The Elite Who Are Destroying America

Posted on | December 23, 2015 | 111 Comments

The habits of America’s “meritocratic” elite are the subject of an American Interest blog post that includes the phrase “educational assortative mating” — i.e., Ivy Leaguers marrying Ivy Leaguers, generation after generation, so that the influential elite form a separate caste, with no familial ties to the rest of the nation, and no direct knowledge of how most Americans live or what most Americans believe.

Professor Glenn Reynolds (himself a Yale Law alumnus) sees this as evidence that our national aristocracy “is becoming increasingly inbred and stupid,” but perhaps a more important point is that our soi-disant “elite” are arrogant, lack the capacity for self-criticism, and refuse to recognize the possibility that intelligence is not synonymous with virtue. The simplest disproof of this Ivy League superstition about “meritocracy” is Ted Kaczynski, Harvard University, Class of 1962, but if that didn’t clinch it, there’s Barack Obama, Columbia University, Class of 1983. Very intelligent people can do very bad things. Even if we stipulate not merely their high IQs, but also their good intentions, it is still quite often the case that smart, well-meaning people turn out to be incompetent fools whose hubristic sense of their own superiority is a chief cause of their folly. Have none of these people read David Halberstam’s The Best and the Brightest? Or are they just too arrogant to understand the fundamental lesson? It wasn’t just the Vietnam War that the liberal elite bungled. They proved themselves at least as inept in domestic policy as they were in foreign affairs, but I digress . . .

Charles Murray deserves an apology. The phrase “assortative mating” is immediately recognizable to anyone who has read The Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life. In the first 125 pages of that book, Murray and his late co-author Richard Herrnstein described how the advent of universal standardized testing and nationwide recruiting by the Ivy League and other elite schools had created a sort of IQ segregation in American society. Yet this valuable insight was overlooked amid an absurd liberal temper tantrum. Herrnstein and Murray dared to talk about IQ and race and, as a result, they were falsely accused of being crypto-Nazis and advocates of eugenics. To accuse Herrnstein and Murray of racism is analogous, really, to saying that anyone who criticized U.S. policy in Vietnam under the direction of McGeorge Bundy (Yale, ’40) et al., was guilty of being “soft on Communism.” One could hate Communists and also believe that the liberals in charge of U.S. policy were idiots, just as one can despise racism while believing that liberal rhetoric about race and the policies resulting from this rhetoric are profoundly wrong. If voting for Democrats and pursuing liberal policies could solve America’s race problems, then Detroit would be Heaven on Earth, rather than the dangerous and bankrupt municipal catastrophe that it is.

The immaturity and selfishness of Ivy League students like Jerelyn “Who the F–k Hired You?” Luther should serve to remind us that the admissions committee at Yale is demonstrably incompetent to choose our nation’s leaders. The Ivy League is decadent and depraved.

The administration, faculty, students and alumni of Yale and Harvard are destroying America, and it does not matter whether they are doing this accidentally or on purpose. However, if the decades of disastrous policy inflicted on America by the elite were the result of incompetence, we might expect they would occasionally do something good or right, by accident. As it is, everything they do is bad and wrong.

The liberal elite consistently support policies directly opposite to America’s best interests. The excuse that they are well-meaning bunglers is implausible. Only active malice — anti-Americanism — can possibly explain how we have been betrayed so badly by these “leaders” whom elite universities have handpicked and indoctrinated.

The graduates of Harvard and Yale are America’s most dangerous enemies, carefully trained for their assigned roles in accomplishing our nation’s destruction. Americans can never possibly hate the elite as much as the elite hate America. Alger Hiss (Harvard Law, Class of ’29) could not be reached for comment.

Category: Education

Comments

111 Responses to “The Elite Who Are Destroying America”

Evi L. Bloggerlady
December 24th, 2015 @ 11:09 am

I liked Mark’s comment that throwing that money into the Atlantic might have done more good since Barack Obama’s brother might have fished a sodden $20 out of the Atlantic (over in Africa) and doubled his annual income.
NeoWayland
December 24th, 2015 @ 11:13 am

You will be told that all problems are considered equal, but this tree-hugging pagan will tell you that it’s not so. Climate change trumps all, and you are not allowed to mention any other problems unless you first define it’s impact on climate change.
The ‘Brilliant’ Fool McGeorge Bundy : The Other McCain
December 24th, 2015 @ 12:32 pm

[…] yesterday, in describing the decadence of the Ivy League elite, I casually mentioned McGeorge Bundy, a Yale-educated policy “expert” in the JFK/LBJ […]
CPAguy
December 24th, 2015 @ 1:03 pm

No…there is no more to Cruz than that.
Follow the guy’s career…he is the righty version of Obama. All the appropriate elitist checkmarks and no experience in the real world.

For all we know he isn’t conservative, he hasn’t shown the ability to get one conservative thing in Congress passed, or even been able to water down leftist things.

He is all hat, no cattle.
Groty1
December 24th, 2015 @ 5:32 pm

True enough. But the decision to give preferential treatment to professional athletes was made by the central planners making political decisions about how to allocate resources. In a market economy price is how resources get rationed. So when demand for a good or service increases and supply stays the same, price tends to rise. That increase in price will cause some to search out substitutes or not make a purchase. That brings supply and demand back into equilibrium. Relying on the judgment of expert technocrats in government to allocate resources, rather than market forces, almost always leads to uneconomic misallocations of capital and corruption. So the communist technocrats made a political decision to let the professional athletes have a privileged lifestyle, and the result was that the general population often experienced extreme shortages in basic necessities like wheat, bread, steel, etc. Markets aren’t perfect. But they generally do a better job of efficiently allocating resources than the politically connected government technocrats. We’ve ran two real world experiments spanning several decades. East Germany vs West Germany and North Korea vs South Korea. The people in the market based economies of West Germany and South Korea fared far, far better by almost any measure than their counter-parts in East Germany and North Korea.
Mike G.
December 24th, 2015 @ 5:36 pm

That last was hauntingly sad, yet uproariously funny. Does that make me a bad person?
Finrod Felagund
December 24th, 2015 @ 5:38 pm

I don’t think that you know Ted Cruz very well. He’s not my first choice for President, but he’s ahead of Trump, Carson and Rubio easily.
Daniel Freeman
December 24th, 2015 @ 11:03 pm

That’s why I think high-IQ country boys are wiping the clocks of the credentialed right now, with a tiny fraction of access to mass-media platforms.
Quartermaster
December 25th, 2015 @ 12:23 am

Yes because you’re a raciss h8er.

Of course, we’ll neglect the small geographic problem that Kenya is located on the east coast of Africa rather than the Atlantic coast. It would be raciss to notice that as well.
Daniel Freeman
December 25th, 2015 @ 12:56 am

It may be that elite schools promote using the effects of diversity to infringe on our Constitutional rights because they hate us for our freedoms.
Right Wing Links 12-25-15 Via Krampus, The Anthropomorphic Punisher Of Children - Blur Brain
December 25th, 2015 @ 2:35 am

[…] The Other McCain: The Elite Who Are Destroying America […]
KrakenFartz
December 25th, 2015 @ 3:58 am

Or as philosopher, Karl Popper wrote, “we may differ in what little we know, but we are all equal in the infinitude of our ignorance”.
KrakenFartz
December 25th, 2015 @ 4:14 am

There is a myth of general intelligence that implies that if one is smart at one thing, then one must be equally exceptional in all subjects. I think the opposite is true. Intelligence is highly modal. Someone can be very good with numbers and symbols, or have great capacity for acquiring languages, or have a highly developed streak of Machiavellian cunning, and yet be quite deficient in other areas.
Rational_Db8
December 25th, 2015 @ 5:06 am

Just wanted to wish you and yours a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, KrakenFartz!

Just a few Christmas songs I’ve run across and liked, that I hope you might also enjoy:

Moving rendition of Little Drummer Boy by a quartet: Little Drummer Boy – Pentatonix

Both FUN and Beautiful!: “This performance by Indiana University’s ‘Straight No Chaser‘ a cappella group is fun, brilliantly arranged, and brings me joy each Christmas season. Thought I’d share” –Guy Benson [I agree!]: Straight No Chaser – The 12 Days of Christmas (original from 1998)

Fun renditions of Christmas music using borrowed iPhones and iPads at North Point Community Church: North Point’s iBand

Not technically Christmas music, but fitting even so – and a VERY unique way to play the piano – these guys really PLAY the piano: One Direction – What Makes You Beautiful (5 Piano Guys, 1 piano) – ThePianoGuys

Straight No Chaser – The Christmas Can-Can

Joy To The World – Pentatonix
CPAguy
December 25th, 2015 @ 9:16 am

I do know him very well. That is why I am worried.

He would be better than Hillary, but we would still be in the rut of electing do nothings who run based on the fact of their high SAT scores. Cruz hasn’t done jack in life besides graduate from an elite school, get an appointment to a good government job, then run for another government job based upon the preceding two things.
totenhenchen
December 25th, 2015 @ 5:02 pm

Age is no guarantee of wisdom, wealth is no guarantee of class, and education is no guarantee of intelligence.
BEHOLD THE ANGEL - BRUCE HANIFY
December 25th, 2015 @ 9:43 pm

[…] THE ELITE THAT IS DESTROYING AMERICA […]
HouseofSuffering
December 26th, 2015 @ 3:55 am

Having been born and raised in NoVA, you are 1000% spot-on with this analysis, missing only that many of the second-and-third generation members of Murray’s “cognitive elite” are raised to be disdainful of the proles from birth. (I have only begun to escape this trap by holding a bunch of really crappy retail jobs).
rambler
December 26th, 2015 @ 1:26 pm

It is rather seductive to believe in that mental superiority. In some cases, it is all those little minds have. They are too influenced by the opinions of others in that they were told they were smart without have any actual proof that they are smart. They were accepted by the “elite” colleges and graduated. The fact that they haven’t achieved anything with the the “gifts” they were given, makes them cling to that false sense of being smarter than anyone else. Then those dimbulbs have to surround themselves with people who are dumper than they are so that they an reinforce the idea that they smart. Truly smart people would surround themselves with people who are actually smarter.
sgthwjack
December 26th, 2015 @ 1:49 pm

Knowledge is one thing, knowing how to properly utilize it is wisdom. The latter is lacking among the well schooled, obviously.
rambler
December 26th, 2015 @ 1:50 pm

Living in reality has never been something they seek when fantasy land is much more comfortable.
Jed
December 26th, 2015 @ 4:22 pm

My first time on this site, and I’m very impressed. Good article, and from the few comments I’ve read, good commenters. Most of you are probably familiar with Thomas Sowell’s work, but those few you are not might enjoy this interview:
The original Mr. X
December 26th, 2015 @ 4:39 pm

I’ve often thought that society as a whole would be better-off if members of the elite all had to do a stint at some crappy menial job as part of their education.
Wild_Bird
December 26th, 2015 @ 4:54 pm

Thanks Jed. Dr. Sowell is a national treasure.
Jed
December 26th, 2015 @ 5:06 pm

He is that. He has an incredible depth of wisdom and understanding — an extraordinary man!
From Around the Blogroll | The First Street Journal.
December 26th, 2015 @ 5:41 pm

[…] Stacey Stacy McCain on The Other McCain: The Elite Who Are Destroying America and The ‘Brilliant’ Fool McGeorge Bundy These articles are related and should be read in the […]
Jed
December 26th, 2015 @ 6:07 pm

“To regard our knowledge as ignorance, this is a noble insight.
To regard our ignorance as knowledge, this is a mental sickness.”
~Lao Tzu, Tao Teh Ching

“The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance – it is the illusion of knowledge.” ~ Daniel J. Boorstin
Jed
December 26th, 2015 @ 6:18 pm

Very true, and I suspect stems from the academy. I’ve worked with people who hold a PhD both in and out of an academic setting. Those who have never been outside the academy (or government) tend to think that because they know a great deal about very little they must know a good deal about everything, especially those in the liberal arts. Those with experience in the “real world” are far less likely to be so delusional, especially those in the physical sciences.
Jed
December 26th, 2015 @ 6:26 pm

Excellent article — thanks for posting it.
OHJonesy
December 26th, 2015 @ 7:25 pm

“The other half are high school dropouts getting paid to troll by George Soros.”

Agreed. That has been a suspicion of mine for several years now.
Paul
December 26th, 2015 @ 8:53 pm

Yup.
wiffle
December 26th, 2015 @ 9:42 pm

Yes, getting a job outside of academia/government seems to offer a very different experience.
Daniel Freeman
December 26th, 2015 @ 10:03 pm

Well, the Pope has been seduced by the Narrative too, so I can hardly blame some random heathen.
Jed
December 26th, 2015 @ 10:29 pm

It does indeed. In the years of taking classes in a number of different departments (great fringe benefit), on more than one occasion I was known to remark to a young fellow student, “You don’t seriously believe any of this stuff is real, do you?” To my mind, this speaks to the grave danger created by the current trends of such as “safe spaces” and “trigger warnings.” By its very nature, a university needs to be a place sufficiently insulated from the “real world” to be a place where new and different ideas can be explored and exchanged, but that insulation must be tempered by people understand reality. Those who would prevent that exchange of ideas destroy the very diversity they purport to create. They seek diversity only when it does not include thought, and freedom of expression only when it does not conflict with the party line. Intended or not, the result will be the destruction of western civilization.
wiffle
December 26th, 2015 @ 10:43 pm

Absolutely. The point of tenure is to create an environment where professors and students can explore ideas without fear. A place where only certain, specific ideas can be explored is either a cult or an insane asylum. If students really can’t read even parts of Western canon for fear of their feelings or grapple with the idea that most people in history are morally ambiguous, what does that say about the future? Not good, I think.
Daniel Freeman
December 26th, 2015 @ 11:00 pm

Some of my friends are liberals. Some of my friends are preppers. One of my friends is a liberal prepper, because push comes to shove, he’s on the side of western civilization. (We have some great arguments.)

You might have to go out into the country to find guys like that, but they exist. As strong as the Narrative is, you can’t stop the Signal.
Daniel Freeman
December 26th, 2015 @ 11:03 pm

Good point. In an ideological echo chamber, tenure should be abolished.
Jed
December 26th, 2015 @ 11:37 pm

Yes!
Jed
December 26th, 2015 @ 11:44 pm

Good point. We can disagree as to the ‘hows’ and ‘whats’ all we like, but as long as we agree on the ‘why’ as being the advancement of humanity via individual liberty we can proceed.
Cecillia
December 27th, 2015 @ 1:22 am

Another excellent presentation!
infadelicious ?
December 27th, 2015 @ 8:35 am

We all know people who have memorized great quantities of data and acquired a number of fancy degrees but cannot apply that “knowledge” to anything in the real world.
NeoWayland
December 27th, 2015 @ 10:57 am

When the Narrative has Man separate from Nature while Man is sinning against Nature, somehow the obvious is overlooked.
The Value of Motherhood : The Other McCain
December 27th, 2015 @ 8:36 pm

[…] as an attempt to silence a cogent criticism of five decades of blundering, misguided wastefulness. “The Ivy League is decadent and depraved.” But I digress . . […]
john
December 27th, 2015 @ 10:06 pm

Higher education is no longer about academic creativity, or teaching independent thought. It is about indoctrination, isn’t it?
john
December 27th, 2015 @ 10:13 pm

Jed, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! America is at war with itself: on one hand, you have the wannabe dictators who want to control everything themselves; on the other are people who believe in self-determination, personal responsibility, individual freedom. I know who I would like to win.
john
December 27th, 2015 @ 10:14 pm

Oh, Hell, yes! Is there any denial about which end of politics hold the upper hand in academia?
john
December 27th, 2015 @ 10:16 pm

Individual liberty is always better than tyranny. The Statists are wannabe tyrants.
john
December 27th, 2015 @ 10:17 pm

Great Truth!
Shep
December 27th, 2015 @ 10:31 pm

…good men like us stood by and let it happen.
john
December 27th, 2015 @ 10:35 pm

Shep, I had zero influence on the establishment of curriculum, or hiring practices of schools. I do go to as many board of education meetings, here. The state where I live has opted out of Common Core. I have done what I could.