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Every Single Argument I've Heard Against Increasing Intelligence in My English Class and My Counterclaims

We read Flowers for Algernon, and this discussion ensued. We now have to write an essay about it, and I am sure I must be missing something, because I can't find any reason to side against increasing intelligence.

To set the stage, we debated whether to increase intelligence in real life. This means that any potential effects of intelligence-enhancing surgery inside Charlie Gordon's universe (i.e., the intelligence wearing off) are not applicable. In this debate, we are referring to intelligence—not knowledge. In this context, intelligence refers to IQ, while knowledge refers to information. This means Elon Musk's Neuralink, while not irrelevant, is not the main focus of this argument.

If an argument is good, I will do my best to admit that.

These are in no particular order.

It would decrease diversity.

Starting off strong with this interesting point, those against increasing intelligence argue that increasing intelligence would eliminate neurological differences between people. In other words, it would get rid of stupid people.

The amount of intelligence someone has is not 'diversity.' If everyone had the same IQ, we would not all be the same because we still have our personalities -- and that's only touching on neurological differences. There are plenty of other ways we differ.

Grit matters more.

Personally, I don't understand this argument. Just because something is of more value to your success doesn't mean everything else doesn't matter.

Imagine you're on your way to class. You'd want a pencil, right?

Well, you don't actually <em>need</em> that pencil. You could just take the lead, and it would still work -- maybe not as well, but it would still work. The wood casing around the lead isn't the most important part of the pencil, so, under this logic, it's unnecessary.

Sophisticated crime would increase.

This is a much better point than the last two, but it's still not infallible.

While sophisticated crime, such as bank robberies and pharmaceutical cover-ups, would increase, so would the effectiveness of our methods of battling it. If everyone had increased intelligence, we would still be fighting on an even playing field.

Some people wouldn't change their opinions, no matter how wrong they are.

For example, while Isaac Newton was very intelligent, he was also a misanthrope. People can have prejudices and incorrect opinions despite being very intelligent.

This is true -- to a point. While some people would still be caught up in their prejudice, increased intelligence will let more people see through it. It doesn't make much sense to use this as a stand-alone point

It may only be available to the ultra-wealthy, exacerbating class disparities.

See this, y'all? THIS is how you make a good argument. Talk about stuff like this instead of bringing up weird points about grit and diversity, and you'll be golden.

We need to solve a lot of things before we can make intelligence-enhancing technology available -- that's undeniable. However, this is the case with most medical procedures. The wealthier among us can afford expensive treatments to save their children's (or their) lives and give them a boost in life, while those with less money are left sitting in the dust.

It's not great, but it's the unfortunate reality. Adding another medical procedure to the mix wouldn't make much a difference.

I agree, however, that introducing intelligence-enhancing technology while we have such drastic class differences could be dangerous. It would give the rich a large advantage while middle and lower-class citizens would have a much harder time getting into the same universities as them because they have lower IQs.

See? This is a good argument. I will admit that -- this is one of the best points I've heard against it, and it's rarely brought up.

What do you guys think? I'm mostly limited to the evidence provided by my teacher, so I'm curious as to what some points you guys have are.

If I was unclear on anything, please let me know.

Sources for Arguments:

Intelligence Article

Grit Tedtalk (used as evidence for grit argument)

Anyway, it's 2:45 and I have school tomorrow, so I should probably go to bed. See y'all tomorrow!

Matsuzaki - Birthday Celebration

"I hope you understand why I invited you to my office," Matsuzaki said calmly. Kongou just stared at him defiantly. 

"No, teach. I don't," he all but spat, his face twisted in annoyance.

"Kongou, I wanted to talk to you about your grades in Japanese. You're seriously lagging behind." Kongou rolled his eyes.

"I'll try harder. Is that all?"  Matsuzaki quieted and peered at the student before him. Finally, he nodded, and Kongou stood abruptly and stalked out.

Matsuzaki glanced down at the poem in front of him, Kongou Tsuyoshi written at the bottom. Maybe next time, he'd confront him.

Metori Saiko - Birthday Celebration

Metori glided easily through the math test, marking answers carelessly. His tutors had taught him all this months ago, and he couldn't believe these idiots were still on it. He opened his mouth to tell the teacher he finished.

A frustrated sigh whistled out from beside him, and he glanced surreptitiously at the kid beside him. Kuboyasu stared at his paper, lips pursed. 

He glanced at his paper and back at the kid beside him. The stress of the test was clear on his face.

 In other words, Saiko had nothing to do with the note now on Kuboyasu's desk.

Harry potter x hijack au when i finish the HP series or tmnt x saiki k au when im not busy

Akechi's birthday drabble may be a day late, I am about to collapse.

If you're not waiting for e-mail, how often do you check your digital mail box?

Every day

A few times a week

Once a week

A few times a month

Once a month

Less often than that

No digital mailbox

Results

poem from before the election was decided

Your Bloodied Flag

“Red, white, and blue,”

you holler,

“Stand for America!”

But you must understand,

while you shout and scream

your patriotic lies,

I will not.

I will stand 

for the idea of liberty.

I will stand

for the idea of freedom.

I will stand

for the men and women who brought us here.

I will not stand

for America.

I will not stand

for the Rohingya genocide America aided,

for the genocide happening in Palestine that America is funding,

for the Japanese internment camps that America built.

America is not the “superior country.”

It is not the dream that our ancestors worked for,

Nor is it the dream that we are told to follow.

It is a flawed country,

in need of revision,

reconstruction,

and learning.

We need to learn from our past,

our mistakes,

and we need to rectify them.

We need to work as a community,

to erase laws that suppress,

and to build new laws that lift people up

to be the best version of themselves they can be.

This is not an impossible fever dream. 

It is the dream our ancestors held.

They dreamt of growth,

of learning,

of kindness,

of liberty,

of understanding.

It is the American dream that I hold in my heart.

No, I will not stand for America.

Not yet.

It's a poem for English class. I'm wondering if I should rewrite it considering recent events bc I'm pretty hopeless rn lol. Hopefully i feel better in the morning and finally get around to writing.

Heartbreak - Aiura Birthday Celebration

Mikoto watched the blue-haired girl in front of her with interest. 

"Hey, I ain't judging you, babes. So, love life, huh?" she smiled, watching Teruhashi's face split into a rueful smile.

"Oh, I was just curious!" she exclaimed, avoiding eye contact. Mikoto nodded, reaching out and tilting the crystal ball this way and that. 

"Doesn't seem like you'll date around a lot," Mikoto said. "There's deffo there's someone, though. He-" 

Pink hair.

Aiura froze. Maybe it was someone else...?

The crystal ball slipped from her grasp and shattered with her heart as Kusuo Saiki's purple eyes stared back at her.

Reita Toritsuka - Birthday Celebration

Do you like me?

Yes      Yes

Reita smiled proudly at the new note in his hand, glancing at the new girl in class. She had short, ebony hair and a permanent frown on her face that would be a off-putting to anyone that was less desperate.

He sauntered over to her desk, leaning casually on the wood. "This is for you," he said, slipping it in front of her before he strode away.

And promptly tripped over an invisible force.

His heart sank, glancing up to see the girl staring at him, a familiar smirk glittering in her usually-purple eyes.

I'M SO SORRY THIS IS SO LATE OH MY LORD WRITER'S BLOCK HIT ME LIKE A BRICK SAIKO'S SHOULD BE OUT EVENTUALLY