Uneducated fools can be found in every country and every period of history, and they are not unknown in high office. What is unusual about todays Republican party (I disavow the ridiculous GOP nickname, because the party of Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt has lately forfeited all claim to be considered grand) is this: In any other party and in any other country, an individual may occasionally rise to the top in spite of being an uneducated ignoramus. In todays Republican Party in spite of is not the phrase we need. Ignorance and lack of education are positive qualifications, bordering on obligatory. Intellect, knowledge and linguistic mastery are mistrusted by Republican voters, who, when choosing a president, would apparently prefer someone like themselves over someone actually qualified for the job.