A nation of 'gullible dolts'

“The Idiot ,’’ by Evert Larock (1892)

“The Idiot ,’’ by Evert Larock (1892)

“Widespread ignorance bordering on idiocy is our new national goal….The ideal citizen of a politically corrupt state, such as the one we now have, is a gullible dolt unable to tell truth from bullshit. An educated, well-informed population, the kind that a functioning democracy requires, would be difficult to lie to, and could not be led by the nose by the various vested interests running amok in this country.’’

— Charles Simic (born 1938), Serbian-American essayist and Pulitzer Prize-winning poet as well as a professor emeritus of literature and creative writing at the University of New Hampshire. He lives in Strafford, N.H.

In Strafford circa 1910: The Blue Hills and the Job Hills from Northwood Road

In Strafford circa 1910: The Blue Hills and the Job Hills from Northwood Road

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Shrimp and few people