Artificial Stupidity

By Dragan Matijevic

Have you ever wanted to kick yourself for doing or saying something stupid, or because your life just never seems to work out the way you hope?
The truth is, you are not alone. We are all prone to a special type of 'stupidity' that is not in our genes, not a defect or an illness to cure. It is something artificial that we acquire and therefore, something we can get rid of.
If computers are fed poor information, or their software is glitchy, they will NOT demonstrate Artificial Intelligence, but Artificial Stupidity instead; dubious conclusions, implausible modelling, recurrent crashes.
Humans are no different in this regard. Our failure to examine the assumptions, prejudices and beliefs that we choose - and have chosen for us - from the moment we are born, leads us into poor choices, harmful behaviours and unfulfilled potential. Fuelled by the mainly subconscious clashes between fear, desire and reason, it’s not surprising we often end up feeling and looking pretty ‘stupid’.
This concise, powerful book reveals how you can free yourself of all that baggage, by learning how to ask (and answer) certain questions.
- Why do we deceive and self-sabotage ourselves?
- What mechanism lies behind repeating the same old mistakes?
- Why do we quarrel with reality, with others, with ourselves?
- Why do we focus on trivia and ignore the essential things in life?
- What are biases and how do they make us blind?
- What is the difference between a belief, a thought and an emotion?
- What makes us poison ourselves with drugs, alcohol, opioids?
- Do you know what you really believe, not what you think you believe?

Dragan Matijevic, an NLP trainer, qualified counsellor and hypnotherapist, shines a rare light on our inner landscape. Guided by his insight, exercises and techniques, you will be equipped to investigate what is going on inside your mind, your body and your heart, and how to liberate and make the most of your natural intelligence.

Whatever you may think, you're smarter than you think you are!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dragan Matijevic
• Release date: Feb 16, 2022
• ISBN: 9781005031138

Dragan Matijevic

Pendragan'Pendragan' is the pen-name for children's fiction-writing duo Penny Williams and Dragan Matijevic. They also write independantly as Penny Williams and Dragan Matijevic (adult fiction, self-help and cookery books).They launched Pendragan Publishing as an independent, international publishing platform for storytellers around the world. If you would like news about forthcoming publications, or books in the works, or if you have questions about any of the characters, please let us know.Dragan MatijevicDragan started writing during the war that broke up Yugoslavia in the early '90s. Living in England with his one-year old son at the time, Dragan wondered how he could help his people in Croatia. The solution turned out to be magic! Dragan founded a theatre charity called Rise Phoenix, wrote his first puppet play for children, created his own puppets, and together with a bunch of troubadours, jesters and jugglers, drove a truck down to the war zone. In 1993, "Peppe the Magician" began to appear in refugee camps throughout Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo. Small puppets and theatre plays gave way to giant puppets and theatre spectacles. Children who had lost everything rediscovered the ability to laugh. Adults slowly joined in. One Croatian soldier shouted from the audience, "Croatia needs puppets, not guns!" Quentin Blake agreed and gave permission for Rise Phoenix to take his Big Friendly Giant to the war zone. Dragan went on to write and perform in many other children's plays, quite a few of which are now stories and novels. When not writing, Dragan teaches at The Artisan Bakery School, and continues to perform as the magician Sol Ray.Penny WilliamsAs a child, Penny would row ashore to school from the sailing boat she grew up on with her family. This gave her a quirky view on life, encouraged by the stories she heard from blue-water sailors arriving in Falmouth Harbour. Penny grew up with a hunger for distant horizons and foreign shores. Her explorations took her to Europe, Africa, South America, Asia and even Antarctica. But her biggest adventure, which was falling in love with a Croatian magician (Dragan), happened right on her own front door step in England! So far, their story includes building their own woodfired oven for The Artisan Bakery School, moving to a crazy old cottage in Devon, taking an Invisible Man to Singapore, working with children in Sri Lanka and India and kayaking round the islands of Dalmatia. Penny also runs a professional copywriting, editing and translation business. She and Dragan write together to celebrate the magic that happens in real life.*** Connect With Us ***[e-mail]

Book preview

Artificial Stupidity

You are smarter than you think!

Dragan Matijevic

Edited by Penny Williams

Cover and book design by Dragan Matijevic

All contents copyright © Dragan Matijevic and Penny Williams 2022

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Published by Pendragan Publishing

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All rights reserved. No part of this book may be copied or redistributed for sale. No part can be reproduced, by any mechanical, photographic, electronic or other means including phonographic recording. Nor may it be stored in a retrieval system, transmitted, or otherwise be copied for public or private use without prior written agreement with the authors. This book shall not, by way of trade or any other way, be circulated in any way without the author's prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The content, the design, film, photographs and text remain the properties of the author.

The authors of this book do not dispense medical advice or prescribe the use of any technique as a form of treatment for physical, emotional, or medical problems without the advice of a physician, either directly or indirectly. The author is offering information and suggestions of a general nature with the aim of helping the readers understand themselves and their life better. The authors will not assume any liability for any loss or injury or damage of any kind, arising out of or caused by, directly or indirectly, the use of this information.

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Smashwords Edition

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Pendragan Publishing

Old Home Cottage

Sparkwell, Plymouth PL7 5DQ

United Kingdom

First Edition 2022

Table of Contents

Artificial Stupidity

BEGINNINGS

Welcome To Artificial Stupidity

Part I - Elementary My Dear Reader

Essential Guide to Artificial Stupidity

The Beast With Many Heads

Self-Sabotage For Dummies

21 Foolproof Ways to Shoot Yourself in the Foot

Survival of the Stupidest?

Stress and Stupidity

Stupidity as Lack of Judgment

Foolish Assumptions Causing Hallucinations

Facts Versus Nonsense

Grabbing the Wrong End of the Stick

Emotions and Stupidity

When Misconceptions Become Systems

Identity Belief System

Am I One or Many?

Conscience is Not What it Seems

Intelligent Perspective

Who Said You Cannot Improve Your Intelligence

Can Knowledge Make Us Immune to Artificial Stupidity?

The Importance of Being Emotionally Clued In

Part II - Who on Earth am I?

We are machines. Really?

Indoctrinated or Inculturated?

Me and My Fool's Paradise

Avoiding Myself

The Self-Improvement Myths

Self Disrespect

Part III - Are We a Herd Animal?

Me and We

Signalling Our Secrets to Others

The Art of Chin Wagging

Personal Beliefs as Rules

Governance - Stupefy, Divide and Rule

Can God Be Artificially Stupid?

Blindfolds Don't Improve Vision

Part IV - To Live or to Survive

Life or Strife

Shrinking Time

Can Money Buy Intelligence

Doing Nothing, Achieving a Lot

From Innocence to Wisdom (Hopefully)

Know Yourself First?

Beautiful Death

Time and Reality - Are They Myths?

Part V - Body, Mind and Awareness

Amazing Human Building Blocks

Mind Awareness

Thinking is a Skill

Thinking Puzzles

9 Personalities - Their Core Beliefs and Emotions

The Castle Method for Changing Erroneous Beliefs

The Nuts and Bolts of Emotions

Feel and Heal Your Emotions

Take a Dive into Yourself

Contemplation and Meditation

Artificial Stupidity in a Nutshell

ENDINGS

About Dragan and Penny

Dedicated to the intelligence in all of us.

To Begin With

One of the most common mistakes that we make when it comes to stupidity is to think it is something we’re born with; once stupid, always stupid. This is especially damning because people are only too quick to label others 'idiots' while being terrified of being called stupid themselves. It's like walking on thin ice, you only have  to make one slip up,  just say or do something slightly ridiculous, and there you are on your stupid ass,  an idiot for all to see and remember forever.

In this book, we'll dive into the stupidity born out of the misunderstandings, illusions, and prejudices that are mainly caused by our being too lazy to think critically or to analyse and discriminate between the different kinds of information coming our way. Artificial Stupidity is the standard human foolishness that most of us – maybe even you  - fall for. It's not genetically inherited, nor a terminal disease, but something like a computer bug that we can identify and remove.

The two main pillars of Artificial Stupidity are irrational fears and impulsive desires. Desires make us fall for foolish, wishful thinking, and fear does an even better job. When fear shows its ugly face and yells, Black is white! our brain turns to mush, we forfeit reason, and we'll believe almost anything.

Jumping to wrong conclusions, nurturing wild assumptions and biased beliefs is what Artificial Stupidity thrives on. Under the influence of Artificial Stupidity, we swallow nonsense by the bucketful, simply because it appeals to our whims or makes us feel good. Who doesn't make bad decisions or underestimate themselves or misjudge other people's intelligence and abilities based on how they dress, walk or talk, or how rich, fat or beautiful they are?  And what about the pressure to conform? Millions of children were labelled stupid because they were dyslexic, couldn't do maths, or hated so-called education. Albert Einstein resented his school's teaching methods. He quite rightly believed that education should not be focused on factual information but on training the mind how to think.

When we make assumptions, we better remember that we've made them. The following example illustrates the power of incorrect assumptions, prejudices and beliefs,  and how they can jeopardise our ability to think, making us appear stupid.

A cowboy rides into The Doom Stone on Friday. He has three fun days and then rides out of The Doom Stone on Friday. How is this possible?  Stop reading now and try to think of the answer.

If we cannot think of the correct answer to the riddle, we have made a wrong assumption. So, let's see, what did we assume? A horse is not mentioned, but we probably assumed that the cowboy rides on a horse. This is probably an OK assumption. However, we've also concluded that the cowboy rode on Friday, meaning, the day in the week. Was this the correct assumption? Surely not, because if it were, the cowboy would be riding out of the town on Monday after having a great weekend. 

So, what does Friday stand for then? Recheck the puzzle. The cowboy rode on Friday. Aha, Friday must be the name of the cowboy's horse! 

When we use this assumption, the puzzle suddenly reveals itself, and everything fits beautifully.

Artificial Stupidity caused by false assumptions and beliefs should not be confused with ignorance. It is not about lack of knowledge but about not using our minds well. We often mistake our concepts and ideas as accurate and therefore in tune with the 'reality' around us. As Polish-American scientist and philosopher Alfred Korzybski said, The map is not the territory, and complementing that, the Norwegian boy-scouts say, If the territory doesn't agree with the map, go with the territory. Both of those tell us to be careful what we assume to be true. Yet, under the influence of Artificial Stupidity, we often ignore the warnings such as these and plough on regardless.

Human stubbornness is legendary. Often, we'd rather sink rather then abandon our faulty beliefs.

Although simple ignorance disappears with learning, Artificial Stupidity can be stubbornly resistant to knowledge. Under its influence, we're capable of denying facts when they are punching us in the face! It is not that we're incapable of having great and valuable ideas; it's more to do with us fighting them. However, the good news is that Artificial Stupidity can wither away when we decide to unlearn and outgrow our misconceptions and prejudices.

Artificial Stupidity is something that is part of us all. I have been guilty of almost every trap set up by my misunderstandings, misgivings and misconceiving. My aim in this book was to probe and understand Artificial Stupidity and its causes and help you do the same. Once we make the faulty, automatic mental processes conscious, the stupidity starts losing its grip on us.

So, to escape the painful traps of Artificial Stupidity and regain the natural liberty of the intelligence that we were all born with, we can start by questioning everything: authorities and experts, parents and priests, politicians and the media, our friends and foes, and most of all, ourselves. I wish you joy and clarity as you find the answers for yourself.

Artificial Stupidity stems from limited beliefs that distort our view of the world.

By reviewing/changing our beliefs, we can restore true perspective and dramatically improve our outlook.

Dragan Matijevic

Other books by Dragan Matijevic and Penny Williams:

Insights into the Invisible

Know Yourself

Part I - Elementary, My Dear Reader

Artificial Stupidity Basics

Greek Titan Atlas, like so many of us,

carrying the world on his shoulders.

We humans are, more or less, naturally intelligent. But we are also vulnerable, and so we're physically and psychologically insecure. Uncertain of ourselves, we crave security, approval and appreciation. As a result, facts matter far less than our fears and hopes; our illusions end up more attractive to us than the harsh realities of life. However, if something feels comforting, it doesn't mean it is doing us good. Sugar is sweet, but it can kill you.

Inaccurate 'knowledge', superstitions and misconceived beliefs are at the roots of Artificial Stupidity. We acquire them through inadequate education, superficial thinking and various character flaws. They are stored in the unconscious mind, and we are mostly unaware of them and how they influence our lives.

We're ultimately responsible for what we carry in our heads and hearts, but it is by no means all our fault. The moment we're born, centuries of misconceived belief systems cannot wait to smother us. Our parents, friends, schools, society are full of it and keen to share! So we take our part in it and push our delusions on others, and they throw it back at us. It's a funny little farcical game we play.

Relying on inaccurate information or beliefs will make fools out of the best of us. 

When loaded with false information, our minds make erroneous conclusions and decisions, so we get lost in life. Imagine typing a wrong address into a navigation app. It will inevitably take you to where you don't want to be. Or if computer software is faulty, you might buy a camera and get a saucepan.

Depending on the accuracy of our various observations, ideas, and beliefs, we can be brilliant or dumb in different areas of life. For example, we can be artificially stupid about ourselves, who we are and what we want. We may inflate (I'm God's gift to humanity) or deflate ourselves (I'm a waste of time and space!). Or we can be awkward and clumsy in the social arena, estranging others by stepping on their toes. Each faulty assumption produces its own sphere of stupidity. So, for instance, we can be sharp at doing business and terrible at raising a family. We can read stars and navigate our way anywhere in the world, but we may be frightened of going to a local greengrocer.

Our self-imposed stupidity is the result of believing what is false to be true. One of its causes is our lack of interest in what is going on inside our heads and hearts. Instead of rigorously examining our beliefs about who we are and what the world is about, we settle far too quickly for half-baked assumptions and conclusions.

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What Are the Effects of Artificial Stupidity?

The truth will set you free from your own self-imposed limitations.

Being overly committed to inaccurate beliefs is like living in a prison yard with high walls all around blocking the view of the rest of the world. This is because once we believe something, we exclude its opposite! When under the influence of Artificial Stupidity we fight bitterly against potentially great ideas that stand in opposition to our own faulty ones. For example, during the 1930s, most German people would have argued with all their might that Hitler was a sane and compassionate leader.

We like to make sense of things, and once we commit to certain beliefs, we guard them fiercely. Anything that stands outside our belief systems is hard to think about because, firstly, our mind is walled against any information that goes against the grain of our established 'knowledge'. And secondly, any new information that contradicts our favourite misconceptions makes us feel uncomfortable. This is commonly known as cognitive dissonance.

Generally, we are open to anything new that makes us feel safe and important. However, anything or anybody who challenges our views of the world or ourselves will probably offend us. If someone tells me, while offering sound examples, that other people don't see me as the friendly guy I think I am, I will be shocked and hurt. I might shoot the messenger for being so frank, and continue being a pain.  Or, more usefully, I might let in what he has said and try to change my behaviour.

What we believe affects how we behave. If our beliefs are inaccurate, that will affect our lives, relationships, how we see things, everything! We pay the cost of our misconceptions and illusions in time, money and grief. That is just on the personal level. But on the global level, the effects of the faulty assumptions that cause Artificial Stupidity, in terms of hunger, illness, climate, economy and endless wars, are enormous.

Warning: Artificial Stupidity can be addictive. Just like an alcoholic who eats salty food to help him drink more, we reinforce our precious, but dubious beliefs with other stupid beliefs. If I believe that I am God's gift to humanity, I will believe that others love me and will be amplifying any compliments I receive, I will fondly imagine I have qualities such as beauty, grace or charisma, and I will do my utmost to prove and protect that image.

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Mind the Mind

Our mind is a magic crystal in which our life happens - our sensations, imagination, beliefs, emotions, memory, and even relationships. If our memory goes down the drain, our relationships go with it.

The mind's job is to create its own reality based on our knowledge and beliefs and then to put it into practice. We can have happy or miserable existences depending on what we know and believe. Different beliefs set our minds on different tracks. For example, suppose the mind is set in a happy frame, with optimistic beliefs and expansive emotions. In that case, the crystal ball will show us joyful and exhilarating options and sceneries. On the other hand, if our thoughts and feelings are on the dark side of the spectrum, the crystal ball will show us scary scenes and storms ahead.

The unconscious mind controls all the body's functions. 

It is five hundred thousand times faster than the conscious mind. 

Saying all this, it makes sense then that we should know our minds. However, like an iceberg, most of the mind is submerged in the ocean of unconsciousness. We cannot automatically see, know or understand what is hiding under the surface. And yet, lo and behold, this is where most Artificial Stupidity hides, in the form of inaccurate