And the FBI was assigned to follow the film team on reports of a “vaguely middle-eastern man with a bear in an ice-crem truck”, which has to be the funniest report xD
And the FBI was assigned to follow the film team on reports of a “vaguely middle-eastern man with a bear in an ice-crem truck”, which has to be the funniest report xD
When Borat was fresh, I was in a new hire class for a major telecom you’ve heard of if you’re in the US.
Somehow, the chatter came around to Borat, and someone challenged me on the existence of Kazakhstan.
I’m not always great with people , so I did a double take - they were serious. I shipped them a GMaps link via chat…
…and they proceeded to argue with me that said country couldn’t possibly actually exist.
Once in a while, I wonder where that person ended up - no Ill will towards the misinformed, but I’m certainly curious.
They’re really no dumber than anyone else.
They were wrong because they hadn’t heard of it (not really their fault, it’s not like we’re all talking about Kazakhstan every day).
They doubled down because that’s what people do to protect their egos. Look up the backlash effect if you want to know why they didn’t believe you even with a maps link. It’s traumatic to be wrong and have someone prove it to you.
The ability to self correct is one of the biggest differences between smart and stupid. A smart person might be wrong 1-2 times, before correcting on that point. A stupid person will value ego over truth and double down. This effect compounds over time, particularly when combined with an inquisitive mindset (another important marker).
(for stupid, insecure people it is)
An American not knowing the existence of Kazakhstan is pretty reasonable. But an American not knowing that New Mexico is a state is completely disappointing and happens way too gd often.