Strange Thought

Profound mental retardation
IQ Below 20

Severe mental retardation
IQ 20–34

Moderate mental retardation
IQ 35–49

Mild mental retardation
IQ 50–69

Borderline mental retardation
IQ 70–79

It is interesting to see how people treat each other. For example: Mental retardation is defined as someone with an IQ below 70. In this day and age, that means that these people are actually much respected and well cared for. It is looked down upon to mock people with disabilities. And if you were to do so you would be looked down upon by the general public. It’s true, it hasn’t always been this way, but today this is a general principle. On the other hand, what about people who score closer to the mid-80’s. Well, we see these people every day. They are often socially awkward. They work in our offices, provide our services and go through life relatively unnoticed. These people are the most despised people on earth. The truth is that these are the same people that are hated at your work. These people are generally described as “stupid” and nobody wants to be around them except of course for other “stupid people”. They do not complete tasks correctly. They preform at a sub-par level. They annoy.

It is strange to think that we have come so far and yet most of us dislike people we think to be “idiots”. It is culturally acceptable to mistreat them or talk about them with others. In fact, it is often a point of unity between other co-workers.

I wonder, could we learn to think of these people in a new way? What is it about human nature that says we must always place people into cast systems? It is an interesting question...

-Ha Kohen