Always and inevitably everyone underestimates the number of stupid individuals in circulation
The Second Basic Law
The probability that a certain person be stupid is independent of any other characteristic of that person
One finds the same percentage of stupid people whether one is considering very large groups or one is dealing with very small ones
At the Northern Pole or at the Equator, whether in developed or underdeveloped countries, whether they are black, red, white or yellow, female or male—that proportion is constant
The Third Basic Law
A stupid person is a person who causes losses to another person or to a group of persons while himself deriving no gain and even possibly incurring losses
“Nobody knows, understands or can possibly explain why that preposterous creature does what he does. In fact there is no explanation — or better, there is only one explanation: the person in question is stupid.”
The Fourth Basic Law
Non-stupid people always underestimate the damaging power of stupid individuals. In particular non-stupid people constantly forget that at all times and places and under any circumstances to deal and/or associate with stupid people infallibly turns out to be a costly mistake.
“When confronted with stupid individuals often intelligent men make the mistake of indulging in feelings of self-complacency and contemptuousness instead of immediately secreting adequate quantities of adrenalin and building up defenses.”
The Fifth Basic Law
A stupid person is the most dangerous type of person
A stupid person is more dangerous than a bandit
The power of stupidity
Because the stupid person’s actions do not conform to the rules of rationality, it follows that:
One is generally caught by surprise by the attack;
Even when one becomes aware of the attack, one cannot recognize a rational defense, because the attack itself lacks any rational structure.