Stupid Intelligent People

http://www.businessinsider.com.au/why-clever-and-lazy-people-become-leaders-2013-9

There are four types of people in any organization.

1. Stupid and Lazy.


2. Stupid and Eager

3. Clever and diligent

4. Intelligent and Lazy

The latter according to the article make the best leaders- because they want to find the most efficient and fastest way to do things. The clever and diligent types apparently do what they are told.

I'm sure you can find many other types of people. Dominant. Submissive. etc..

But the article did not mention another type. Intelligent and Stupid.

There are some people who are blessed with remarkable intelligence - technical skill, academic prowess, leadership skills, but yet, they do stupid things.

They do not seem able to grasp the larger picture or perhaps if they do - lack the moral willpower to do what is right.

Since the article discusses WW2 - we will stick to that historical sphere for examples.

During WW2, in 1944 and esp. during 1945, the Germans and the Japanese were being smashed by the Allied forces. Both nations were facing horrendous civilian and military casualties. Their cities were being bombed to catastrophic effect. They had no way of winning the war. And yet they fought on hoping to be able to settle it on their own unrealistic terms. Both nations were determined to fight the war to a stalemate and to at least regain some of their conquered territorial gains and rewards.

If you thought the Germans were pig headed - the Japanese were much worse. With their navy destroyed, their army resorting to arming grandmothers and teenage girls with bamboo spears, their cities being bombed to the ground by enemy bombers - their population facing starvation, and even after two atomic bombs - they were still clinging in hope of victory.

People who can't see the forest from the tree bark in front of them.

Why? Despite all their intelligence - they were obsessed over the "small" things like maintaining their monarchy, preserving their sovereignty - meanwhile forgetting the obvious - if they faced utter annihilation in battle, there is no more culture to preserve. What is the use of a nation without its people? What is the point of a family house without its original occupants?

Bringing this back to Singapore - and this point seems to be eluding our intelligent elite leaders - what is the point of maintaining a high GDP if Singaporeans are being alienated in their own land? To be sure foreign investment is absolutely important - but at what price? I'm afraid our leaders who have cocooned themselves being a barricade of the highest salaries in the world, surrounded by sycophants and intelligent but compliant advisors - don't understand the problems that ordinary citizens go through. And that is a serious problem for our nation. When leaders are unable to understand and empathize with the people - and seek to solve the problem through artificial means - ie mass immigration and foreign workers - you are going to have a sick nation.