Has "money" replaced "brains" was what is to be most admired and coveted in the USA?

[applegrove]

I mean it used to be that stupid people were made fun of (think Johnny Carson's characters). Now Sarah Palin is admired. Now it is the poor that are made fun of. It used to be that smart people and bright ideas were rewarded with fame and $$$(think Water Cronkite). Now people with money are admired for that alone. When did this happen?

[texastoast]

1. I would say the 1980s

But my mom said this country worships the Almighty Dollar, and she was born in 1915. Maybe in the Eighties I was just becoming aware of just how much this country worships money.

[Davis_X_Machina]

2. If Mark Twain complained about it...

...it's a bit older than that.

[Sherman A1]

9. Precisely

The country has always "worshipped" money. That is the basis of the capitalist system after all....

[surrealAmerican]

14. ... as did Charles Dickens ...

... when he first visited the US.

It probably dates from the industrial revolution.

[SixthSense]

3. since when were brains admired in this country?

most of the smart kids I knew were mercilessly ostracized for it, not admired

[hfojvt]

4. no

because brains were never really admired except in the sense that they allowed the smart person to make money. "If you're so smart, then why ain't you rich?"

[midnight]

5. It's the money trumps peace agenda.....

[kdmorris]

6. Yes..unless you're a woman

Then it's beauty...

[MilesColtrane]

7. Yes, a long, long time ago.

[Initech]

8. The fact that the Kardashians are still popular baffles the mind.

[no_hypocrisy]

10. Money goes a long way in compensating for deficits.

Stupidity. Greed. Lack of tact and couth.

All is overlooked and forgiven when you have enough money.

[Fumesucker]

11. Replaced???

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[Exilednight]

12. I wrote a whole thesis on this very thought. My main argument was that we are not

rewarding innovation or intelligence, instead we are rewarding worn out and tired methods like reducing work force, cutting perks, and putting austerity measures in place.

It's easy for a CEO to boost the bottom line without being creative, and that's what is really sad about this country.

[tama]

13. When?

When Sauron took over. You know it's Sauron's Eye on the back of the dollar bill, on top of the Pyramid. :)

It's just mass hypnosis, nothing else. Get rid of TV, emancipate yourself from mental slavery, etc., you know the drill. :)

[siligut]

15. The M$M only makes it worse

Not everybody values money over humanity, but the M$M wants to make you think so.

[cali]

16. uh, the anti-intellectual strain in this country

runs as deep and wide as you can get and it always has

[Wilms]

17. The O'Jays - For the Love of Money (Full Version)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll3uipTO-4A

[FarCenter]

18. What should be admired is "the content of their character"

Neither money nor brains.

[G_j]

19. being a mean spirited asshole will you get far also

and maybe people will give you money