The laws

• Stupid people are always more than you think.
• Someone may be stupid irrespective of other characteristics. He argues stupidity is genetic.
• Cipolla divides human behaviour into two "axes" in a cartesian coordinate system:
  • Benefits and losses that an individual causes to themself.
  • Benefits and losses that an individual causes to others.
  • Out of those "axes" four categories (quadrants) of people are defined:
    • Helpless people suffer losses while others gain from their actions.
    • Intelligent people gain from their actions and others also gain from their actions.
    • Bandits cause losses to others and gains to themselves.
    • Stupid people cause losses to others while gaining nothing for themselves or even losing.
• Non-stupid people always underestimate the damaging power of stupid individuals. To deal and/or associate with stupid people always turns out to be a costly mistake.
  • Stupid people are unwavering in their stupidity.
• The more powerful a stupid person is, the more the damage. It is difficult to fathom their unreasonable behaviour.
• A stupid person is the most dangerous type of person, more than a bandit. Stupid people impoverish society.
  • Societies in decline allow the stupid to take more actions.
  • The helpless and the bandits start veering to stupidity.