I told you so
We all know that ‘I told you so’ may be the least helpful thing you can say. Anita Bates from CBC [1] said this about these 4 nasty words: “Never in the history of conversation has anyone felt better from hearing those four words. Those are “kick me when I’m down” words. They remind me of that childhood verse: “Na-na, na-na, boo-boo, stick your head in doo-doo, I’m better than you-you!”” And yet denying that there are people out there much smarter or more knowledgable than I am, people I should listen to, is also a big, big problem. This is what writer David McElroy has to say about the reality that while “I told you so” is really rude – it can also be true and that truth can save us morons [I put myself in that group] a lot of pain and suffering:
“You just think you’re smarter than me!” he bellowed with disdain. I’ve had this conversation with others through the years and it always follows the same script. An idiot says something stupid to me and I point out the flaw in what he says. He responds — with a non sequitur or some made up “fact,” usually — and I point out his error. That’s when he pulls out his trump card. Instead of making a rational argument for whatever he believes, he accuses me of thinking I’m better than he is — because I’ve committed the grave mistake of being smarter than he is. I’ve never actually said this to someone under such circumstances, but I always want to reply, “Well, yes, I am smarter than you are, you ignorant moron.” For as long as I can remember, I’ve gotten the message from others that it’s arrogant and egotistical to let other people know that I’m smarter than they are. In school, it was acceptable to do better than others, but there was a conspiracy of silence about why. It was embarrassing to admit some of us were simply smarter. This makes no sense. Imagine if athletes had the same attitude. A sprinter defeats another sprinter and the loser would angrily say, “You just think you’re faster than me!” The late science fiction writer Isaac Asimov wrote an essay for Newsweek in 1980 which addressed this public intellectual issue bluntly. “There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there always has been,” Asimov wrote. “The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.’” [2]
So, without further adieu, let’s explore some juicy examples of “I told you so”. This first one is from a CBC vignette I heard a view days ago where a biographer of John Turner, the Liberal leader who lost the Free Trade Election to Brian Mulroney in 1988. Liberal leader John Turner opposed free trade but lost that pivotal election. He warned that handing over the “economic levers” could lead to a loss of Canada’s political independence – and he was right, he said in the 1988 election:
I will not let Brian Mulroney sell out our sovereignty. I will not let this great nation surrender its birthright. I will not let Brian Mulroney destroy a 120-year-old dream called Canada, and neither will Canadians … I believe that on election day, November 21st, Canadians will understand that a vote for the Liberal Party is a vote for a stronger, fairer, more independent and more sovereign Canada. I believe that Canadians are not going to vote for Brian Mulroney, a man who would be governor of a 51st state. You mentioned 120 years of history. We built a country east and west and north. We built it on an infrastructure that deliberately resisted the continental pressure of the United States. For 120 years we’ve done it. With one signature of a pen, you’ve reversed that, thrown us into the north south influence of the United States and will reduce us … to a colony of the United States, because when the economic levers go, the political independence is sure to follow. [3]
I told you so.
Canada’s first past the post system is about non-democratic as it gets. It is normal that 40% of the population voting for one party wins a “majority of the seats in Parliament.” However, this is a “false majority” as a majority of total voters, 60%, cast their ballots for another party. [4] This happened in the 2015 election when the Liberals won a “majority” with 39.5% of the popular vote. It happened in the 1988 Free Trade election when Mulroney won a “majority” government with 43% of the popular vote and created the economic disaster we are in today caused by an over reliance on 1 customer: the USA. Lest this data not convince you that democracy is dead in Canada because of our flawed system here is another election result. In the 2021 federal election Liberals won 160 seats from 5.55 million votes, thus forming the government, while the Conservatives only earned 119 seats but received more votes: 5.75 million votes. Democracy is dead.
I told you so.
In 1992 the CDN Cod Fishery was shut down. It was supposed to last 2 years. 30 Years later it is still shut down and there is no end in sight. It may be that the Cod populations will never recover.
“Newfoundland and Labrador people fished for 500 years and didn’t damage the stocks. What Canada done was an atrocity in my opinion. It ruined a way of life. It ruined culture. The stage was set for a cod collapse long before Newfoundland joined Confederation in 1949, he adds. The moratorium was an outcome of understanding the ocean and cod in capitalist and colonial ways. If we want the next 30 years to look different, we really have to confront and dismantle deeply rooted ideas and institutions in Western society. [5]
I told you so.
Some Historians claim that the under emphasized causes for the loss of power of Ancient Greece was soil erosion caused by deforestation. Plato already described the effects of deforestation on soil erosion and the drying of springs in 400 BC. Deforestation in ancient Greece was a result of the expanding population and the need for resources such as firewood, charcoal, and lumber. It led to the loss of habitat, soil erosion, and air pollution. These environmental issues in ancient Greece were not addressed effectively, and their cumulative effects took a toll on the civilization over many centuries. Eventually, these problems contributed to the decline of the Greek city-states and played a role in the downfall of the Roman Empire. Overall, the environmental issues faced by ancient Greece had a significant impact on its society and civilization. Deforestation, soil erosion, salinization of cropland, water and air pollution, and crowded cities were all challenges that the Greeks had to navigate. Understanding the environmental history of ancient Greece can provide valuable insights into the importance of sustainable practices and the consequences of neglecting the natural environment. [6]
I told you so.
“We would rather be ruined than changed. We would rather die in our dread than climb the cross of the moment and let our illusions die.” — W.H. Auden
References
2. https://davidmcelroy.org/?p=23757
3. https://policyoptions.irpp.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/assets/po/the-year-in-review/litt.pdf
4. https://the-peak.ca/2024/10/first-past-the-post-is-ineffective-and-anti-democratic/
5. https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/the-cod-delusion/
6. https://www.ncesc.com/geographic-pedia/what-were-the-environmental-issues-in-ancient-greece/
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