Dumb and dumber, it's time to quit the act, girls

It's the iPhone 6, the latest edition of Grand Theft Auto, the next instalment of Bond. It's the thing we queue around the block for. A commodity. A get-rich-quick trick.

Generation Stupid started back with Jade Goody.

The Big Brother contestant thrilled the nation with statements such as "East Angular's abroad, innit?" and somehow managed to turn bunk into bank.

Glossy magazines, books, perfume and reality TV shows all followed and a generation of girls already blinded by the bling-bling "beauty" of the Wags watched wide-eyed. By the end of her all-too-short life, Jade was one of the most famous women in the country and had earned £5 million.

She was the first. And young girls everywhere had taken notes.

Since then, there's been countless others who've made dumb a day job.

Amy Childs, Jordan, Jessica Simpson, Charlotte Crosby, Chantelle Houghton, Nicole Morris: I could go on and on.

All of the above have somehow managed to turn idiocy into an art form. Their acrylic-tipped claws have slammed shut that dusty old rulebook stating you need intellect, skills and talent to make it in life.

All that giggling, gurgling, hair-flicking gibberish may have made them millions but at what cost? Sure, they've got a Mulberry bag but I'd rather be carrying around some nous.

We're at the stage now where 20-year-old girls don't even know who Barack Obama is.

Cue the world's most ridiculous tweet: "If Barraco Barner is our president why is he getting involved with Russia, scary".

Scary doesn't quite cut it, Gemma. Try petrifying instead.

Miss Worral has since tried to re-assure us that she has 17 GCSEs so there's no need to worry about her general knowledge – but that still doesn't excuse that initial mind-blowing claptrap.

Some people think this is brilliant, that it's absolutely hilarious. They're holding Gemma in some bizarre "Ah bless, look how fabulously stupid she is" esteem.

Well I don't think it's brilliant. I don't think it's all just harmless fun. I think it's bloody depressing.

Anyone who watched EDL Girls: Don't Call Me Racist will know just how depressing a lack of education is. There's nothing funny or harmless about young girls being brainwashed and spoon-fed information so staggeringly incorrect you don't know whether to laugh or cry.

And while the straining system needs to take some of the responsibility, it's down to the girls themselves.

Being stupid – sometimes dressed up with the word "ditzy" – isn't a badge of honour. It doesn't make you adorable. It doesn't make you more attractive to the opposite sex. It does make you susceptible to all kinds of dangers, set-backs and restrictions.

So come on: open a book, go to that lecture, pay attention in class, question, challenge, learn.

Brains make you beautiful, but more than that, they set you free.