Evening star., 1932-03-11

When VIII members Of the human
race give up talking about matters
concerning which they know absolutely
nothing?
There are few traits more amazing
to students of human nature than this
one. which afflicts alike the old and
the young. the rich and the poor, men
and women, boys and girls.
Everywhere one encounters people
who are unable to keep their mouths
shut. but must rush in where angels
would fear to tread. and express an
opinion on something or other about
which they know nothing at all
We refer not to politics, or litera-
ture. or matters of art about which
human beings have differed all these
centuries, but solely to the more COM
monplace affairs Of life.
There Is an everyday Job to be done
let US say. which requires a couple of
so-calf1led handy men-men of heft and
Drawn, capable of dealing with stub
born materials.
No one in his right senses would
think for an instant that any one
man. even of the type required. could
do the job properly, for it calls for
one man to hold and another to pull
Let the gentleman who is getting
the work done however. dare to men
ton to some sweet young thing in his
office organization that he is hiring
the workers than he receives some
such gllsh as the following.
"Oh. aren't you able to do that bv
yourself? I should think you would
be. Surely 1t won't take two men to
do a job like that"
Perhaps 1t Is the Surely" as said.
which proves the proverbial straw
which breaks the camelS back.
1t is not so much the Grass ignor-
ance shown, the utter indifference
to the demands of common sense
and of actuality which rubs the stu
dent Of human nature the wrong way.
but rather the fact that the essen
TALLY ignorant person involved did not
have the gumption to keep her mouth
shut on her own ignorance.
Why is 1t so necessary for such peo-
pie to display their lack of knowledge
at every and any opportunity?
Seemingly there is some sort of in
ner compulsion on them. which forces
them to flaunt their ideas, or lack of
ideas. in the public gaze.
They go at the matter with the vim
of crusaders. although mostly dis
guised as banter. A great deal Of
human ugliness Of mind and spirit
masquerades as high spirits" or
fun" or Joking" or even simple hon
eSty.
often men say in joking fashion
what they would not dare to utter in
any other form. and the victim is
forced to put up with 1t. under pain of
being said to be poor sport"
X
The failure of the members Of the
human race to keep their precious
mouths shut on matters about which
they really know nothing is due, in large
part, to their innocent desire to be
thought wise
Now it is very well to be thought wise
in matters about which one actually
knows something Wisdom there counts.
But when the wisdom is of a spurious
sort and especially when the other party
honestly realizes that it is, he who
poses simply fails in his attempt.
He leaves a bad taste in the mental
mouth Of the other. His Is a bluff
which has not worked. The other Is
not taken in at all, although he may
never say anything or reveal in so many
words that he regards the statements
made to him as so much CUFF.
Such futile conversation shows very
we'll the real contempt which many
human beings have for each other
They will not even give another soul