Monday, March 12, 2007
Bush as dunce
In the post below this one, Hugo Chavez is quoted as saying, "[Bush is] the president with the lowest intellectual level in the history of the United States." Perhaps you thought that was hyperbole or just an insult. As it happens, it's a scientifically determined fact:
While these are probably good relative numbers, I do doubt, by the way, that they are actual IQs; they're much too high.George W. Bush has the lowest IQ of the 12 US presidents over the past 60 years, states a report published by the Lovenstein Institute of Scranton, Pennsylvania.
To come up with their ranking the think tank used two basic criteria: Writings that the presidents produced without aid of staff and their ability to speak with clarity.
Bill Clinton scored highest on the intelligence rating with 182 points followed by James Carter with 175. Bush finished last with 91 points.
The Lovenstein Institute explained that Bush’s low score was due to his difficulty in expressing himself, his limited vocabulary (6,500 works compared to 11,000 of other presidents) and his lack of scholarly achievements other than a basic MBA.
Following Clinton and Carter in the intelligence ranking were: John Kennedy (174 points), Ricard Nixon (155), Franklin Roosevelt (147), Harry Truman (132), Lyndon Johnson (126), Dwight Eisenhower (122), Gerald Ford (121), Ronald Reagan (105), and George Bush Sr. (98).
(Taken from eluniverso.com from Ecuador)
Also, I do need to point out the obvious - the ability of a President to carry out the mission of imperialism has nothing to do with his personal IQ.
Update: A commenter points out that Snopes identifies this story as an old hoax. I'll take that as true. However, whether or not the "Lovenstein Institute" is a fiction, I'll stand behind the hoaxers claims.
Interestingly, one of Snopes' "proofs" that this is a hoax is that all the Democrats rank above all the Republicans except Nixon. Well, it's well-known that I'm no supporter of the Democrats, but it is a fact that the intellect of recent Democratic Presidents has towered over such mental midgets as Bush, Bush, and Reagan.
