BY: DAIMAN TEER for: The Simpleton Star
Look, I’ve been scrolling through Facebook for years now, and if there’s one thing that’s clearer than a MAGA hat at a rally, it’s this: the Dunning-Kruger Effect is alive and kicking harder on the left side of my feed than anywhere else.
For those who don’t know – and trust me, if you’re posting wild anti-Trump rants, you might not – the Dunning-Kruger effect is basically when dumb people think they’re geniuses. It’s named after these two psychologists, Dunning and Kruger, who figured out that the less you know, the more you overestimate your smarts.
Think of that guy at the bar who swears he’s a chess master after one game of checkers. And on social media? It’s epidemic, especially among my left-wing friends who can’t go a single day without dropping some bonkers hot take on Trump.
I’m not here to bash anyone politically – okay, maybe a little – but let’s be real. I’ve known these folks forever, long before Trump even thought about running. Their lives were trainwrecks back then: bouncing from job to job, relationships imploding like fireworks, and always one conspiracy theory away from tinfoil hats.
Fast-forward to 2026, and nothing’s changed except now Trump’s the eternal villain in their unhinged narratives. Meanwhile, my conservative associates in social media? They’re posting about their kids’ soccer games, a funny or perhaps pushy pro-Trump meme every blue moon, or maybe a fishing trip. Basically, it’s provincially productive, normal stuff. No drama, no meltdowns. It’s like comparing a well-oiled machine to a clown car on fire.
Take one of my left-leaning Facebook friends -a classic Dunning-Kruger case study. This person’s got a college education ( I think) works a ho-hum job, and their life’s a mess – always has been. But online? They’re a political savant, or so they think. Just last week, January 19, 2026, they posted this timely gem: “I’ve SEEN pictures of Trump getting peed on by Chinese prostitutes! Wake up, sheeple!” I kid you not. I thought I had been time-warped back to 2015.
I messaged them privately: “Where’d you see these pics? Send a link.” Crickets. Turns out, it was a “meme” from some sketchy TikTok account, probably AI-generated nonsense. But in their mind, they’re Woodward and Bernstein uncovering Watergate 2.0. That’s Dunning-Kruger in action.
These lefties overestimate their expertise because they don’t know enough to realize how little they know. They read one BuzzFeed article or watch an MS(NBC) clip and boom—they’re experts on geopolitics, economics, and psychology.
Trump says something off-the-cuff? It’s “literal fascism!” Mind you, if you ask this person the meaning a fascism, they wouldn’t really know.
Trump eats a burger? He’s destroying the planet and he must submit to a thorough cardiovascular workup! Cue the 25th Ammendment, stat.
Never mind that their “facts” are half-baked memes or echo-chamber shares. And then there’s the irony. they call conservatives “low-information voters” while spewing insanity that would make a flat-Earther start thinking about round stuff.
Don’t get me wrong, conservatives aren’t immune. I’ve seen a few QAnon weirdos on the right, but on my feed? Rare. My MAGA friends are builders, teachers, small business owners—folks with real lives who don’t need to virtue-signal every five minutes. They post a “Trump 2024” sticker (even if it’s 2026 now) or a joke about Biden’s naps, but it’s almost always light-hearted.
No one’s claiming Trump was abducted by aliens or whatever fresh delusion the left cooks up.
Why the difference? Maybe it’s because conservatives I know are grounded in reality—jobs, families, community. The lefties? They’re often the ones with too much time, scrolling in their echo bubbles, convinced their outrage makes them intellectuals.
Psychologically, Dunning-Kruger thrives in environments like social media, where likes and shares validate stupidity. You post something dumb, your like-minded friends pile on with “This!” “Facts!!” and suddenly you’re a thought leader. But step outside that bubble? Crumble.
I once witness a lefty friend who swore Trump was “colluding with Putin to steal the election—again!”
The Dunning-Kruger Effect creates this new Everest, a place you climb while thinking you’re at the peak of knowledge, but really, you’re just high on your own ignorance.
The truly smart folks? They’re down in the Valley of Despair, aware of how much they don’t know, so they shut up or research first.
It’s funny in a sad way. These posts are unintentional comedy gold—like watching a toddler lecture on quantum physics. But it’s exhausting. Every day, my feed’s flooded with “Trump’s a Nazi!” or “He’s starting WWIII with his tweets!” (He hasn’t tweeted per se in years, guys). And these are from people whose biggest achievement is surviving their own bad choices. Meanwhile, I’m over here, muting notifications, wondering why I bother.
If there’s a lesson, it’s this: Check your ego, folks. Before posting that next anti-Trump screed, ask: Do I actually know what I’m talking about? Or am I just another Dunning-Kruger statistic? Because from where I’m sitting, the real dummies aren’t the ones you think. They’re the ones yelling loudest about how smart they are. And trust me, in 2026, that pee tape still ain’t real.
Thessalonians 2:10-12
“…because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”
This verse warns of people who delight in falsehood, leading to divine permission for deeper deception rather than repentance and truth.
LET US PRAY:
Heavenly Father, shield us from the peril of embracing lies over Your eternal truth, lest delusion harden our hearts. Expose and protect us from deceivers like people who still talk about Chinese pee prostitutes and Russian collusion. Grant discernment to reject falsehood, cling to Christ the Truth, and walk in righteousness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
