Intentional ignorance is bliss

The internet has made it so easy for us to give a hot take on everything. Too easy in fact.

The problem?

Everyone with an internet connection feels obligated to give their hot take on everything. All the time.

The result?

An overabundance of both brilliant and idiotic takes mixed together in a big fat boiling pot of nasty soup.

The issue?

Separating the two.

The antidote?

Intentional ignorance.

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One of my favorite quotes comes from Seneca around 425 BC, “How many things there are that I do not want.”

Intentional ignorance is similar, “How many things there are going on in the world that I do not want to have an opinion on.”

Now I’ll admit, this has resulted in occasionally coming across as an uncultured idiot when hanging out with friends. But that’s OK.

Unlike my fellow uncultured idiots friends who still have a burning desire to spew their opinions on whatever is trending on social media or, god forbid, the news.

I regularly have nothing to offer our conversations other than a shrug of the shoulders and a polite, “I don’t know”. Which must make me a lovely dinner guest.

But I consider it a badge of honor to maintain my intentional ignorance on soooo many topics.

For example, I recently asked my wife, “What’s a hawk tuah?”

I mistakenly thought it was some sort of native american tribe or something.

Boy was I wrong. And now I’m scarred for life.

Clearly, I’m uncultured. But is this really something worth being in the know about?

I’ll let you decide.

This is a silly example but it can be applied to so many other areas.

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Why do so many of us feel like it’s our duty to have an opinion (informed or not) on everything these days?

What do you really know about the economy? Stock market? Upcoming election? Environment? Latest cancellation? Or whatever.

If you’re anything like me, approximately nothing. Or at least nothing that needs to be taken seriously by anyone. Ever.

We need to make saying “I don’t know” great again.

This doesn’t mean I’m a dull donkey who never gets fired up about anything. If the conversation steers towards philosophy, comedy, strange paradoxes, good books, personal finance, college football, or basketball you better believe I’m locked and loaded ready to pop off.

That’s because I’ve spent countless hours exploring these endlessly fascinating topics in depth and therefore feel (somewhat) qualified to say something worth hearing.

But if it’s an area that I know next to nothing about, I feel zero shame in admitting it. Which seems increasingly rare these days.

Now I’m all for constructive conversations. But that’s not what a majority of the online filth we salivate over really is. Most of it is bumbling nitwits who just like hearing the sound of their own voice.

Every “big” story doesn’t require your outsized emotional investment of time, attention, and energy.

Remove yourself from the hilariously uninformed masses who have forgotten three of the most important words in the english language — I don’t know.

18th century English poet Thomas Gray almost had it right when he said ignorance is bliss.

Intentional ignorance is bliss.

Your thoughts? Criticisms? Complaints? Please leave a comment below.