics Artur Bartoszewicz. It is simply a model product of suckerocracy – our sick education strategy at all level and clapping this society, which is adequate to tap formulas to admit individual as an erudite and the ability to eat cutlery to recognise individual as cultural. A man with a technological title, claiming to be the president of the country unreflexively repeats forged scraps, throws a professional symbol from the documentation, which no 1 reasoning can remember and circular it with self-eroticism worthy of the top egocenter known to me – Waldemar Lysiak buys the applause of part of the society. The doctor mentally continues to be praised by the educator at Arthurek's simple school meeting, but now, in holding a certain position, he himself tries to act as an arbitrator instructing how to think. And I gotta say, the effect is hilarious! The concept of direct democracy proposed by Mr Bartoszewicz as a model of power in the hands of the president is, after all, a complete nonsense, due to the fact that it is precisely arguing with the essence of power, namely decision-making and responsibility. The doctor would have easy seen this clear conflict if he had not been a faithful kid of a suckerocracy, from which he had had any individual benefits in terms of social position and profession. So he thought that if a non-reflective repetition of formulas was adequate to become class president and defend his doctorate, that would be adequate in the presidential election as well. After all, Mr Bartoszewicz was not armed with a suitable workshop apparatus enabling him to decently measure his hard and soft skills. For this reason, he does not see the problem that erstwhile moving for president of the State it is nonsense to propose a concept that comes down to being the organizer of referendums. As Grzegorz Braun rightly pointed out – for this, there is adequate app on the smartphone nowadays and we do not request a president for that. Unfortunately, no arguments go to the doctor, due to the fact that they cannot scope – neither themselves nor confronting them were included for educational purposes and the strategy model. So you can't blame the ox for not being a horse. Thus, Mr Bartoszewicz is incapable to measure his own ideas and face them even with correct logical reasoning. A alternatively comic example of this is his request that in the event of winning the presidential election to his squad take the best people, but excluding politicians. This populist slogan is most likely spoken by him because, having cast a phrase on the names of his aunt about the removal from the bed of ugly politicians, he received a applause. And that was enough, due to the fact that suckerocracy is based on nodding and clapping without thinking. But did Mr Bartoszewicz think, by any chance, that the Polish reality is constructed in specified a way that, while maintaining a large dislike of the political class, we can surely say that there are not very good people or even the best in certain areas? Does the combination of their competences with their experience in politics make it in specified a strategy alternatively than another strategy a better advisory facility than professionals with competence and market-only experience? So will the elimination of any for the "no more politics" rule have no negative effects on the composition of the advisory body and so on Poland?

That's not what Dr. Bartoszewicz asked himself. But I fishy not only due to the fact that he couldn't. In addition, he did not have time for this – he was besides busy sighing over himself and his unquestioned in his own opinion of greatness. Years and years of success in a suckerocracy origin you to lose contact with reality and admit the form of what you find to be the point of mention to be pursued. These successes, on the another hand, frequently give emergence to temptation to feel better than it is in fact, resulting in an unbearable, although comical minute in the reception of egocentricism. The nerd being the product of a suckerocracy is so a model example of the intellectuals of a time mediocre seeing themselves at the top of a social ladder. To our distress and amusement.

Marcin Sułkowski