I used to think that Americans were fairly intelligent people. Thankfully, I’m in the workforce and have had that delusion dashed to a million little pieces before it could cause permanent damage.
Seriously, though, it’s pathetic. The level of incompetence is astounding. And it’s not even on difficult issues.
Okay, maybe they are difficult. Let me explain and you be the judge.
Since I work in the finance department, we have to deal with separating things that are dated 2008 and things that are dated 2009. Pretty tricky stuff there, looking at a date and going “Is this 2008 or 2009?”
Anyway, in one section of stuff we do, there are four possible items under normal circumstances. That means I get four distinct piles of things given to me when people do their “lookups” and such. But because we have to separate 2008 and 2009, that means that I will no longer get four piles.
Since I can do math—and pretty complex Calculus math, such as 4 x 2—I know that I should be getting eight piles now instead of four. So I wasn’t surprised when I got extra piles.
Until I counted them and saw there were thirteen of them.
Yes, somehow my department thinks that 4 x 2 = 13.
Which wouldn’t necessarily be bad except for the fact that none of those piles were even consistent with themselves.
Then again, we are talking about the same people who can’t figure out the difference between a “single” item and a “multi” item. I know it’s difficult, so come out on a limb with me. A single item is…are you ready for it? One item! A multi item is…brace your brain…more than one item? (And yes, I had one dorktard sarcastically ask, “What if there is less than one item?” to which I responded “Then it wouldn’t exist, would it?”)
Now I realize that the philosophical differences between the one and the many were pondered as recently as, roughly, 2000.
B.C.
Still and all you’d think that someone who graduated from publik skrewl sistem would be able to—oh wait, what am I saying? Now it all makes sense!
BTW, I just overheard one person complaining that it was taking too long to open the mail because of separating out the 2008 and 2009 stuff. Example: yesterday we had two and a half “trays” of mail to open, which took them until 4:39 PM. Normally, two and a half trays would take them until noon. Then again, when I opened the mail four years ago, it would take me and a team of three others until all of 10:30 to open four trays of mail. (Yes, all these numbers make math so difficult.)
All else aside, however, how can this person seriously think that simply reading “2008” or “2009” and putting these items into a separate pile will take four and a half hours longer than before? I don’t get the logic of it.
I have a suggestion that would solve the problem though. How ‘bout instead of talking and goofing off, you actually open the freaking mail? Pretty sure that would solve the time crunch right there. But then these people would no longer be incompetent, and they’d no longer be philosophical object lessons about the depravity of publik edjukashun.
It’s a lose-lose.
