"Innumeracy" being the numerical equivalence of "illiteracy", it's astounding to me that most Americans probably wouldn't even recognize the word (thought most numerate people would be able to figure it out pretty quickly). That said, American Thinker is right that the defining quality of a "nerd" is numeracy, not "whiteness" as argued by some social scientist.
The article does not mention the true common characteristic of nerds: they are numerate, i.e. conversant in the language of mathematics - an odd omission for a linguist. This omission can be explained by the fact that Berkeley-style multi-culturalism is threatened by numeracy, the development of which is the hallmark of Western Civilization and the historical wellspring of western economic and military success. Consequently, it is incumbent on multi-culturalists to discredit whenever and wherever possible those who are numerate.
It troubles me to hear people denounce math and proclaim its uselessness in their lives... imagine anyone making the same claims about reading and writing! Sure "math is hard", but achieving basic functional numeracy is well within the ability of an average person, just as is functional literacy -- and numeracy is just as important! Consider: Jesus said more about money than about almost any other topic, and no one can handle money wisely without being numerate.
People who reject numeracy will not thrive in our modern civilization and have the most to gain by tearing it down. Parents who want their children to succeed should focus as much on math as they do on reading, or maybe more considering how poor most primary-level teachers are at basic math.
(HT: Instapundit.)
Update 070801:
To clarify, my point isn't that everyone should love math or be great at it, just that people should have an appreciation for numbers and a basic understanding of how they affect our lives.
