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Comment by whatwhatwhat | Hacker News Reader

I guess he's talking about kids in developing countries...

The point he is making is clear, however, it doesn't take THAT long to develop some fundamental computer-related skills. I feel worse for old people.

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Actually, he's talking about children "in a low socio-economic status classroom in New York City", not old people, and not in developing countries.

I've never dealt with students who "didn't grasp the concept of keyboard shortcuts", and so I'm inclined to think the situation has been dramatised for the sake of hitting the message home. But other than that, I really do share his worries: I believe you need quite a bit more than a basic grasp of technology, if you don't want to be made redundant by a computer very soon.

Not so much the developing world, just take a look at the majority of students in the majority of schools across the US. Anti-intellectualism, previously relegated to a small percentage of trouble makers in each class, has blossomed, and is now the modus operandi for most non-honors students in the American school system. The days of Idiocracy are upon us!

Anti Intellectualism has never been "relegated to a small percentage of trouble makers." It's always been a popular ideology in American culture.

http://www.amazon.com/Anti-Intellectualism-American-Life-Ric...

If you went to a public school in the USA where anti-intellectualism was NOT the dominant meme, consider yourself lucky...

Indeed, you're right, I suppose what I'm speaking about is an adversity to all forms of productive behavior (which I incorrectly labeled intellectualism) that I witnessed while in primary and secondary school. I just assumed that previous generations (I'm a member of the "millennials") must have had a higher percentage of productive members.

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