Back in
1910, it was good old psychologist Henry H. Goddard (I called him ‘Hank’) who
came up with the psychological term ‘moron’ – way to go, Hank. He used this
term to describe mild intellectual disabilities. But for some unknown reason,
‘moron’ quickly became a common and very popular term used by the rest of us.
It has ever since worked well as an insult, a description of ignorance as in lack
of knowledge and/or to describe an unwitting person or persons. ‘Moron’ is a
flexible term indeed…
Hank’s ‘moron’
originated from the Ancient Greek word ‘moros’, meaning ‘dull’. He used it to
describe an adult person with a mental capacity of an 8 to 12 year old child. To
me, that’s a bit disrespectful towards a vast majority of today’s children
between 8 and 12 years old – seriously. As we all know, the opposite of ‘moron’
is ‘oxy’, which means ‘sharp’. And then you ask: ‘oxy-moron’ – means what
precisely?’ Compare it with: ‘It’s raining – outside’ (duh) or ‘He’s pretty
ugly’ (double duh)…
Used in
the correct psychological sense, the term ‘moron’, was applied to individuals
with IQ’s of 51-70. It was above
‘imbecile’ (IQ’s of 26-50) and ‘idiot’ (IQ’s of 0-25). But enough of this
clinical stuff, because here is what I’m really getting at - and thanks for
your patience…
In my
later years, perhaps the last 50 of the 70 I have survived thus far, I found
that using the terms ‘imbecile’ and ‘idiot’ in my younger days, were utterly disrespectful, as they
are serious clinical terms for unfortunate individual’s mental and/or medical
conditions. Sure, back in the days of frolicking and not knowing much better, I
did not hold back on using either of these ignorant labels. In hindsight, and
how clever we are, it only made me utterly ignorant and disgustingly
disrespectful – back then, I was surely Peter the Moron, huh?
But since
those ignorant days, I have found myself very comfortable using ‘moron’ or
‘moronic’ to describe and comment on some of the world around me; lately I have
used it a lot. Remember that the term was removed from the world of psychology
many years ago, so in my book of references, it doesn’t have any guilt
applications, absolutely none. So when do I use ‘moron’ or ‘moronic’?
In spite
of the many times my mother called me a ‘genius’ (it was only later on I
acknowledged the true meaning of sarcasm), I have never considered myself such.
But in the Small World of Peter, I see myself as fairly logical,
rational, understanding, besides being an overall nice guy; you get the idea. I read
and learn a lot, non-fiction as well as fiction and though I am fully aware
that not too much of the info we pull from the Internet is truly fully true, or
that from TV and newspapers, I have always trusted, that as long as I keep
soaking myself in a lot of information, I have a much better chance to evaluate
and sort out the true world around me, the world according to Peter. So please, do understand that this is
how I see it and from where I sit, that works pretty okay for me; well of course...
I see a
moronic person (aka: moron) as a person who is blatantly egocentric, as in
self-serving, self-absorbed and fully believing and behaving like he or she is some
kind of god or goddess and in most cases beyond. That type of person is an
unashamed liar, openly self-contradicting, but not at all aware of, or just
simply ignorant about his or her lack of any consistency related to truths,
realities and facts. Their opinions and views about life in any form, defy
common logic and proven certainties. These are dangerous and ignorant people
and they have no place in my life – they never had and they never will. In my
book of references, these are the hardcore morons – watch out.
I find the
use of ‘moron’ convenient, but I try not to use it as a generalization, though
it is a lot faster. To me a ‘moron’ can be anybody I choose it to be, based on that
person’s behavior, logic, respect, ignorance, compassion or lack of. To me,
homophobes and racists, just to name a few, are big time moronic, due to their absence
of respect and acceptance of diversity. It angers me that we can’t all grasp
how rich diversity is, and fully understand that when each of us respect and
accept diversity, we will all become a lot stronger – together. Our differences
should be embraced, instead of rejected and ignored.
No, Dear
Reader, this is not Peter Almighty labeling his surroundings, judging and
sentencing in a banal and ignorant manner, but we all have opinions based on
life lived and experiences had, so I am seriously fine with that. You probably have
opinions I do not agree with, but I will still respect those opinions, if I
like them, understand them or not – that is my choice and then my choice to
react accordingly. But if you at any point try to persuade me that you are
right and I’m wrong, I stop listening; remember that ‘respect of opinions’
thing.
I find
people who blindly trust and believe liars and egocentrics, to be in a moronic group. And it worries me to find perfectly intelligent and educated
people in that bunch as well. I’m puzzled why they (we?) cannot see through the
crap and the deceit, especially when it’s utterly blatant. What’s wrong with
us, seriously?
I’m not
only labeling my surroundings with (moronic!) judgments, at times I label
myself a moron due to stuff I have said or did, say or do – but not often, of
course, ha ha, as I have learned a few things down the road of life. There are a
couple of incidents in my past that I would like to go back and ‘fix’ if
possible. In one case I was utterly rude and insensitive (outright lied) to a smart
and sweet girl (young woman, actually). That incident and the utter shame from
that, has followed me till this day. I think about it often and the shame stays
the same. Though it was nothing huge, it still reminds me to stay on track, trying
not to act like a moron again (my definition of moron). But this is the soft-core moron, and not dangerous at all – just a silly and ignorant one.
I notice
fewer morons on my way, as time is ticking by. Embracing, respecting and
accepting diversity is certainly one of the reasons why. And I like it that way
– I’m maturing. Sure I occasionally scream MORON, when somebody cuts in front
of me on the road, but today I’m more willing to ask myself in those instances:
‘now, who’s the real moron?’
Of course
this would never happen, but let’s just pretend for a brief second, that
somebody actually calls me a ‘moron’. First I would try to assume their reasoning,
wrap it around my understanding of it and eventually comfort myself that
(luckily) it is only their opinion (phew, that was a close call)… But full-time morons don’t even acknowledge being called morons, as they are too busy
being full-time and hardcore moronic.
I like the softer kind of morons a lot better
– a whole lot better, as they are not dangerous, but more so laughable in a sweet kind
of way… And I’ve been there a few times (sigh)… Haven’t you?
