Your not actually getting dumber, you are just realizing how much you don't know.
Here is a link to a thread that is a sticky up in the HAM antenna section, it talks about take off angles. It is a good read.
The Myth Surrounding Antenna Take Off Angles
This is how it is done. Think of it like a 4 foot car antenna, it has a coil/matching network to keep it resonant as a 1/4 wave antenna, yet the antenna is much shorter than 1/4 wavelength. The actual length of the antenna and not the electrical length at a frequency determines the radiation pattern.
Ground mounted verticals need all of those radials. As the actual ground (as in the earth) makes a very inefficient ground plane, those radials are used to increase the conductivity of that ground.
In your case, with raised radials above a few feet off of the ground, it will make far less difference. You can add them, and they shouldn't hurt anything, but I don't think you will get much of a benefit from them either. That being said, if I had them I would likely put them up anyway. They will increase the wind drag load on your antenna, if you see that as a drawback. As another drawback you may have to adjust the radial length some as the radials do react with each other when it comes to tuning, and you have more then the original design specs.
The other half of the antenna in your case are the radials. One thing they are supposed to do is help decouple the mast/wire below them from the antenna.
You will note with a dipole that both sides are tuned lengths. A mast is not, I suppose you could try and tune the length of the feed line with a choke at an appropriate point. Also, the radiation from the mast/feed line in most setups works counter to the radiation from the antenna.
My linked instructions? 
Did you mean:
Odd, when I quoted it it changes the name on the attachment... It should have said "Master Chief's Instruction on the V58.pdf", maybe it will update itself.
The DB
