Idiot is a word derived from the Greek ἰδιώτης, idiōtēs ("person lacking professional skill," "a private citizen," "individual"), from ἴδιος, idios ("private," "one's own").[1] In Latin the word idiota ("ordinary person, layman") preceded the Late Latin meaning "uneducated or ignorant person."[2] Its modern meaning and form dates back to Middle English around the year 1300, from the Old French idiote ("uneducated or ignorant person"). The related word idiocy dates to 1487 and may have been analogously modeled on the words prophet[3] and prophecy.[4][5] The word has cognates in many other languages.
History
"Idiot" was originally created to refer to "layman, person lacking professional skill", "person so mentally deficient as to be incapable of ordinary reasoning".[6][7] Declining to take part in public life, such as democratic government of the polis (city state), such as the Athenian democracy, was considered dishonorable. "Idiots" were seen as having bad judgment in public and political matters. Over time, the term "idiot" shifted away from its original connotation of selfishness and came to refer to individuals with overall bad judgment–individuals who are "stupid". In modern English usage, the terms "idiot" and "idiocy" describe an extreme folly or stupidity, and its symptoms (foolish or stupid utterance or deed). In psychology, it is a historical term for the state or condition now called profound mental retardation.[8]
Disability
In 19th and early 20th century medicine and psychology, an "idiot" was a person with a very severe mental retardation, or a very low IQ level, as a sufferer of cretinism, defining idiots as people whose IQ were below 20 (with a standard deviation of 16).
In current medical classification, these people are now said to have profound mental retardation, and the word "idiot" is no longer used as a scientific term.
United States law
Until 2007, the California Penal Code Section 26 stated that "Idiots" were one of six types of people who are not capable of committing crimes. In 2007 the code was amended to read "persons who are mentally incapacitated."[9]
In several states, "idiots" do not have the right to vote:
- Arkansas Article III, Section 5[10]
- Iowa Article II, section 5[11]
- Kentucky Section 145[12]
- Mississippi Article 12, Section 241[13]
- New Mexico Article VII, section 1[14]
- Ohio (Article V, Section 6)[15]
or in short:
The Montenegro Driver
Martin was right when he warned me. The people here drive like complete morons, idiots. Not uneducated, but complete brain dead.
I have never ever (so far) seen people behaving so stupid than drivers in Montenegro.
I have a special aftermarket brake light on my bike, you really really can't miss it even when I hit the brakes. These idiots still managed to almost rear end me about 50 times that day.
Here's what happend, every single time: I was behind traffic, but still fairly fast. They would come up superfast, I touche the brake from far away, to show them that they are coming up a bit fast. They would keep the speed until they are literally a couple feet behind, then hit the brakes so hard that the rubber was smoking, the car was waiving.
Then I look into the mirror to take a closer look at them and all I would see,everytime, and I swear this is true, was the guy sitting behind the wheel with the look of a deer in the headlights. Like a robot...
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