Hah, just watched the interview and thought he was pretty good.

Honestly though what's bugging me more is that you don't like him because he uses complex words. See, I think it's very disingenuous to compare him to some of the posts you find on /r/iamverysmart. I never heard of it because I don't particularly go out of my way to find self-validation that way, but from what I can guess it's posts of people who think they're smart when they aren't.

You're saying is that Russell Brand isn't smart because he takes a common stance. Thus to summarize your argument is: "Russell Brand takes a common stance, but uses complex words, thus he's not actually that intelligent." Maybe you don't find it that thought provoking because it's an argument we hear fairly commonly, and that's ok. However, don't ever knock a man's grasp of the English language, disdain for perceived intelligence is part of the reason why the dumb American stereotype is around. The English language was formulated that way for story telling, debate, and persuasion and someone who can speak as eloquently as Russell Brand should be applauded. Seriously, the quote about being called trivial and a revolutionary, I wish I was half as graceful in that kind of debate.

Also that's some terrible paraphrasing of his position because he was badgered into giving an alternative by the interviewer who was trying to make his actual positions weaker (he does actually mention some "solutions" and admits that he isn't the most qualified on the topic). His intention wasn't to solve problems he's criticizing within the span of a hotel interview but to gather discussion of his no voting intentions. He also makes some valid points albeit hyperbolic (I'm referring to how the Occupy movements while it didn't start a revolution definitely started a discussion of the 1% that's now omnipresent).

Anyways, if you can get over his use of English I think you should try taking another stab at the interview, especially when you can see how the interviewer is going for cheap shots and how well Russell Brand handled it.