My feeling has always been that dumb people follow the crowd.
But…
I can see that there’s a utility, maybe even a wisdom, in not standing out.
When the vast majority of those around you believe in politics, fawn over a certain genre of entertainment, or otherwise stay inside the pre-approved set of acceptable interests and beliefs, they don't seem happy with you if you're wandering outside the lines.
The fewer of their rituals you participate in, the more suspicious of you they become.
If, for example, "everyone" in society has a self-mutilation fetish- piercings and tattoos- then maybe it is safer to join in. To be part of the tribe and show it.
That’s not me; it's never been me, and I can’t do that. I recognize there's a cost to it, though.
I’m admitting I can see why people do those socially "acceptable" things. Or even why some people would play along when they don't feel it in the depths of their being. It's not even necessarily wrong.
“It's not even necessarily wrong.”
ReplyDeleteTrue, not ‘wrong’ but ethically debasing or degrading and SELF destructive. Deceiving others, while it may be prudent and even necessary for self-defense; engaging in self-deception is corrupting without benefit.