Re: The joy of actual numbers, was Democracy

On Thu, 7 Nov 2024 21:19:05 -0000 (UTC), Rich wrote:

It is simply a reflection of the fact that, in almost all populations, a
small percentage of people have an innate curiosity that drives them to
learn, explore, make something of themselves, and often have an outsize
impact on the world as a whole, while a large percentage simply seem to
have no curiosity nor desire to do anything beyond the barest minimum
necessary to make the next paycheck appear by magic.

I got out of Dodge in my early 20s as did many of my friends and my
brother. According to the high school class data many didn't.

What surprised me was the number of college educated people in Boston with
decent jobs that had never ventured outside of the 128 perimeter. Those
novelty maps that show Boston and NY with LA and San Francisco on the west
bank of the Hudson are their world view. The 'flyover states' are a
reality.