"To desire and expect nothing for oneself, and to have profound sympathy for others is genuine holiness." - Ivan Turgenev

I've mentioned that I typically have Pandora going while I'm out in the garage working on the truck. I'm too cheap to spring for the subscription version so my music is interrupted every 20 minutes or so for a 15-second commercial. One of the most frequent is from Luminosity. If you've never heard of that outfit, they're an online company that offers brain games designed to improve your mental skills. Their ad says when you sign up you'll take a 5-minute test they'll score to give you a baseline, and then they'll show you how you compare to other Luminosity participants from all over the world.

I have a strong negative reaction to that last part. It feels like a combination of snotty arrogance ("I scored better than....") and, on the flip side, an opportunity for humiliation based on IQ ("Oh man. I'm stupider than most people").

I've known some really smart individuals who were Class A jerks, and some who weren't shining intellects but possessed character and compassion in outsized measure. Having a high IQ is a little like having big biceps, except more socially valued. (My monster guns get me nothing but rude stares.)

After decades of overvaluing jocks we've shifted to worshiping the brilliant. TV magazine shows run segments on 6-year old math wizards, the H.S. senior who got accepted to all eight Ivy League schools is the new star QB, and Jeopardy nerds wear that descriptor proudly.

That's why this pic from today's Time.com caught my attention. It was attached to an article about those who oppose standardized tests, a key element of Common Core. That program is a hot topic that will get plenty of attention in this election cycle, a good thing. But the debate will center on whether or not the federal govt. should have authority over what has traditionally been a local matter. What won't get discussed is our current glorification of intellectual strength.

In my ideal world we'll work through this obsession with intellectual acuity, Luminosity will go the way of Beanie Babies, and character and compassion will be the new must-have characteristics. Someone will create a company that will test your mastery of seven or eight virtues and give you activities to increase your compassion toward others. Once a week you'll be challenged to be a better person, regardless of your physical or intellectual abilities.

They'll call it...."church."