I sometime wonder about the qualifications of some people doing dangerous work

[Duer 157099]

I watched a few minutes of a History Channel show about dredging the world's big waterways, and there were quite a few of the workers, operating huge big massive heavy machinery (not unlike that involved in offshore oil drilling, say) whose shall-we-say intelligence just didn't seem to jump out at me. Every time I have a thought like this, I quickly counter to myself: No. No way. There's NO WAY anybody would entrust ignorant people, the type who might be found at a Tea Party, for example, to be in control of such massive amounts of power with such potential for damage.

But yet, it seems to me that quite a few of them are very low wage workers, with little education and not much sense.

What's wrong with me?

Or, am I right? I don't know which is scarier.

[noamnety]

1. I remember a story a couple years back

where someone was turned down for a police officer job because their IQ was too high. Their department's theory was that you had to have a certain amount of stupid in you to go into a situation anyone can see is likely to get you killed just because someone told you to.

[UndertheOcean]

2. All that is required of them is to move a lever once in while , nothing more.

In the future robots will take their place. And hopefully they will die out.

[virgogal]

3. Intellectual snobbery is the way your post reads to me. Lack of

formal education doesn't mean lack of intelligence.

[Duer 157099]

5. Yes, I felt the intellectual snobbery

And it bothered me so I tried to examine the situation, and the more I looked at it, the more it seemed to me that it wasn't snobbery so much as an observation. Some of these guys didn't seem to have much common sense, the type that might tell you whether, for example, it was safe to light up a cigarette where they were standing. That sort of thing. Not whether they knew calculus or ancient archaeology.

[JuniperLea]

8. Sad how so many people don't get the difference...

Knowledge isn't intelligence, and visa versa.

[stray cat]

4. Miners can start straight out of highschool

but then the real training for most dangerous jobs is learning from the experienced hands on the job. Education without experience in many cases doesn't count for much

[undeterred]

6. There are some jobs that have a huge hourly rate

because they are physically dangerous. Nobody would do them if the rate weren't high. So thats going to attract a lot of people who couldn't make that kind of money any other way. Like being a deep see diver who swims around oil rigs.

[JuniperLea]

7. Or the guy that climbs into giant tanks in refineries...

To clean them out and such.

Sad to think about... very sad.

[Liberal_in_LA]

9. I saw a show about the dredgers. Really interesting. My take is the employees were

quite capable due to years of experience. And your post does seem a wee bit snobbish. No offense. :hi: