From the Daily Post:

Would you rather be super intelligent or extremely good looking?

At first glance, this seems like one of those either/or questions that I hate, because they’re a cop-out. Like Would you rather be poor and happy or rich and unhappy?

Are those really the only two choices? Can’t I be rich and happy?

And, if not, I need some details to explain why.

I’m not sure that I could really be happy if I was poor. Sure, I could have happy moments, but if I’m constantly struggling to pay my bills and to buy enough food to eat, worried about keeping a roof over my head, etc., that I’m generally going to be unhappy most of the time.

And I’m not saying that money can buy happiness, but if I’m rich, which means that all of my material needs are taken care of, then that’s going to remove a LOT of potential stress from my life, which should make me pretty happy a signficant amout of time.

So what is it that is making me unhappy if I’m rich? Am paralyzed from the neck down? I think that would pretty much ruin the experience of being rich.

Anyway, so as to the topic at hand. As I mentioned directly in that blog, it also raises some questions.  So since it’s present in such an absolute fashion, does that mean that If I pick one then I will become the total opposite of the other?

Like, If I choose to be super intelligent, will I also be grossly physically deformed?

And if I choose to be extremely good looking, will I be mentally retarded?

Or can I be super intelligent with average looks or extremely good looking with average intelligence?

Well, either way, I think I know what my choice would be: Super intelligent. I’ve actually already explained why I would want to be super intelligent, last June, in my post IF I HAD 3 WISHES. My 2nd hypothetical wish was to have a photographic memory, which I would use to acquire all of the knowledge that I would need to become extremely successful. So that’s basically the same situation as being super intelligent.

And, y’know, if I really were so smart, I’m sure that could make enough money to afford to get any plastic surgery I’d need in order improve my physical appearance, as well as hire personal trainers and cooks to get me into shape. And I could buy designer cloths. So even if I can’t turn myself into Brad Pitt, I’m sure I could make myself look decent enough to attract women (although if I’m rich it probably won’t matter how I look anyway), so intelligence is the way to go. As comedian Ron White said, when discussing his wife’s physical appearance:

If her belly gets too big, she can get a tummy tuck and have a belly like a cheerleader. If her vision goes bad, you can have LASIK surgery and have 20/20 vision. If her hearing goes bad, they can install a device in her ear that will give you hearing as clear as it was the day you were born. But let me tell you something, folks: You can’t fix stupid. There’s not a pill you can take; there’s not a class you can go to. Stupid is forever.

So, absolutely, I’d pick super intelligence.