Both before, and after, I went to school, I have found intelligent and nice people working at gas stations, in kiosks, at the supermarket, selling fast food outside sports arenas or trade centers, repairing cars, moving lawns, ... The few stupid people I see are normally traveling in flocks late at night - but when they split up and the alcohol goes out of their system, then tend to become quite intelligent again.

So my "ciritcal thinking" have made me believe that people behave differently depending on environment and depending on what outside factors they are subjected to. When people try to treat someone else respectfully and intelligently, they do find a meaning to behave respectfully and intelligently back. Just as in electronics, social interaction is also depending on feedback loops. Positive or negative feedback loops makes great difference in system behaviour. And being active components in the system, we have good opportunities to affect situations.

Culture can change quite quickly. Intelligence can not, since the evolution is a very show process. So unless people are subject to dangerous chemicals (drugs or industrial pollution), my critical thinking tells me that people can't just have had their intelligence quickly drop within a couple of decades. There should be very minor differences in intelligence now and a millenium ago, even if the litteracy level have changed extremely to the better. The illiteral farmer plowing his fields in King Richards days would be just as intelligent as the modern day farmer with computerized equipment, huge specialized tractors etc. Or as todays sw or hw developers. In the end, there is very little differences in intelligence over the working fields, with some very few exceptions. Most people get where they are because of choices and opportunities (or lack of opportunities) - not because of intelligence. And our society would not work, if everyone wanted to do the same thing. It would be ridiculous with a world having a billion politicians, or airplane pilots, or firemen or professors, or rock stars. Some people have the #1 choice to get a job close to home. Or a job that ends when the shift ends. Not having to think about work 24 hours/day means that people can think about their family. Or maybe be a hobby photographer. Or try their hand at writing books. Or maybe renovate old cars. Or maybe they like working with people, and becomes night nurses, working long days for hardly any money.

The interesting thing with people is not what you see during 30 seconds in the supermarket. But all the things they think about, or do, on their spare time. You would never be able to guess who spends time serving food in soup kitchen. Or making marvelous sketches. Or takes some of the landscape photos the photo print company places in their window.

My previous post really is relevant. Just as the saying to not judge the dog by its fur. You say "ad hominem". I say "carpe diem" or "memento mori". Take some chances in life. Talk with someone in the supermarket queue. Offer to help someone. Say "good morning", "see you later", ... to that gas station guy/gal. See what happens. After all, mood is contagious.