Represented by voids

The stupid have always been with us, but willful stupidity has not. However, because it primarily afflicts unprincipled politicians, its prevalence has soared in recent years.

While the stupid simply lack the ability to reason well, the willfully stupid consciously choose not to do so. Instead of exercising their faculty of logical thought, they accept and repeat tribal beliefs that are obviously unsupported by facts and which they know to be untrue. Why would anyone voluntarily do that?

Their conduct cannot reasonably be attributed to ignorance, because factual information is now so pervasive that it cannot possibly be ignored. Nor can it be blamed on insufficient schooling, because many of its most prominent practitioners are graduates of vaunted Ivy League institutions.

So, by applying Occam’s Razor, we can conclude that such conduct is mere political theater, designed to convince voters that, unlike those elitist eggheads of the other party, they are sufficiently stupid to excel in politics. And that, as champions of liberty and individual freedom, they will only pass laws which restrict your bad freedoms.

Sadly, elections are no longer about ideas and aspirations, but merely tribal headcounts. So, until a greater number of worthy people choose to run for public office, I suggest that every ballot offer an option to vote for None-Of-The-Above. Better to be represented by an empty seat than by an empty head. DAVID L. HENDERSON Hot Springs Village